07.02.2025
Apple moved its long-rumored foldable iPhone into its prototyping phase with suppliers last month ahead of a launch scheduled for next year, DigiTimes reports. According to supply chain sources speaking
According to supply chain sources speaking to DigiTimes, Apple began its initial Prototype 1 (P1) phase in June. The device should complete prototype testing by the end of 2025 and then proceed to the Engineering Verification Test (EVT) stage, ahead of launch in the second half of 2026.
The P1 phase is followed by P2 and P3 phases before EVT. Each prototyping stage takes around two months. During this time, Apple's supply chain partners conduct limited trial runs before handing over assembly responsibilities to primary iPhone assemblers Foxconn and Pegatron, who will validate production yields and manufacturability.
The development status of the first foldable iPhone is now in line with the timeline of its other products, with P1 to P3 stages taking place around a year before Apple needs to start EVT, Design Verification Test (DVT), and eventually Mass Production (MP). The iPhone 17 lineup apparently concluded its EVT phase in the second quarter of this year.
DigiTimes added that Apple has paused work on a foldable iPad, which was originally expected to launch around the time of the foldable iPhone. The company's reasoning for this apparently includes manufacturing difficulties, increased production costs related to flexible display technology, and low consumer demand for big-screen foldables.
Apple's first foldable iPhone is currently likely to launch alongside the iPhone 18 lineup in the fall of 2026.
Tags: DigiTimes, Foldable iPhone
This article, "Foldable iPhone Development Progressing Ahead of 2026 Launch" first appeared on MacRumors.com
Discuss this article in our forums
You may also be interested in this
Apple Starts Selling Refu…
09.19.2023
Apple today added the M2 Ultra Mac Pro models to its online store for refurbished products in the United States, offering the newest version of the desktop machine at a
The MacRumors Show: WWDC …
03.29.2024
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss all of the rumors surrounding WWDC 2024 and iOS 18. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos
Apple Releases First Beta…
10.23.2024
Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, and macOS Sequoia 15.2 updates to developers for testing purposes. The betas have been released while Apple is
iPhone 18’s Advance…
06.23.2025
Next year's iPhone 18 will use TSMC's next-generation 2-nanometer fabrication process in combination with an advanced new packaging method, and the world's leading pure-play foundry has reportedly already established a
iPhone 16 Battery Compari…
09.10.2024
With the iPhone 16 lineup, Apple has increased battery life for all models compared to the prior-generation iPhone 15 models. Battery life is up at least an hour for each
iPhone 16 Models on Cours…
11.09.2023
Apple at WWDC 2024 will reveal a turbo-charged version of Siri powered by large language models (LLMs) that will debut in iOS 18, but some new cutting-edge generative AI features
Gurman: Refreshed High-En…
07.23.2023
The Mac mini and high-end MacBook Pro will not be among the first wave of Macs to launch with the M3 chip later this year, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Testing the New ASUS ProA…
02.12.2025
There aren't too many 5K displays on the market that can compete with Apple's Studio Display, but ASUS recently came out with the ASUS ProArt Display 5K, which is a
