- Apple’s foldable iPhone could take a 22% share of the foldable market
- It’s expected to launch a strong challenge to existing foldable devices
- Despite that, there are three main things that worry me about it
By this point, almost anyone with a passing interest in phone tech knows that Apple is working on a foldable iPhone, with the device set to shake up the industry – and grab 22% of the market, according to IDC – when it arrives in late 2026. Knowing Apple, there’s every chance its foldable could leapfrog its rivals when it touches down, but first-gen models are also rarely perfect.
Based on the rumors so far, there are a few things that could seriously hamper its popularity. Apple is no stranger to duds in recent years – Apple Intelligence and the Vision Pro headset immediately spring to mind – and there are several glaring pitfalls that the company will need to avoid.
For me, if any of the following three elements are present in the foldable iPhone, I’ll be giving it a wide berth.
1. A sky-high price
There’s no way around it: foldable phones cost a king’s ransom. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, which is our pick of the best foldable phones on the market, starts at $1,999 / £1,799 / AU$2,899, while the OnePlus Open – considered a ‘budget’ foldable – will cost you at least $1,699 / £1,599 (around AU$3,200) from OnePlus. Apple’s upcoming foldable is likely to blow past even those pricey figures, though, with many analysts predicting it could cost between $2,000 and $2,500.
Unfortunately, an exorbitant price tag feels almost inevitable given what we know about Apple. The firm often prices its devices a little higher than the competition, and while that’s not always the case, I can see it happening with something like the foldable iPhone considering how much high-end tech is rumored for this phone. If the asking price is in the $2,500 region, that’s me out.
2. A visible seam
Ever since they first appeared on the seam – err, scene – foldable phones have had an eye-catching drawback: a noticeable crease down the center of the display. In some cases, this gets worse over time, but even if it doesn’t, it’s a distracting imperfection that belies the enormous cost of these devices.
Rumors suggest that Apple is close to eliminating this seam from its own foldable, and knowing the company’s perfectionist tendencies, I wouldn’t be surprised to see it succeed in this area. But if it doesn’t and the crease is still glaringly obvious in use, I’ll be skipping the foldable iPhone.
Such an obvious imperfection would be galling after having shelled out so much hard-earned cash on what’s meant to be the pinnacle of Apple’s phone range.
3. Poor battery life
One thing a lot of people underestimate with foldables is battery life challenges. Unlike any of the best smartphones, foldable products have to power multiple screens at the same time. If you want them to be big and bright, that’s a lot of juice just going into keeping the displays switched on (never mind all the additional power required by the chip, apps and other elements).
Apple’s best iPhones are no battery power laggards, but their Android rivals often top the charts. That makes me a little nervous in the run-up to the foldable iPhone’s release date, as the last thing I want is for my expensive purchase to power down before the day is even done.
To give you an idea, our Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 tests found that its battery life is in somewhere is around 11 hours (with continuous web browsing). By comparison, our similar iPhone Air battery tests produced a figure of 12 hours – that’s while web surfing over 5G continuously with the screen brightness at 150 nits.
That’s pretty decent and I’m hoping Apple’s recent work in the iPhone Air has helped it develop compact, powerful batteries for the foldable iPhone. If battery life is underwhelming despite those advances, though, I’ll be reluctant to take the plunge.
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alexblake.techradar@gmail.com (Alex Blake)
