Is there any film or album release more hotly anticipated than the latest iPhone offering?
With each unveiling, Apple users unwrap new enhancements and nifty details which will shape the way we communicate in this brave new digital age – if we can afford the new device.
Despite innovation after innovation, the overall appearance of the iPhone hasn’t changed all that much in the years since 2007; when the world’s jaws simultaneously dropped at the sight of the original black mirror.
However, it now looks like the iPhone’s super sleek appearance is set to blow our collective minds all over again with a mind bending foldable model; a world apart from the iconic rectangle which has come to dominate modern culture.
According to CNBC, Bank of America Merrill Lynch have revealed Apple is working alongside Asian partners to craft the striking iPhone design. And it could well land within the next two years.
Senior analyst Wamsi Mohan reportedly gave the following message to clients, after having met with multiple Apple suppliers throughout Asia:
We expect the iPhones this fall to be largely unchanged for the OLED versions although size changes have proved to be a catalyst in the past,
Our checks also suggest that Apple is working with suppliers on a foldable phone (that potentially could double up as a tablet) for launch in 2020.
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Last October, Korean publication The Investor reported how Apple were reportedly working alongside LG Display to create the foldable OLED screen, citing anonymous sources.
But what would a foldable iPhone actually look like, and how it retain its smooth, seamless appearance? Check out the following vid:
For those with their fingers on the tech world pulse, these latest developments will come as no great surprise.
Back in 2017, Apple was awarded a patent for a phone which had ‘a flexible display’ and folding abilities.
According to Mashable, this patent described how the phone ‘may be formed from shape memory alloy or amorphous metal and may have openings to facilitate bending.’
Ideal for doubling as a tablet – and much easier to transport – this kooky design makes a whole lot of of practical sense. And it will make us feel like beings from the future, which is always fun.
And Apple are not the only ones with their eyes on the futuristic fold. Both Samsung and Microsoft hold patents to foldable phone designs, however the actual technology has yet to emerge.
Samsung are reportedly hoping to push their foldable ‘Galaxy X’ phone at some point in 2019, delaying the release due to technical challenges which still need to be overcome.
According to The Korea Herald, Samsung Display’s principal engineer Kim Tae-woong said:
Because the bezel-free display currently sells well, we still have enough time to develop foldable display. The technology is expected to be mature around 2019.
I completely get how this is the new frontier for phone giants and everything, but this development is also bringing me some serious early-noughties flip phone vibes.
Get ready to feel like a bratty teen, a la The OC all over again, snapping your phone shut with a despairing sigh…
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Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.