What you need to know
- Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says Apple will ship an 8-inch foldable iPhone in 2023.
- Kuo believes Apple will ship up to 20 million units.
Apple will launch a new 8-inch foldable iPhone in 2023 and ship up to 20 million units of the device according to a new report.
Respected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, in a new research note seen by iMore, Kuo says that he expects "that the shipment of foldable iPhones in 2023 will be 15-20 million units." That's based on their latest industry survey, according to the note, with a folding 8-inch QHD+ flexible OLED display thought to be in the works.
While other companies like Samsung and Huawei already have foldable devices already on the market with more in the works, Kuo believes that Apple is particularly well placed to take advantage of the growing foldable trend thanks to its "cross-product ecosystems and hardware design advantages." The first foldable with an Apple logo looks set to open up to an iPad-sized 8-inch screen, but Kuo appears to be pointing to more ambitious devices arriving in the future.
That idea opens the door to a MacBook that folds to become an iPad, for example. We could also see a 12.9-inch iPad Pro folding ton become something a little more portable in the future, too.
Previous fodlable iPhone rumors have Apple working on various devices, although a launch window of 2022 or 2023 is one that has cropped up multiple times before. But with Kuo of the belief that future foldables will "will blur the product separation between mobile phones, tablets and notebooks," it's the hardware that comes after 2023 that has me the most excited right now.
One thing's for sure, it's looking likely that the best iPhone in 2023 is going to be foldable for the first time.
