Lieferkettenspiegel: Das faltbare iPhone ist in die Prototypen-Produktion eingetreten, die Entwicklung des faltbaren iPad ist auf Eis gelegt.

After Android phone manufacturers have commercialized foldable smartphones for a full six years, news of Apple's entry into the market has finally emerged.

Some media outlets, citing supply chain sources, have reported that Apple, well - known for its "strike - late" strategy, is accelerating the development of its first foldable iPhone.

According to supply chain sources from DigiTimes, Apple initiated the preliminary Prototype 1 (P1) phase of the foldable iPhone in June.

If following Apple's traditional product development schedule, this foldable smartphone is expected to complete the main prototype testing phase by the end of 2025 and then enter the Engineering Verification Test (EVT) phase.

The earliest expected release target could be in the second half of 2026.

The original report did not mention whether it will be a small - fold (vertical fold) or a large - fold (horizontal fold) device.

Fifteen years of technological layout

Apple's exploration of foldable screen technology actually started earlier than the outside world imagined. As early as 2011, Apple applied for its first foldable phone patent, US8787016B2, titled "Flexible Display Device", which mainly involves folding hinge technology.

After that, Apple successively applied for patents related to foldable screen devices in 2014, 2016, 2018 and other time points. In 2024, Apple even applied for a "self - healing" screen patent that can automatically repair creases on foldable screens.

However, having patents is one thing, and productization is another. Over the years, the industry's speculation about when Apple will launch the foldable iPhone has never stopped. The expected launch time has been postponed from 2020 to 2022 and now to 2026. This "constant postponement" may reflect Apple's pursuit of product perfectionism, but it also confirms the difficulty of mass - producing foldable screen technology under Apple's standards.

The supply chain is fully in place, but the challenges remain huge

Supply chain insiders told DigiTimes that Apple's P1 phase will last for about two months, followed by the P2 and P3 phases. Apple's supply chain partners will conduct small - scale trial production, and then Foxconn and Pegatron, the two major iPhone contract manufacturers, will take over the (EVT) to verify production yield and manufacturability.

Normally, the P1 to P3 phases are carried out about a year before Mass Production (MP). That's why the industry estimates that if everything goes smoothly, this new device will be launched in the second half of 2026.

However, Apple still faces significant challenges in its foldable product line. The original report pointed out that Apple has shelved the foldable iPad project that was originally planned to be launched concurrently with the foldable iPhone.

The reasons for the shelving include manufacturing difficulties, increased production costs due to flexible display technology, and insufficient consumer demand for large - screen foldable devices.

In 2026, Apple will face a fairly mature foldable smartphone market. Major competitors such as Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO, and vivo have been refining foldable screen technology for many years. Samsung has been in the game for six years, and domestic manufacturers are accelerating their catch - up.

Now, large - fold phones are already thinner than flagship iPhone slab phones. Perhaps that's why Apple is preparing to launch the ultra - thin slab iPhone 17 Air this year to create a sufficient difference between the slab phone product line and the future foldable product line.

Apple's consistent strategy is to "arrive late but surely", that is, to wait for the technology to mature before launching products. From music players to smartphones, Apple has never been the pioneer in relevant product categories, but it has successfully created benchmark products that can define the categories.

Of course, even if the prototype and trial - production processes go smoothly, everything will not be clear until 2026. Before that, Apple still has many technological and product - definition challenges to solve.

For example, people have such expectations for Apple: the foldable iPhone should not just be "another" foldable smartphone; it must have enough innovative features to justify Apple's "late arrival".

This article is from the WeChat official account "ifanr" (ID: ifanr), author: Du Chen. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.