The foldable iPhone looks to be getting closer – and a new rumor teases the one thing I’ve been fearing about the Z Fold 7 rival

• Apple’s foldable iPhone is on track to go on sale in September 2026, based on a new rumor
• A well-known Apple analyst claims it will enter production next year
• They also say its sales will be impacted by its high price tag

Apple’s long-awaited foldable iPhone is due to enter production next year, according to a leading analyst, which puts it on course for a release alongside the iPhone 18 range in September 2026.

Posting on X, Ming-Chi Kuo also claimed that Apple is anticipating relatively low sales of its foldable, on account of what he says will be its “premium pricing”.

If Kuo is on the money, this would mean there’s not long to go before we get a glimpse of the company’s first attempt at a foldable device. Then, we’ll finally find out how it fares against the rumored Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7.

The foldable iPhone has been rumored to come with an under-display camera, a near-invisible seam, a beautiful display, and impressive battery life. That all means it won’t come cheap – which Kuo appears to confirm – and that’s a key concern of mine.

The pricing barrier

In the X post, Kuo noted that recent rumors have claimed Apple has ordered 15-20 million units of the device. Yet Kuo revealed that this is likely the figure for “the product’s 2-3 year lifecycle,” putting the sales estimates for each year significantly lower.

The importance of that is that Kuo says the lower yearly estimations all come down to the foldable’s “premium pricing.” As with the costly Vision Pro headset, the sky-high asking price of the foldable iPhone is going to put a lot of people off, including myself – while I’m dying to try out this new evolution in the iPhone line-up, I’m not willing to sell a kidney to get one.

How much are we talking here? We’ve previously seen reports that Apple could price the foldable iPhone anywhere between $2,100 and $2,500. For context, the most expensive iPhone right now – the iPhone 16 Pro Max – starts at $1,199, making the foldable iPhone roughly twice as expensive.

We won’t know for sure, of course, until the foldable iPhone actually launches. But with that date rapidly approaching, it could well be out of reach for the majority of Apple’s customers.

You might also like

• Foldable iPhone – 5 key rumored features, from a liquid metal hinge to the return of Touch ID
• New foldable iPhone rumors predict Apple’s bold plans – here are 6 things to expect, from cameras to launch date
• iPhone Fold tipped to be an annual release and take flagship baton from Pro Max – with a price tag to match

Alex Blake has been fooling around with computers since the early 1990s, and since that time he’s learned a thing or two about tech. No more than two things, though. That’s all his brain can hold. As well as TechRadar, Alex writes for iMore, Digital Trends and Creative Bloq, among others. He was previously commissioning editor at MacFormat magazine. That means he mostly covers the world of Apple and its latest products, but also Windows, computer peripherals, mobile apps, and much more beyond. When not writing, you can find him hiking the English countryside and gaming on his PC.