Apple has been awarded yet another patent for a foldable device, with the latest embodiment featuring a clamshell design with touch-sensitive areas on the sides that serve as virtual buttons (via CNBC).
Filed by Apple in April 2021 and approved this week by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the new patent explores ideas for "Electronic Devices With Display and Touch Sensor Structures" and envisions how parts of a device could work as input surfaces to augment the display or for use when the display is folded up.
In one example, the patent describes how display layers and touch sensor layers could be "overlapped" in a device's outer panels, and how the touch sensors could go under a glass layer along the front, bottom, and "curved sidewalls" of a device, suggesting the potential for touch input across the entire outer chassis of a clamshell-style enclosure.
Elsewhere in another example, the patent describes "wrapping a display around some or all of the device," where the curved sidewalls would house touch-sensitive layers, allowing them to work as camera controls, volume sliders, and other functions.
The patent is fueling fresh speculation that Apple's first foldable device is getting nearer to launch. The company has been working on foldable display technology for some years now, filing multiple foldable-related patents. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said last year that Apple is actively testing a foldable display, although he believes Apple's first foldable device may be a hybrid iPhone and iPad, or simply a foldable iPad. More recently, Kuo said that Apple is preparing to launch a foldable iPad with a carbon fiber kickstand in 2024.
Display analyst Ross Young said last year that Apple's long-rumored foldable iPhone has been delayed until 2025. The news of the delay reportedly came after discussions with supply chain sources, suggesting that Apple has been conducting due diligence to ascertain the viability of bringing such a product to market anytime soon.
Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below.
Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker.
According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found.
Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
Apple has ordered 22 million OLED panels from Samsung Display for the first foldable iPhone, signaling a significantly larger production target than the display industry had previously anticipated, ET News reports.
In the now-seemingly deleted report, ET News claimed that Samsung plans to mass-produce 11 million inward-folding OLED displays for Apple next year, as well as 11 million...
Monday December 1, 2025 2:40 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth...
Monday December 8, 2025 9:23 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple's chipmaking chief Johny Srouji has reportedly indicated that he plans to continue working for the company for the foreseeable future.
"I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon," said Srouji, in a memo obtained by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Here is Srouji's full memo, as shared by Bloomberg:I know you've been reading all kind of rumors and...
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...
Monday December 8, 2025 11:10 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple and Google are teaming up to make it easier for users to switch between iPhone and Android smartphones, according to 9to5Google. There is a new Android Canary build available today that simplifies data transfer between two smartphones, and Apple is going to implement the functionality in an upcoming iOS 26 beta.
Apple already has a Move to iOS app for transferring data from an Android...
Friday December 5, 2025 10:08 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone.
In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
Apple today announced that Fitness+ is expanding to 28 new markets on December 15 in the service's largest international rollout since launch, accompanied by new language dubbing and a K-Pop music genre.
Apple Fitness+ will become available in Chile, Hong Kong, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan, and additional regions on December 15, with Japan scheduled to follow early next year....
Disclaimer: if you are not someone who uses a mini tablet/tablet along with a cell phone often and would appreciate having both devices in one, this post is not for you.
I was skeptical at first regarding foldables as well, until I traded in my iPhone 12 Pro Max for the Z Fold 3. I couldn't wait any longer for Apple to release a foldable phone and I was using my iPhone and iPad Mini all the time so I figured it would be great to have a 2 in 1. I have the Z Fold 4 now and I will never go back to a traditional slab phone. I love having a cell phone and mini tablet in one pocketable device. I prefer having the Z Fold 4 in my pocket over the iPhone Pro Max, as the iPhone Pro Max is too wide to be comfortable. The Z Fold 4 is a multi-tasking beast as well. I believe Apple will make a great foldable phone, and if/when they do I will consider coming back to iOS. If you are on the fence at all, give a foldable a try. It is impossible to understand how great they are unless you've owned one. You can always return it, if you don't like it. Android has come a long way over the past 4-5 years, and this is coming from someone who used to absolutely despise it. I found that Android 12 and 13 to be just as stable as iOS, which has gone downhill drastically over the past 3-4 years. For reference, I had owned every iPhone from the 4 to the 12. Food for thought anyway ?
Side note: I had a Z Flip 4 as a backup phone and it was not good. I just don't understand the appeal of this type of foldable. Having to unfold it all the time for pretty much anything you want to do. It was a huge no-go for me anyway. To each their own though of course.
I have no use for this. Just about everything Apple makes has a great screen experience so no, I won't be buying anything with an ugly folded seam running down the middle.
