Based on sources, Kuo says that Apple expects to ship between 15 to 20 million of the foldable iPhone in 2023. The company will likely work with Samsung as the exclusive supplier of foldable OLED displays for the new iPhone model, whose design and specifications remain unknown.
In his previous report on the first foldable iPhone, the analyst predicted that the device will have a screen between 7.5 and 8 inches, and now he reinforced that Apple will adopt an 8-inch foldable display. Although Samsung currently leads the foldable market, Ming-Chi Kuo believes that Apple will have an advantage with the first foldable iPhone due to its strong “cross-product ecosystem.”
These plans, of course, may change by 2023, but it seems plausible that Apple is at least considering launching a foldable iPhone as other phone makers have already introduced their own solutions. Still, we don’t know if the device will be more similar to the Galaxy Z Fold or the Galaxy Z Flip — or even have a completely different design than the current foldable phones.
At present, the product position of foldable smartphones is mainly to integrate the smartphone and tablet. But we believe that the foldable smartphone is only one of the applications of the foldable design. We predict that foldable devices will blur the product segmentations between smartphones, tablets, and laptops in the future. With its cross-product ecosystems and hardware design advantages, Apple will be the biggest winner in the new foldable device trend.
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