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Apple Moves Forward With Foldable iPhone (theinformation.com) 77
Apple is advancing its plans for a foldable iPhone, with potential release as early as 2026, The Information reported Tuesday. The iPhone-maker has begun engaging with Asian suppliers for component production, the report added. The proposed device is said to feature a clamshell design, reminiscent of Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip series.
The company faces considerable technical hurdles, including display crease issues and achieving optimal device thickness. Despite these challenges, the assignment of an internal codename, V68, suggests the project has progressed beyond the conceptual stage, the report added.
The company faces considerable technical hurdles, including display crease issues and achieving optimal device thickness. Despite these challenges, the assignment of an internal codename, V68, suggests the project has progressed beyond the conceptual stage, the report added.
Subscribe to read the full article... (Score:2)
...nope
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Apple... (Score:1)
...will do foldable phones right.
Re: Apple... (Score:2)
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Yuck, why would Apple, of all companies seek a "foldable" phone when customers have routinely rejected such designs.
There's only two kinds of designs that people accept:
a) The design that Apple uses now
b) The design that Nokia used in the past (when phones had screens 1/4 to half the size)
Flip phones were this special exception that only Motorola was able to pull off, and they stopped being good during the TDMA (2G) era. All the flip phones made by LG and Samsung, were extremely fragile, to the point that m
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Future headline (Score:4, Funny)
Users begin to notice permanent creases and cracking where the phone was folded.
"Tim Cook: You're folding it wrong!"
Re:Future headline (Score:4, Interesting)
The thing is, there is no screen directly behind this part (the hinge is behind it) so it won't interfere with usage. If they're going that far, why not just make it a traditional flip phone [att.com]?
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Mine died when dropped from shoulder-height onto cement (hardly surprising)
My wife's died nine months later at just over one year old for no apparent reason. A thin black line appeared at the fold and the touchscreen became unresponsive.
Foldable display technology is impressive and deserves continued research and development, but it isn't ready for the "fold" application. Perhaps a "roll" design might be more feasible?
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The inside screen cannot take an impact like most other phones. It's just the nature of the UTG. It's thin and bendable, for both good and bad. Aside from that, just treat it like the phone it is and it'll likely be fine. The main difference folding phones, vs other phones, is that when other phones break it's usually just a statistic.
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Yeah I have the flip 3 as well, used it over a bit over two years, been perfectly fine, no creases, tons of use, no issues. Little bit of dust that's visible at the hinge in daylight but otherwise can't see it with the screen on.
I don't have a reason to get a newer one, but I would if I needed to.
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Actually, the thing that sucks about foldable phones is that the screen is plastic. So you've gotta get used to a cheap feeling screen, and it's going to get scratched by any dirt and crap that gets trapped between the two halves (unless you put one of those also nasty feeling plastic screen protectors on it).
Whereas with your typical slab phones, you can put a tempered glass screen protector on and it still feels like glass and is shielded from scratches.
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I have the Fold 5 .. no scratches after one year. The screen might be plastic, who knows (actually they claim it's a type of glass), either way it sure doesn't feel like plastic. I'm not the jury-rig everything guy on YouTube so I haven't tried deliberate scratching. I'd say if you aren't taking it on your Navy Seal missions, it's good enough in terms of rugged.
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Admittedly, it's been awhile since I played with the foldable phones at Beat Buy. Last time I looked at them, the display certainly didn't feel like glass.
As to dirt getting into the phone, that entirely depends on if you're doing outdoor activities where dirt is present. A flip phone is just a lot more difficult to protect against that sort of thing, short of just putting the phone in a bag when you're at a construction site or out in the woods. Slab style phones you can just throw in a life proof style
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Actually, the thing that sucks about foldable phones is that the screen is plastic. So you've gotta get used to a cheap feeling screen, and it's going to get scratched by any dirt and crap that gets trapped between the two halves (unless you put one of those also nasty feeling plastic screen protectors on it).
Whereas with your typical slab phones, you can put a tempered glass screen protector on and it still feels like glass and is shielded from scratches.
Yeah, they really do feel cheap.
