Apple’s Sept. 9 Foldable Entry Could Lift a 25 Million-Unit Niche as $2,000 Prices Still Bite
Updated
Updated · Yahoo · Sep 3
Apple’s Sept. 9 Foldable Entry Could Lift a 25 Million-Unit Niche as $2,000 Prices Still Bite
3 articles · Updated · Yahoo · Sep 3
Summary
Sept. 9 could push foldables closer to the mainstream than ever, as experts say Apple’s expected entry will expose a huge iPhone audience to a category many have never seriously considered.
One in every two phones sold in the U.S. is an iPhone, and analysts say Apple can better justify a foldable’s premium by pitching it as a phone-and-tablet device roughly akin to an iPad mini.
Samsung’s latest designs have already fixed many early complaints—fragile hinges, thick bodies and awkward screens—with the wider Galaxy Z Fold 8 format cited as a key usability breakthrough.
Price remains the biggest obstacle: foldables shipped just under 25 million units in 2025 and are forecast to reach 44 million by 2030, still only 4% of the smartphone market.
A roughly $2,000 foldable iPhone would likely sharpen competition on design and cameras, but experts say bar-style phones will remain dominant for the foreseeable future.