Apple’s long-anticipated entry into the foldable phone market may not stop with a single device. Even before its first foldable iPhone reaches consumers, the company is already internally debating what comes next — including a smaller, clamshell-style model that would mark a significant expansion of its iPhone lineup.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in his latest Power On newsletter, Apple engineers are actively discussing a square, flip-style foldable iPhone, similar in form factor to Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip. The device is described as exploratory rather than committed, with no production timeline and no guarantee it will ever reach the market. Still, its consideration signals something important: Apple is thinking beyond a one-off experiment and toward a broader foldable ecosystem.
That shift in thinking matters now because Apple’s first foldable iPhone — a tablet-style, book-like device — is expected to debut later this year, roughly seven months from now. The success or failure of that initial launch will likely determine whether ideas like a clamshell iPhone move forward or quietly disappear inside Apple’s labs.
The internal logic is straightforward. Apple appears to believe that if its first foldable iPhone proves commercially viable, customers will eventually demand more form factors, just as they did with traditional slab iPhones. Over time, size and shape diversification could follow — but only if the category itself is validated.
Multiple shapes, cautious bets
The notion of a flip-style iPhone is not entirely new. In 2024, The Information reported that Apple had built multiple clamshell foldable prototypes while evaluating how best to enter the foldables market. At that stage, Apple ultimately favored the larger, tablet-style design — the model now expected to arrive later this year — leaving the smaller flip concept on the shelf.
Gurman’s reporting suggests that shelved idea has resurfaced. Alongside the clamshell phone, Apple is also said to be considering other foldable formats, including a book-style device and an 18-inch foldable iPad. That larger iPad, first mentioned by Gurman last year, could carry a price tag of around $3,000 if it ever ships — underscoring how experimental and premium Apple’s foldable ambitions remain.
For now, Apple’s focus is firmly on its first foldable iPhone. As previously reported, that device is expected to feature a 5.5-inch external display and a 7.8-inch internal screen when unfolded. It represents Apple’s initial test of a market that competitors have been exploring for years, but where durability, usability, and mainstream demand remain open questions.
The clamshell iPhone, by contrast, sits much earlier in the pipeline. There is no release window, no finalized design, and no indication it has progressed beyond internal discussion. Its existence is best understood not as a product announcement, but as evidence of Apple’s broader strategic planning.
In other words, Apple is not merely asking whether foldables work — it is asking what a foldable iPhone family might look like if they do. Whether consumers will ever see a flip-style iPhone depends almost entirely on the answer to that first question, which Apple is preparing to test later this year.
