Apple is reportedly planning to introduce a folding iPad and a folding iPhone late next year. Analyst Jeff Pu (of recent iPhone 17 prediction fame) said Wednesday that the brand was planning to begin mass production in Q4 2026, which would allow both products to hit shelves that year or in early 2027. If Pu's claims are accurate, it could mean two long-running Apple rumors are finally coming to fruition.

The folding iPad—often referred to as the iPad Fold—will measure 18.8 inches, according to a research note reviewed by 9to5Mac. Apple's folding iPhone will meanwhile measure 7.8 inches, though Pu didn't say whether that's the entire device or just the display. (The iPhone 16's bezels are so thin that it might not make much of a difference, but it would still be nice to know.)

Multiple analysts have predicted that a folding iPhone wouldn't be Apple's first folding product, with one analyst eyeing the possibility of a folding iPad as far back as 2022. Back then, it was suspected that Apple needed a way to get into the folding device game without jeopardizing the iPhone's reputation; a folding iPad, then, would allow the company to differentiate a tablet lineup that—from a format perspective, at least—has remained largely unchanged over the years. One supply chain source even claimed Apple was working on an iPad-MacBook hybrid.

Then, in 2023, Android foldables dropped Apple's share of the premium smartphone market from 75% to 71%—not a catastrophic loss, but a noticeable one all the same. Fans from both sides of the smartphone aisle started to wonder if Apple would cave and release a folding iPhone, placating those who wanted in on the unique form factor but preferred iOS to Android. Coincidentally, a patent published that year revealed that Apple had been working on a folding iPhone that snapped shut when dropped. But patents don't always turn into full-fledged products, so the document didn't necessarily mean much.

It wasn't until late last year that we finally received specific details from Apple insiders regarding foldables-in-progress. Two separate reports claimed Apple was working on a folding iPhone and a 2-in-1 laptop: The former would boast a display size larger than the iPhone 16 Pro Max when unfolded, while the latter would feature a 19-inch touch screen. The Wall Street Journal said Apple was aiming for a 2026 release; Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said neither product would arrive before 2028.

Pu's iPad Fold could be the latest iteration of that 2-in-1, given Gurman's claim that it would work as "a giant iPad that unfolds into the size of two iPad Pros side-by-side." Right now, the rumor is that the iPad Fold will measure 18.8 inches; while it's unclear whether that's the whole device or just the display, it's a few inches short of two 12.9-inch iPad Pro displays put together. Realistically, though, a 25.8-inch iPad wouldn't be nearly as portable or convenient as the iPad is meant to be, so it will be interesting to see which size actually manifests as a product—if any of these rumors translate to real devices at all.

By: DocMemory
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