Apple could have a ‘Flip’ on its hands with iPhone
Apple isn’t just planning to fold with iPhone, it’s also planning to flip it, new speculation claims.
That’s the claim emanating from 9-5 Mac, which reckons the company is developing a flipping devices to follow up the as yet unconfirmed iPhone Fold.
If it folds, it flips
Citing a Chinese leak, the report submits that Apple has already officially tested a flip style iPhone but hasn’t decided if it intends to move forward with such a device. Theres little information beyond that.
The world’s best-selling flip phone was the Motorola RAZR V3. This appeared in 2004 and sold 130 million units worldwide before Apple changed the entire industry with the iPhone three years later.
In its prime, the Motorola device quickly became a fashion statement in part because it was shockingly thin for its time (13.9mm when closed). It felt sleek, metallic, and minimalistic, had a futuristic keypad and used premium materials. The hinge had a satisfying snap, it used glass and aluminium, had a tiny screen, slow software, average battery life and a mediocre camera.
And became the ultimate status symbol for phone users.
Can Apple beat that?
It may have its work cut out to do so, given both Motorola and Samsung still make flip phones.
All the same, Apple has some magic tricks the others lack, principally in software, image editing, and, of course with Apple Silicon. The latter makes it deeply possible that the company could pack a huge amount of power into any folding iPhone it came up with.
I suppose a lot now depends on how well the iPhone Fold performs, not just in terms of sales, but also in terms of how resilient the fold turns out to be. If Apple has got it right and created a fold that can take a lot of pressure then the timing might be right for an iPhone Flip.
If it does it will look to be extraordinarily dust resistant (so no holes), boast a really tough hinge, and deliver best in class battery life. Apple Silicon gives it a big advantage there.
Apple may also think a little outside the box, perhaps making the outer display genuinely useful, which is evidently something it could do already. It could potentially offer Apple Watch style complications, for example; or it could be offer up camera preview modes so you could just point it and get that snap.
(If Apple does plan something like this, it will be worth watching its adventures in camera lens tech in the coming 12 months, as the company will ultimately want to deliver cutting edge camera features others can’t match, and certainly has the opportunity to do so. See it as the flip side of iPhone fold)
Plus, of course, in use, it’s all got to feel completely intuitive, or, at least, as intuitive as iOS 26 or later will be.
It’s hard to say if Apple will do it. It is clear the company could do it. If it did, it would probably sell many millions. But I guess the fate of the iPhone Fold is what we should all be watching for as we wait on its arrival hopefully later this year.
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