Apple Inc. has begun early work on an iPhone with a foldable screen, a potential rival to similar devices\u00a0from Samsung Electronics Co. and others, though\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0planning only minor changes for this year\u2019s iPhone line.<\/p>\n
The Cupertino, California-based company has developed prototype foldable\u00a0screens for internal testing, but hasn\u2019t\u00a0solidified plans to actually launch a foldable iPhone.<\/p>\n
The development work hasn\u2019t\u00a0expanded beyond a display, meaning Apple doesn\u2019t\u00a0yet have full handset prototypes in its labs, according to a person\u00a0familiar with the work, who asked not to be identified\u00a0discussing private matters.<\/p>\n
Like Samsung\u2019s\u00a0Galaxy Fold, the\u00a0Motorola Razr<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>reboot\u00a0and other offerings\u00a0from Chinese companies including\u00a0Huawei Technologies Co., a foldable iPhone would let Apple make a device with\u00a0a larger screen in\u00a0a more pocketable package.<\/p>\n Apple has internally discussed a number of foldable screen sizes, including one\u00a0that unfolds to a similar size as\u00a0the 6.7-inch display\u00a0on the iPhone 12 Pro Max. Current foldable phones have screens that are from\u00a06 and 8 inches unfolded.<\/p>\n The foldable Apple screens in testing, like those from Samsung, have a mostly invisible hinge with the electronics stationed behind the display, the person said.<\/p>\n Other\u00a0companies, including Microsoft Corp., have recently launched devices with visible hinges separating two distinct panels. An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment.<\/p>\n This would be a radical departure for Apple. Its pioneering\u00a0touchable, all-screen smartphone is arguably the most successful consumer technology product in history, helping make Apple the world\u2019s most valuable company.<\/p>\n However, a foldable iPhone is likely\u00a0years away or ultimately may never be introduced. The company is currently focused on launching its next-generation flagship iPhones and iPads later this year.<\/p>\n Apple isn\u2019t planning major changes for this year\u2019s iPhone line given the enhancements made to the smartphone in 2020, including 5G and new designs, according to people familiar with the situation.<\/p>\n Inside Apple, engineers\u00a0consider\u00a0the next iPhones another \u201cS\u201d version of the device, the nomenclature typically given to new iPhones with minor upgrades.<\/p>\n The Covid-19 pandemic has also complicated product development,\u00a0with Apple hardware engineers only working at the company\u2019s Silicon Valley offices a few days a\u00a0week and in limited numbers. That has meant offloading work to Apple\u2019s engineers in China.<\/p>\n Last year, the pandemic delayed the iPhone 12\u2019s release by several weeks, but Apple was able to still include nearly every intended feature except an accessory dubbed \u201cAirTags\u201d for locating physical items like backpacks and keys.<\/p>\n The company now plans to launch that accessory this year, and it is planning multiple accessories for it including a leather keychain. Samsung\u00a0announced a similar gizmo earlier this month.<\/p>\n Though overall changes will be minor, Apple is still testing a key\u00a0upgrade for 2021: an in-screen fingerprint reader. This would\u00a0add a new method for users to unlock their iPhone, going beyond a passcode and Face ID facial recognition.<\/p>\n Apple started to move away from fingerprint sensors in 2017 with the launch of the iPhone X, but Touch ID has remained as a feature on Mac laptops and cheaper iPhones since then. Qualcomm Inc., which provides Apple with 5G modems,\u00a0earlier this month announced a faster in-screen fingerprint sensor.<\/p>\n The feature would be convenient in an environment where users wear masks, which are often incompatible with facial recognition. An in-screen fingerprint reader, which has also been featured on Android phones for several years, could also be quicker than Face ID for some users.<\/p>\n Apple won\u2019t remove\u00a0its facial recognition scanner though as it\u2019s still useful for augmented reality and camera features.<\/p>\n Apple has also discussed removing the charging port for some iPhone models in favor of wireless charging. The company moved to a magnetic MagSafe charging system with the iPhone 12, in addition to removing the charging brick from the iPhone box\u00a0last year.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also bringing this charging technology back to the MacBook Pro<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n For its tablet line, Apple is planning a new iPad Pro that looks similar to the current model but adds a MiniLED display and much faster processor.\u00a0A thinner and lighter entry-level iPad that uses the same design as the 2019 iPad Air is also in the works.<\/p>\n Apple Inc. has begun early work on an iPhone with a foldable screen, a potential rival to similar devices\u00a0from Samsung Electronics Co. and others, though\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0planning only minor changes for this year\u2019s iPhone line.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":341034,"featured_media":362224,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sma_x_autopost_status":"idle","_sma_x_autopost_error":"","_sma_x_post_id":"","_sma_facebook_post_id":"","_sma_instagram_post_id":"","_sma_threads_post_id":"","_sma_x_attempts":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17934],"tags":[605,42532,45983,1125],"class_list":["post-383074","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-smartphones","tag-apple","tag-foldable-displays","tag-foldable-smartphones","tag-iphone"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383074"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/341034"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=383074"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383074\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/362224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=383074"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=383074"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=383074"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Now read: iPhone sales surge despite drop in overall smartphone shipments<\/a><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"