Apple’s first foldable iPhone is getting closer to reality, and the early feedback suggests the company may be focusing less on novelty and more on making the form factor practical. People who have reportedly spent time with the device, currently referred to internally as the iPhone Ultra, have come away impressed by its compact design, hinge and software experience.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, several people with access to Apple’s unreleased foldable have highlighted how comfortably it fits into a pocket. That matters more than it might sound. Book-style foldables have historically asked users to tolerate extra bulk in exchange for a tablet-sized display, although recent generations from Samsung and other manufacturers have steadily reduced that compromise.
Apple’s approach is reportedly built around a roughly 5.5-inch outer screen paired with an approximately 7.8-inch internal display. That would give the iPhone Ultra relatively compact dimensions when closed while providing substantially more workspace once unfolded. Reports have also put its unfolded thickness at around 4.5mm. None of those specifications have been confirmed by Apple.
The hinge appears to be another encouraging area. Early users reportedly like both its feel and perceived sturdiness. Previous reports have suggested Apple could use a liquid-metal-based hinge mechanism, potentially helping the company balance strength against the aggressive thickness targets expected for the device.
There is an important distinction between a hinge feeling solid and surviving years of daily use, however. Foldable hinges experience thousands of opening and closing cycles, along with dust, impacts and other real-world abuse. Proper durability testing will therefore tell us considerably more than impressions from pre-release hardware.
Software could ultimately be the more interesting part of Apple’s foldable experiment. Testers reportedly responded positively to iPad-like app layouts on the larger internal display. Apple is expected to adapt iOS applications to make better use of the additional space, including the ability to display multiple apps side by side.
That could give Apple an advantage despite arriving relatively late to foldable phones. Samsung and Google have already spent years refining large-screen Android experiences, so simply producing polished folding hardware will not be enough. The transition between the compact outer display and tablet-like inner screen needs to feel seamless, while third-party developers will eventually have to decide how extensively they support the new format.
The larger display has also reportedly impressed users as a camera viewfinder, but the camera hardware itself may be one of the iPhone Ultra’s more obvious compromises. Current reports point to a 48-megapixel main camera and an ultrawide camera, without the dedicated telephoto lens found on Apple’s Pro iPhones. Touch ID is also expected to replace Face ID, reportedly helping Apple maintain the thin chassis.