As well, some of us find the damn crease really annoying. I took a look at one before I bought my latest phone, and it was a hard nope nope nope.
Some might not mind it and like the increased real estate, but if you are at all fussy about what you look at, the foldables ain't all that.
I like my iPhone, but unless Apple makes one with the same quality and no reflections from the fold crease, I'm not buying a foldable.
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Check some reviews of the latest Galaxy Fold. All the early issues with hinges and screen durability seem to have been resolved a few generations ago, and we are well into the "safe to buy" stage. Comes with 7 years of OS updates too.
The crease is still visible if you look for it, as is the under-screen camera. But for a lot of people it's a worthwhile trade-off to get such a big screen. Samsung has also made the screen extremely bright (rated for 2400 nits IIRC, but Linus Tech Tips measured it at 2700) so
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Check some reviews of the latest Galaxy Fold. All the early issues with hinges and screen durability seem to have been resolved a few generations ago, and we are well into the "safe to buy" stage. Comes with 7 years of OS updates too.
The crease is still visible if you look for it, as is the under-screen camera. But for a lot of people it's a worthwhile trade-off to get such a big screen.
It probably is a worthwhile tradeoff for some people. I'm just fussy about my screens.
One thing I've wondered about regarding the big screen thing. The oldest millennials which is the first smartphone demographic, are at the point where presbyopia is kicking in. So as large a screen as possible might be very appealing to them. For myself, I've long graduated to screens with a lot of real estate. My Mac is a 27 incher, and my second screen is a 45 inch. And my Windows laptop uses the 45 inch screen as we
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I came across a foldable Galaxy phone on display at Walmart and took a look at its foldability. Yes, it folds, with the quarter inch wide piece of plastic not yet showing signs of significant creasing. Give it a few months of use and I can guarantee that plastic will both crease and crack. The thing is, there is no screen directly behind this part (the hinge is behind it) so it won't interfere with usage. If they're going that far, why not just make it a traditional flip phone [att.com]?
I keep wondering why a "foldable" full screen phone wouldn't just have two screens and where the seam is a blank spot that comes together as it unfolds. I know you'd have to mount the hinges in a weird orientation, but it's not like that's beyond the engineers. I suppose the bigger fear is stepping over some imaginary thinness line that these designers all have drilled into their heads repeatedly. It just seems a more practical solution, if they can toughen the edge of the screens that would sit inside the
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Bullshit. I have a Fold 5, used regularly .. the crease is still invisible when using the display straight on.
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Bullshit. I have a Fold 5, used regularly .. the crease is still invisible when using the display straight on.
So who am I to believe, you or my lying eyes? Brand new at the Verizon store, and the crease was quite visible - it also reflects at a slightly different angle, so I had to tilt it to see everything.
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Did you try the Fold 5? Also, did you look at it straight (not at an angle)?
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Did you try the Fold 5? Also, did you look at it straight (not at an angle)?
I'm not certain what model it was - now full disclaimer, I always go for the max image quality in all my displays. I did see different reflections off the fold depending on how I turned it and where the lights were. in relation to the positions.
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It helps to crank the brightness up a bit, but ultimately it's a trade-off. You brain is good at filtering stuff that is irrelevant, like creases and under-screen cameras. So you can choose, nice big screen but still fits in your pocket, and a crease that you will not really notice after half an hour of using it, or a smaller but perfectly flat screen.
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It helps to crank the brightness up a bit, but ultimately it's a trade-off. You brain is good at filtering stuff that is irrelevant, like creases and under-screen cameras. So you can choose, nice big screen but still fits in your pocket, and a crease that you will not really notice after half an hour of using it, or a smaller but perfectly flat screen.
It would be an interesting experiment, and it makes some sense. I wonder if I could get Samsung to let me borrow one of theirs for a few weeks? 8^)
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It's unclear to me why you say this, the middle part of the opened phone, in front of the hinge, is just as much screen as the rest of it.
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Because foldable phones are cool, and flip phones are not cool. So just change the label!
I like Apple (Score:2)
I like Apple. But if you're gonna do a foldable, do one screen on one side, one screen on the other with a hinge in the middle. That way you don't have to bend the display panels.
