I’ve no interest in a phone that folds. It’s just going to be thicker, and more fragile. Give me an external swappble battery and hardware cutoff switches for wireless and camera. A microSD slot. And ffs, the ability to have both my owned music files and Apple Music files on my phone at the same time (seriously, wtf, not everything is on Apple Music—is there a way?!)
If the foldable screen could be more robust, and the fold could be truly invisible when unfolded, I could see it being useful for some people as a phone-tablet hybrid.
Unfortunately features like hardware kill switches will probably always be too niche for a mainstream flagship.
I don't understand why there's a lot of hate here for a product people don't have to buy lol. I think foldable phones are neat.
Foldable displays are still relatively new technology and they have their downsides. People these days are very unforgiving of early tech. Everything has to be just be perfect from version 1 for people complain, but that's not possible. You can't perfect a product in isolation, you have to have earlier versions on the market to be able to find where the problems are.
I just don't listen to them.
If the Model One Ford came out these days they'd complain it was too slow.
I have a friend with a foldable phone and it works wrt screen. The thing I can’t get over is the thickness because it seems too thick for a back pocket.
I personally believe it's not supposed to be pocketed but to be backpacked. They're trying to encourage less phone usage, you should use your watch for immediate notifications and only get your phone out to use it for taking a picture, drawing something with the apple pencil or another task that requires a phone. Most everything else should be done by the watch though.
I have one and it fits in my front pockets. I have never put my phone in my back pocket. Why would I? How would you sit down lol
Also you're clearly not apple's target market so you being frustrated by their choices is negligible to them.
I haven't tried for a while but I'm pretty sure you can store your own music files on all Apple devices and listen to them via Apple Music.
Agreed. Being able to fold the device is popular because of the novelty but I argue they're overall objectively worse devices than non-folding one with the same price and form factor would be. I'll much rather have a flat slab in my pocket than a compact cube. There's not a chance a folding device will withstand daily use for 6+ years.
The one I have has really come a long way. I'm using it without a case. I've dropped it several times from a decent height. I was using it's light at work to show a hole in a wall to my coworker and he jammed a blunt piece of steel into its exterior screen with serious force. Not a scratch.
The only way flagship phones will ever get swappable batteries is if the EU mandates that.
Sad, but true.
I wonder what they're actually developing since we all know they're going to get the screen from Samsung.
"A new and revolutionary way of having a multi dimensional phone, the first ever of it's kind, it doesn't fold, it creases at the right points to give you more space than ever."
I kind of want to rolling phone. That would get rid of the crease problem. If you put a sensor in the roller you could have the software automatically adapt the screen size to how much of the screen is out.
Ooh, like it pulls out of a little scroll case, and is stiff once it comes out like a tape measure.
The hinge and everything else involved in the folding process probably. Like every other foldable.
Apple will do what it always does, and launch any new product as and when it feels it has solved the problems raised by new product categories, and has something it believes is better than existing products.
Hahah. As long as you don't hold your phone wrong or put it in your jeans pocket.
Apple will do what it always does, and launch any new product as and when it feels it ~~has solved the problems raised by new product categories, and has something it believes is better than existing products.~~ can extract the maximum margins while offering the minimum necessary to be viewed as premium by their customer base.
There, fixed it.
We surpassed peak Apple years ago.
I’m hoping after Tim retires that actual innovation returns.
Capitalism can only innovate in making more money
Apple's stock price would disagree with you there
I wouldn't mind foldable phones having two separate screens with a minor gap between them - you'd avoid getting an ugly growing crease over time like with the current screens, and with a proper hinge design you could make them thinner too probably
Like the Microsoft Duo?
There are already a few folding things like that on the market but they're not as popular. People seem to put up with the crease more than they're prepared to put up with a gap. Mostly because with a crease you can still have a full tablet like experience.
But it's always nice to have options.
This bothers me a bit because I absolutely love my current gen horizontal fold phone. The crease isn't ugly or growing in the year or so I've had it. You can feel it, but I got used to that in days.
Foldables are shit when your sweat is so aggressive it destroys the plastic
Can I just get a phone with serviceable battery, analog audio jack, and support of the stupid apps I am required to use in society for more than 3 years?
Haha. No. But you can get an ever increasing phone where everything is soldered and glued. Also we removes the charging port.
can't wait for apple fans to treat this as a huge innovation in 2027
Great, because phones aren't expensive or fragile enough.
I suppose it might actually be a more sturdy iPhone. The biggest problem iPhones have is that Apple insist on making the screen out of tempered glass, rather than something a bit more hard wearing. So when you sneeze on it, it cracks.
Folding displays have to be made out of plastic which is actually more durable if more prone to scratching. So you'd end up with a slightly more scratched phone but a less broken one. Plus the delicate plastic screen is always going to be folded up in on itself, so it's protected from scratches as well.
Of course Apple will probably make it without any bezels thus negating everything I just said. All for aesthetics.
“Some” Vision Pro engineers. Sounds like they’re all going from that headline.
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