Did you know that Apple is the second most popular foldable brand in the US? It’s true, at least according to a survey from nearly a year ago… even though the Cupertino-based tech giant was not involved in the Samsung-dominated market segment in any capacity at that point, a situation that hasn’t changed to this date and is not expected to change until 2026 at the earliest.
That’s right, if a highly requested foldable “iDevice” were to ever come out, that’s unlikely to happen for at least two more years. In line with previous speculation on the matter, a hot new report from South Korea (translated here) is today predicting Apple’s rookie Galaxy Z Fold-rivaling effort will be marketed as a foldable iPad rather than an “iPhone Fold”, although the lines between the two categories could be blurred and move one step closer to disappearing altogether.
Is the iPad mini on the verge of extinction?
The Elec’s “industry” sources certainly seem to think so, but it’s pretty clear that nothing is etched in stone just yet and Apple itself may not have thought that far ahead… very seriously for now.
But if the first-ever foldable iPad will indeed sit in the “late 7-inch to early 8-inch range”, discontinuing the “traditional” iPad mini might make sense. After all, Samsung doesn’t sell anything with a screen size very close to the 7.6-inch Galaxy Z Fold 5 either.
Apple’s first foldable device could be slightly bigger than the Galaxy Z Fold 5 (pictured here in all its glory).
Of course, one obvious obstacle hindering such a potential strategy shift on Apple’s part is the price point of this totally mysterious “iPad Fold”, which we’re absolutely sure will exceed how much an 8.3-inch iPad mini (2021) costs by a lot. Then there’s the tiny detail of a next-gen iPad mini being reportedly prepped with an OLED display in tow as we speak, which makes us extremely doubtful that Apple could pull the plug on the undeniably successful family of compact tablets in just two or three years.
Last but not necessarily least, a foldable Apple product with, say, a 7.7 or 7.9-inch primary screen sounds like it could step as much on the iPhone Pro Max’s toes as the iPad mini’s, especially when you also consider the higher prices of the biggest and most advanced iOS handsets out there.
That also means this foldable device purportedly targeted for a 2026 or 2027 launch is not really guaranteed to be advertised as an iPad in the first place. Instead, we could actually be talking about the first-ever foldable iPhone here without even realizing that… or maybe Apple is thinking of carving out an entirely new niche and call this thing something else.
Not the only foldable in Apple’s pipeline
Before you even think of asking about it, there are no words on any clamshell Galaxy Z Flip alternative from Apple right now. Instead, what the company might be contemplating is a gargantuan second 20-inch or so foldable product likely to come out at some point after the 7.5 to 8.5-inch device discussed above.
That doesn’t exactly sound like a mobile enthusiast’s dream, not to mention that it sounds like something that could cost roughly as much as a good car, but for some reason, Apple is purportedly prioritizing that largely secret project over a not-too-pricey flip-style foldable to help the company challenge Samsung in a rapidly expanding and potential-brimming global market.
Apple’s second foldable product could be even bigger than the 16.3-inch Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold.
Samsung, of course, will most likely help Apple get its first foldable device off the ground with the supply of the best possible displays out there, although LG could also be in that mix to a larger or smaller degree.
While it’s unclear what the connection to all this other information is, today’s The Elec report also claims that Apple will “make changes to the iPhone in 2027″… without going into any detail whatsoever. iPhones will turn 20 in three years, so a big(ger than usual) upgrade or revision could definitely happen at that point, but it’s far too early to know what we might be dealing with on the handset family’s big anniversary.