Bending a screen, it's just asking for trouble and early failures
Imagine an iPad that you can open like A book, with one screen on each side. That would be the the for using it as a music book.
Re: I like Apple (Score:2)
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You're thinking you want it like a movie screen, and I'm thinking I want it like a book. One page on the left, one on the right, and the hinge / spine in the middle.
I use my phone more as a video screen, and my ipad more as a book. Different use cases.
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I like Apple. But if you're gonna do a foldable, do one screen on one side, one screen on the other with a hinge in the middle. That way you don't have to bend the display panels.
Bending a screen, it's just asking for trouble and early failures
Imagine an iPad that you can open like A book, with one screen on each side. That would be the the for using it as a music book.
Agreed. The entire idea of bending an LCD panel is nothing short of nuts. The fact that some folks have kind of made it work is amazing, but at the same time, you end up with increasingly noticeable crease lines near the fold, so it doesn't ever really look like one screen anyway. At least with two separate screens, the crease doesn't change as the plastic degrades, you don't get pixel failures near the fold, and there's less risk of catastrophic display failure at random times (often in the first week).
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How about instead of a foldable phone, Apple just introduces a line of jeans with bigger pockets (anybody remember JNCO?) so the regular iPhone just seems smaller?
Just what iPhone users need. (Score:5, Funny)
OMG Apple is INVENTING a foldable phone? (Score:1)
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And if samsung changes their foldable design to be anywhere close to apple's they will probably face another huge lawsuit, even if they are the ones providing apple with the screens and half of the internal components.
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I was hoping for book fold (Score:1)
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Bring some innovation (Score:2)
I have a Z Fold 5 and an iPhone (work/personal) .. the important things to improve in the Z Fold are (in order of feasibility and importance): .. the phone is way to thin for that, especially typing. They MUST make it as wide as the iPhone Pro Max.
1. 90% of the time use the Fold in closed mode
2. The ZFold's crease is not prominent, and is forgettable, but that's not to say it can't be reduced. If Apple found a way to eliminate the crease, that would be a major draw for me.
3. Whole room charging -- can someo
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3. Whole room charging -- can someone invent it?
Was going to make a Joke about microwave and tingling skin then I saw this
https://www.scientificamerican... [scientificamerican.com]
with this line in the article “We’re not saying blanketly that this technology is safe under all uses—we’re still exploring,”
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Why doesn't Apple engage with American suppliers for component production?
Probably for the same reason that all phone makers engage with Asian suppliers: American companies are not competitive nor even make the components.
You know something Apple, if you don't like our workers, how about you find someone else's capital markets, roads, legal protections, taxpayer subsidies and customers?
Please tell Apple and the rest of us which American companies Apple should use. I am curious. For example, flat panel manufacturers [wikipedia.org] shows that there are maybe 3 - 4 manufacturers in the US with 40+ in Asia. One of the few, Planar Systems, seems to focus on stadium sizes ones and would not someone Apple would use for their next phone.
America made you the most valuable company in human history. Just spitballing here but you might consider appreciating it and not being dicks.
You do know Apple sells their
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Probably for the same reason that all phone makers engage with Asian suppliers: American companies are not competitive nor even make the components.
Bullshit. We invented the components.
For example, flat panel manufacturers shows that there are maybe 3 - 4 manufacturers in the US with 40+ in Asia.
So if a continent has more manufacturers than a single nation, Apple should fuck over the country that keeps it in business and all the people in it. Got it.
You do know Apple sells their products worldwide, right?
You know Apple would go out of business over a weekend without U.S. capital markets, intellectual property protections and taxpayer subsidies, right?
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Bullshit. We invented the components.
I see the problem is you do not the difference between "making" and "inventing" as well as the passage of time. While Thomas Edison "invented" the light bulb in the US, that does not mean light bulbs are forever and only "manufactured" in the US over a century later.
So if a continent has more manufacturers than a single nation, Apple should fuck over the country that keeps it in business and all the people in it. Got it.
