Foldable iPhone, closer to becoming reality: what the rumors say about the new Apple project

In recent years, brands such as Samsung, Huawei, Oppo, Motorola or Xiaomi Various mobile devices with foldable screens have been launched on the market. Manzanabenchmark in the industry, has remained on the sidelines of this design, but the recent registration of a patent allegedly exposed the plans of the manzanita company.

A new request published by the American site insidersof March 16, confirmed that the Apple company is very clear that a The foldable screen iPhone will be part of the future of its ecosystem of products.

In particular, this cutting-edge device for the brand would be equipped with a special system to avoid serious damage to the screen if the device falls to the ground.

The “Self-Retractable Display Device and Techniques to Protect the Display Using Fall Detection” application suggests that a device should include a fall detector or “accelerometer”. In this way, this probable iPhone with a folding screen would activate an unlock mechanism a “withdraw it automatically”.

On the other hand, it is possible that if the device gets close to a surface or the ground it will not have time to close completely.

The patent application states that “even bending the screen less than 180 degrees can provide some protection because the mobile device may hit the edges of the mobile device rather than the screen itself.”

What is known about Apple’s foldable iPhone

Speculation on a phone with this type of OLED display it has been circulating on the Internet for six years; While without any official confirmation from Apple.

So far, several patent applications have been filed showing what this device would look like once it hits the market.

An early design involved a bulge near the top of the phone so the user could access components like the camera, but without opening it.

Ben Wood, head of research at CCS Insight, told CNBC last October that a foldable iPhone would likely sell for From 2500 dollars. That’s nearly $1,000 more than the pricier iPhone 14 Pro Max, which costs up to $1,599, or the $1,799 Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4, one of the best-selling foldables in the world.

The patent filings don’t mean Apple has any plans to start making a foldable iPhone, but they do indicate that the company is considering implementing the concept in its popular line of mobile devices.

On the other hand, foldable phones are still a small fraction of the global smartphone marketwith just over 14 million sold last year, according to data from market analyst firm Canalys.

Samsung leads the trend, which accounted for 62% of the global market for this class of foldable smartphones in June, followed by Huawei and Oppo. Meanwhile, analysts at Counterpoint estimate that foldable phone shipments will reach more than 22 million units in 2023, up 52% ​​from last year.