Apple insider confirms that iPhone Fold will ship after iPhone 18 Pro series
Mark Gurman says that there is no doubt that the iPhone Fold will be released after the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
Insider confirms delayed shipping for foldable iPhone. | Image by PhoneArena
We've already heard the rumors about Apple shipping the iPhone Fold later in the year after the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are delivered in September. This bit of speculation has been confirmed by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, who is as much an Apple insider as any journalist can be. During a live Q&A session Gurman was asked about the expected release of the iPhone Fold later this year.
Apple will release the iPhone Fold a little after the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max models according to Gurman
Gurman says that there is "no doubt" that the iPhone Fold will be released a little after the September shipping of the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. Previously, it was thought that the first foldable iPhone would be made available not too long after the September event that unveils the device along with the new iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. But a Barclays analyst last week floated the idea that the iPhone Fold won't be delivered until December, three months after the new iPhone 18 Pro series handsets become available.
Gurman blames the delay on the complex production process needed to manufacture the foldable internal displays on the iPhone Fold. He also noted that whenever Apple releases a product with a new, complex form factor design, the new model is released a little after the other models. A good example of this is the iPhone X, which was introduced alongside the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus on September 12, 2017.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman is as close to being an Apple insider as any journalist can be. | Image by Bloomberg
The iPhone 8 series was released on September 22, 2017; however, the complexity of manufacturing the first OLED iPhone display, and the TrueDepth camera system (which includes Face ID), forced Apple to delay the release of the iPhone X until November 3, 2017. The iPhone Fold could have a starting price above $2,000 making it the most expensive iPhone ever. During the Q & A, Gurman says that the iPhone Fold (or whatever the device will ultimately be called) is one of the Apple products that he has been most excited about over the last four or five years.
Apple will focus on using the creaseless internal screen for video content and game playing
The Bloomberg scribe seems to be excited about the creaseless display that will reportedly be found inside the iPhone Fold, and the size of said screen. Gurman says that Apple will focus on using the internal screen for viewing video content and for gaming. Gurman says that he is "super pumped" when it comes to the foldable iPhone. He sees the phone doing very well for Apple and expects it to help the iPhone 18 Pro series also do well. The iPhone Fold will really help Apple's bottom line, according to the Managing Editor for Global Consumer Tech at Bloomberg.
For those wondering why Apple is using Touch ID and not Face ID for its first foldable iPhone, Gurman has a response. He points out that the thickness of the module needed to create 3D images for secure facial recognition makes it impossible for Apple to include it with the first iPhone Fold. Similar to Touch ID on the iPad Air, the fingerprint sensor will be integrated into the power button on top of the iPhone Fold. Gurman believes that Apple will eventually be able to fit Face ID into a foldable iPhone although he believes that it could take, at least, a couple of years. Still, it is something he sees as "a matter of time."
Gurman reveals the feature that will get the brightest spotlight at WWDC
Changing subjects, the "stickiness" of iPhone was briefly discussed. Even though Apple has made it easier to move to Android, Gurman says that many iPhone users don't want to lose things like their group chats to move from iOS to Android. When asked what we can expect at WWDC 2026, which will be held the week of June 8th, Mark says that Apple's new chatbot will receive much of the spotlight.
Expected to be launched with iOS 27, the Siri chatbot will be a rival to OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google's Gemini, and other AI apps.
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