Apple took 7 years to make a foldable iPhone. What was it waiting for?

By Sohail Khan 8 September 2026, 11:38 pm

Apple is finally launching a foldable iPhone after seven years. Here is why Apple waited, its new design and how it could change the foldable phone market.

Updated on: Sep 8, 2026, 23:39:00 IST

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Apple is finally expected to enter the foldable phone market. The company is almost certain to launch its first foldable iPhone, nearly seven years after Samsung’s Galaxy Fold first went on sale. Apple is arriving late, but the delay may have helped it study what worked and what did not in the foldable market.

The foldable iPhone is expected to look very different from Samsung’s original Fold. Leaks suggest Apple’s phone could be short, wide and passport-shaped when opened, instead of having the taller design used by Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold phones.

Apple’s wide foldable phones

The timing is interesting because Android companies have recently moved toward the same wide design. Huawei launched the Pura X Max in April, Samsung launched the Galaxy Z Fold 8 in July, and Xiaomi launched its 18 Fold just a day before Apple’s expected event.

That raises a big question: did Apple copy the idea, or did Android makers see what Apple was developing? There is no definite answer. However, Apple has reportedly been working on a foldable iPhone since at least 2017, years before the recent wave of passport-shaped foldables.

Apple’s plans may have become known to its competitors through its huge supply chain. Apple’s supply chain, developed over many years under former CEO Tim Cook, involves many major manufacturing partners. Once Apple started working on a new type of foldable phone, it would have been difficult to keep the basic idea completely secret, according to The Verge.

Samsung display deal

Samsung may have had an especially good idea of what Apple was building. Samsung is reportedly supplying the foldable display panel for the new iPhone. That means one of Apple’s biggest rivals may have known about the project well before the public did.

The wide foldable design was also reported for Apple before Android makers started pushing it heavily. Leakers were already pointing to a smaller and wider foldable iPhone by February 2025, suggesting Apple may have settled on this design much earlier.

Apple’s thin-phone strategy is another example. The iPhone Air reportedly encouraged Samsung to make the Galaxy S25 Edge, while companies including Honor, Huawei and Tecno also worked on thin and light phones.

Android foldable market

Android companies had already been experimenting with different foldable designs. Some early foldables from Oppo and Google were closer to the wider shape that Apple is now expected to use. But those companies eventually moved away from those designs.

Samsung’s Fold and Flip designs became the standard instead. For years, most Android phone makers focused on two main formats: the book-style Fold and the clamshell Flip. This made the foldable market look fairly predictable.

Apple’s arrival could be the reason that is now changing. The recent rush toward passport-shaped foldables could be a sign that Android companies want to be ready for Apple's entry rather than risk being left behind if Apple makes the format popular, according to The Verge.

Foldable phone market

Foldable phones are still a very small part of the overall smartphone market. Counterpoint estimated that foldables accounted for only 1.6% of global smartphone sales in 2025. So, despite years of foldable phones, they remain a niche product. But the category is growing. Counterpoint expects foldable smartphone shipments to grow by around 20% this year. The market is still small, but the growth shows that manufacturers see room for it to become much bigger.

Apple could dramatically change that market. Counterpoint estimates that Apple could take around 28% of foldable smartphone shipments after only a few months on the market. If that happens, Apple could help move foldables from a niche product into a much more mainstream category.

Why Apple waited 7 years

So, what was Apple waiting for? The seven-year delay appears less about simply being unable to make a foldable phone and more about getting the product right before entering a young market. Apple could afford to watch Samsung and other companies test the technology, learn from their mistakes and wait until foldables were mature enough for its standards.

Apple’s late entry may actually make the launch more important. Samsung has spent years building the foldable market, but Apple could now give the category a much bigger push simply because of the strength of the iPhone brand. The launch is also a major test for John Ternus.

This would be Ternus’ first major hardware product launch as Apple CEO. He previously led Apple’s hardware engineering and is closely associated with the company's product development, according to The Verge.

That is why Apple’s seven-year wait could ultimately make sense. The company may have spent years watching the foldable market develop before deciding that the technology, design and market were finally ready. Now, instead of being the first company to make a foldable phone, Apple could be trying to become the company that makes foldables mainstream.