Could there be a foldable Apple smartphone on the horizon?
The company’s main rival seems to think so.
In a recent interview, Samsung’s mobile boss James Kitto made the prediction, while also taking a not-so-subtle swipe at the tech giant.
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“They always lag behind quite significantly in terms of innovation. I’m sure our friends in America will eventually cotton on,” Kitto told the Evening Standard.
“Maybe they’ll even join the flip side,” he said in reference to Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 5, a device that shuts in half like a clam.
Foldables aren’t new, in fact, they’ve been around for years thanks in large to Samsung’s efforts.
But they have struggled to take hold outside of Asia.
So, it does seem rather obvious that Apple could feature a foldable device in its product lineup in the future.
After all, it’s the only major smartphone maker yet to embrace foldables – but there could be a good reason for that.
According to tech research firm Canalys, the market for foldable phones accounts for one percent of all smartphones shipped globally in 2023.
That hasn’t stopped Apple from filing a patent for such a device, though.
Analysts strongly believe the tech giant holds the key to mainstream adoption of bendy phones.
They’ve even gone as far to say they predict a device could arrive as soon as next year.
But when it does, it could well be a folding iPad rather than an iPhone.
Irrespective of the device type, Apple will have to move quick because Samsung already has bigger plans.
Kitto said that by the end of the decade, Samsung’s smartphones will come in a range of form factors beyond foldables and flat phones.
The company’s already filed numerous patents for smartphones with rollablem, scrollable and slideable displays.
