avon b7

Whizville said:

Why?  I guess some people need their phones to fold.  I’ve never needed mine to fold since 2007 when Steve introduced the iPhone.  Is it just because of a bigger screen?  I tried an iPhone 16e direct from Apple for a bigger screen and I couldn’t justify the $600 to buy it so I returned it five days later and still use my perfectly great iPhone SE3. 

I guess I’m different.

They fold precisely because of the possibility of getting a bigger screen out of a pocketable device.

They are expensive so many won't be able to justify the cost but some will be able and willing to.

It's for them. 

4.8mm seems a little 'thick' for this rumoured device when you take into account that last year's Mate XT was already at 3.6mm unfolded. 

davgreg said:

badmonk said:

and the tariffs on Russia are?

if the American economy survives another 3 and a half years years with this leadership it will be a miracle.

The goal is reciprocal tariffs and a reduction in trade barriers. It will take time as the rest of the world is used to taking advantage of the US in trade by the use of VAT taxes with rebates, tariffs and other trade barriers.  That is hardly something to fuss about.

 

What does VAT have to do with international trade?

It is applied to products at the fiscal point of sale and throughout the supply chain. It does not change because a product was manufactured in or by an external country.

We all know Trump sees VAT as some kind of lever against external trade but that is a very weird way to see things. 

Basically nonsense and the US is in the extreme minority of nations (20?) that don't really use it, whereas some 170 do. 

JonyArhendts said:

These idiots won’t be there in a few years, Apple will… patience.

Yes. Weather the storm. Make half-promises and ride things out.

The situation is crazy right now and the more anyone concedes, the more they will want. 

I've never seen such a wide-ranging bunch of officials so out of their depth and trying to please a president who is not fit for office.

Bessent is supposed to be 'smart' but every time I see him pushed on anything he just spouts stuttering gibberish because he doesn't have answers that fit Trump's orders.

Navarro is a hawk who has always had economically reckless ideas. 

macxpress said:

MplsP said:

A coworker has a folding Android phone (I think it’s a Samsung.) It seems nice for the times you have your phone and need something closer to an iPad mini, but there is a very visible bump/crease in the middle where it folds and the screen did seem to be having some issues along the edges. If you’re watching a movie, the aspect ratio doesn’t really work or help you and you end up with a crease down the middle of the image so it’s really no good for that. The form factor also means you can’t have much of a case or a case with a kickstand so in some ways it’s a bit limiting.

For iPads, many of the same limitations apply, only more so. You’re not trying to fit an iPad in your pocket so they don’t have the size constraints that a smart phone has, and iPads are designed to do more work using the entire screen, so having a crease in the middle is even more of an issue. 

Overall, from what I’ve seen I’d take a standard smartphone and skip the folding screen and i can’t really see the use for a folding iPad. 

This is exactly the issue with folding phones (even iPads for that matter). There's minimal value and far too many tradeoffs. I doubt Apple would ever release something with a crease down the center of the screen. Android users don't care about stuff like that. They'll buy nearly anything if it sounds cool and then act like their product is better because it was first to the market so it's "cutting edge" and Apple is always years behind! 

Plus there's only so many folds it can do before it breaks and I wouldn't be surprised if some even broke prematurely. 

Yet the rumours are constant and pointing to ever-increasing probability of a release in the relatively short term so I think Apple has decided to sign off on the product. 

The notch was a huge trade off for something that wasn't even strictly necessary. 

Glass fronts and backs have to be accepted even though there are great alternatives for backs that are far more durable. 

Folding phones, by nature, need extra care and that is a trade off. A hinge is a potential point of failure that slab phones don't have. But then slab phones can't double as mini tablets.

Anything mechanical will have a certain amount of actions before they break. Buttons, physical sliders, even ports
(insertion/removal). 

Modern folding phones are rated for years of use but the target audience at the high end probably renews the device with every hardware upgrade as they have lots of disposable income. 

I can see why that might appeal to Apple. Especially as they might be losing high income users through not having a competing offering. 

As for the crease, even the first foldable phones (with more visible creases) it was a non-issue. They were hardly noticeable in use. Very similar to the situation with the notch. 

This is a very good and balanced view on the current state of play on folding phones. 

I think most of the comments are a fair reflection on reality. 

My main qualm perhaps is about putting the iPad Fold plans on pause. 

After following the launch of the Huawei MatePad Fold it was far more compelling than I imagined (at least what I've seen so far) and think an iPad Fold would equally compelling. Especially as only Huawei is really doing the modern folding tablet right now. There are very few fish in that pond (unlike folding phones) and demand would be lower and therefore easier to meet. 

This is a video (in Chinese) that gives a decent overview of what is out there right now. Obviously there are a lot of use case options that don't exist with folding phones and this product is running one OS (the same one that runs on laptops) so moving from a 'tablet' style use to a 'laptop' style use is seamless. 



If Apple has put the project on hold I wonder if it's because resources are being diverted elsewhere or the development is simply not moving as fast as it could due to other pressing issues. 

If the MatePad Fold takes off (it's very expensive) Huawei will have yet another win in the ultra premium segment and Apple will lose more premium customers as a result. 

A folding phone would fill one hole where customers are potentially being lost but cars and tablets/folding tablets is another.