Is Apple working on a foldable design for the next iPhone?

Apple has recently launched the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro as well as the iPhone 11 Pro Max. These devices are looking old now that Apple has filed a new patent with the US patent office which hints at a new foldable iPhone design.

These patents filings were found by Patently Apple and they reported that Apple was working on a bendable iPhone since 2011. That is before the Galaxy Fold was even thought of by Samsung.

The foldable iPhone had been granted over 5 patents already when the new patents were filed by the folks at Apple. The new patents include a flexible screen, a hinge design, controlling circuits, 3D touch for the flexible display, as well as a force sensor.

According to the patents, the new device will have a flexible screen with a hinge which will make it foldable. There is a control circuitry that changes the app contents or generates a trigger response when the flexible display is pressed. These presses are sensed by a force sensor attached to the flexible display.

These patents were filed on 12^th of September, 2019 and were a continuation patent which added on to a patent filed back in May 2019. The new patents made improvements to the previous design and added a control circuitry to detect presses and to sense when the hinge is opened or closed.

Apple is also working on an all glass flexible smartphone. Currently, every other foldable phone uses plastic displays, but Apple is working on flexible glass instead of plastic. This is good news for Apple enthusiasts as it shows that Apple is innovating after all.

When will the foldable iPhone be released?

It is too soon to predict the release date for the foldable iPhone. There are patents for this device which date back to May 2011 so Apple has been working since a long time on this device and it can’t be said accurately how longer the production will take. However, a respected Apple insider Ming-Chi Kuo has dropped off a few hints by saying that a phone with an all new form factor design is going to be released by Apple as early as 2020!

It is known for quite a while that Apple is working on a significant update for the iPhone which is planned to be released next year. The new phone will have pro motion display, in display touch ID, USB C Charging as well as 5G support. Based on the rumors and patent filings, we can expect the new foldable phone from Apple to be released by 2021. The future for Apple is looking good, let’s see what new things come up from the Silicon Valley giant.