There have always been rumors that Apple is developing a foldable iPhone, but there is not much specific information related to it. According to Display Supply Chain Consultant (DSCC), a display supply chain consultant company, it is estimated that the foldable iPhone will have to wait until 2023 at the earliest. It is likely to come out in the year 2024, and the possibility of it coming out in 2024 is also very high.

Japan’s Apple intelligence website iPhone Mania and taisy0 reported on the 14th that DSCC CEO Ross Young said that Apple’s foldable iPhone will not be available until 2023 at the earliest, but there is a high probability that it will not be available until 2024. Ross Young did not disclose more details about the folding iPhone.

The report pointed out that Apple has been rumoring that it is developing a folding iPhone, but there is not much relevant information. The current information includes that it will be equipped with an 8-inch QHD+ flexible OLED panel. It is reported that it will be the same as the Samsung Galaxy Z Filp. The up and down foldable design, and Apple has also applied for a patent related to the “flexible battery structure“, which may be applied to the folding iPhone.

However, it has also been reported a few days ago that Apple is currently more committed to the research and development of the iPhone SE (2023 model) model based on the iPhone XR than the folding iPhone.

According to MoneyDJ News, Tianfeng International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo released a report on May 3 and expected that Apple may launch an 8-inch QHD+ flexible OLED folding iPhone in 2023, with an estimated shipment of 15-20 million units.

Last quarter, global folding smart phone shipments broke record, Samsung accounted for 93%

DSCC released a survey report on November 30 and pointed out that the global shipment of foldable smartphones reached a record-breaking 2.6 million units in the last quarter (July-September 2021), a 480% increase compared with the same period last year, and within 3 months 7-September shipments are higher than the total value of the past year (Q2 20203-2021), and Samsung’s market share in the foldable smartphone market during the previous quarter was as high as 93%.

In terms of models, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 was the world’s best-selling folding smart phone product with a market share of 60% last quarter, and Galaxy Z Fold 3 ranked second with a market share of 23%.

DSCC predicts that this quarter (October-December 2021) shipments of foldable smartphones will reach 3.8 million, a surge of over 450% from the same period last year, while Samsung’s market share is expected to rise to 95%. Among them, Galaxy Z Flip 3 is expected to continue to be the world’s best-selling folding smartphone model, with an estimated market share of 58%, and Galaxy Z Fold 3 is estimated to be 36%.

DSCC estimates that in 2022, foldable smartphone shipments will increase by 132% annually to 17.5 million units.