I see you are blindly ignoring the part where US manufacturers not MAKING display panels for phones is the main reason Apple does not use a US manufacturer. But it somehow must be personal that a business works with other businesses that can act
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I see the problem is you do not the difference between "making" and "inventing" as well as the passage of time.
You claimed we couldn't manufacture the components. And you're wrong.
Apple does business all over the world which you seem not to accept.
You don't know the difference between capital markets and retail markets.
Citations needed.
Fine. Show me the tariff on iPhones. Or the tariff on foreign workers. Or the sales taxes on the App store.
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You claimed we couldn't manufacture the components. And you're wrong.
Please cite where I said US COULDN'T manufacture the components as opposed what I was US companies DIDN'T manufacture the components. In the case of displays for smartphones, please name one US manufacturer can supply Apple with the millions of displays they will need a year. Just one. I'll wait.
You don't know the difference between capital markets and retail markets.
Bahahahaha. Please explain it because given the fact you don't understand the invention and manufacturer. I am guessing you are making definitions that suit whatever you take them to mean.
Fine. Show me the tariff on iPhones. Or the tariff on foreign workers. Or the sales taxes on the App store.
1) When asked to provide an
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Please explain it
Apple doesn't sell shares of the company in foreign countries. They have to be sold through a U.S. registered broker.
Tariffs and sales taxes are not taxpayer subsidies
Didn't say they were. I said the absence of tariffs and sales taxes are subsidies.
You do understand sales tax is what Apple collects on behalf of different layers of government.
They don't collect sales tax at the app store. Digital products aren't taxable in California, and buyers in other states or countries are not subject to California jurisdiction for purchases.
Apple is allowed to import products worth trillions of dollars without paying a cent. Apple is allowed to employ people ev
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Apple doesn't sell shares of the company in foreign countries. They have to be sold through a U.S. registered broker.
WTF are you talking about? That is true of ANY company that does not sell shares in foreign countries. Your point is IDIOTIC.
Didn't say they were. I said the absence of tariffs and sales taxes are subsidies.
Again WTF are you talking about? There are sales taxes on Apple goods based on where the customer's location. Tariffs are imposed by countries and are not collected by people.
They don't collect sales tax at the app store.
Well that's a lie. Apple like other retailers even has Tax free weekend holidays [apple.com] for different states. So in many states, there are sales taxes. You are just lying.
Digital products aren't taxable in California, and buyers in other states or countries are not subject to California jurisdiction for purchases.
1) You are aware that computers and iphones are
Why? (Score:2)
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Cupertino, (Score:1)
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Are you afraid Tim Cook come to your house and force you to purchase one as he whacks off?
Original, innovative, & brave (Score:2)
*By "world" they mean Apple stores & Apple retail partners.
Apple and Fanboys will claim (Score:1)
Apple and Fanboys will claim they've waited so they can present the best technology for the user and it is best foldable phone since sliced bread or something, while in reality they just want to have others develop the technology, have the growth pains, risk of R&D, etc. and use all its weight to strong arm the suppliers to give them the best parts, designs and at the lowest price, while charging costumers their first born.... and sadly people will queue up to buy it and say that it's amazing and how so
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...they just want to have others develop the technology, have the growth pains, risk of R&D, etc. and use all its weight to strong arm the suppliers to give them the best parts, designs and at the lowest price...
Uh, as a consumer, why wouldn't I want that? Why would I want to be buying a product dealing with growing pains, dealing with development risk, that doesn't have the best parts and designs, or where the manufacturer is paying a higher price for those parts and designs?
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yeah, that's great, and one of the reasons I didn't buy a foldable yet, the other being price, but the point is that they act (and a lot of fanboys claim) that they are the ones in the bleeding edge and doing the development of real innovations when in fact most is done by others while they buy or copy, and this is since the beginning of their smartphone ventures, LG Prada anyone?
Every phone is foldable (Score:2)
Every phone is foldable (once). Credit https://xkcd.com/1809/ [xkcd.com]
Typical. Form over function. (Score:2)
The "Fold" style ones, though, are cool, because you can use them in standard mode, and get a whole tablet when opening them up.