Rumor suggests that Apple will be marketing the foldable iPhone to a younger audience

The drumbeats are getting louder and all of the previous patent applications are telling us that Apple is indeed working on a foldable iPhone. At the end of last year, the buzz around the water color suggested that Apple had contract manufacturer Foxconn put two different foldable versions through their QC tests. One of the prototypes reportedly resembled the Samsung Galaxy Fold with a folding mechanism that is similar to opening and closing a book. This device turns a smartphone into a tablet when opened.

The other form factor being tested, and the one that Apple has allegedly been in favor of using, is a flip-style foldable similar to the Motorola Razr and the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip. This design would allow an iPhone to fit securely in a pocket until needed; at that point, the unit would flip open to reveal a large-screened iPhone. Today, tipster Jon Prosser of Front Page Tech seconded something that we had mentioned in a previous story and in the first line of this paragraph; namely that Apple is leaning toward the clamshell flip design for the foldable iPhone. If true, we might find the world a little less tense and angry. After all, hanging up on a call by slamming close the phone releases some anger and tension.

Prosser's sources couldn't give him a reason why Apple picked one foldable design over the other but did say that the clamshell form factor is getting most of the attention from Apple (and we'd assume Foxconn as well). The tipster did say that Apple is looking to offer its clamshell foldable in a variety of colors. And these won't be just any colors. Prosser refers to them as "fun colors" which calls to mind the brighter vivid hues of the iPhone 12 models as compared to the iPhone 12 Pro units. This suggests that Apple will target its flip phone to a younger audience that might be suffering after buying GameStop at $300 and selling it at $60. In other words, these potential buyers might not be loaded with cash. That doesn't mean that Apple will be giving the phone away, but it could be tagged with a lower price than expected. If you remember how Polaroid marketed its Swinger camera in the mid-1960s, perhaps Apple will take the same tact and market the "iPhone Flip" toward the younger generation. Apple tried a similar campaign with the Apple iPhone 5c which was offered in blue, green, pink, yellow, and white.

While some of the previous rumors about the foldable iPhone call for a launch next year, Prosser says that the project is not that far along to be ready for a 2022 release. So if a foldable iPhone is on your mind, you might have to hold on for at least another year to 2023 before it arrives.

Apple reportedly ordered foldable panels from Samsung Display for testing and we'd expect the South Korean firm to supply Apple with most of the panels needed for the device. After all, Samsung Display already is the leading provider of such glass worldwide.