No, Vision Pro engineers haven’t been reassigned to an ‘iPhone Fold’ project

The Sellers Research Group (that’s me) doesn’t believe it, but — as noted by AppleInsider — a new supply chain report out of Korea claims that Apple Vision Pro engineers have been reassigned to the “iPhone Fold” project to get the job done faster.

An official said to be familiar with Apple’s plans told Alphabiz that the “core personnel of Vision Pro” have been moved to the folding iPhone development team. And because of that move, the publication claimed on Tuesday that the release date of the “iPhone Fold” has been moved up to September 2026 instead of early 2027.

I’ve long doubted that Apple plans a foldable iPhone. And a February 16 report fro Weibo user Fixed Focus Digital claimed that Apple has abandoned its plans for a foldable iPhone.

“Apple is accelerating the research and development of folding screen products, and has purchased several friends’ devices on sale for disassembly research, but it is said that because the display failed to test the screen, the project has been put on hold,” Fixed Focus Digital tweeted.

I know nothing about the guy (or gal), but I’ve long expressed doubt that Apple would release an “iPhone Fold.” Why?

As noted by the Make Use Of website, since the screen on a foldable phone folds and unfolds several times a day, it wrinkles down the middle and leaves a noticeable crease. This can prove to be interrupting in daily use as you slide your finger across the screen.

Also, as the article notes, dust is a big problem for foldable phones because they have a lot of moving parts. If any small dust particle enters the phone body via any one of its openings, it can cause problems and potentially kill the device. 

Finally, Make Use Of notes that making a foldable phone means sacrificing a lot of internal real estate to house all the moving parts. The hinge itself takes up a lot of space. 

“Due to this, foldable phones often have mediocre battery life—at least not as good as what they could have if the moving parts didn’t take up so much space,” notes Make Use Of.

Besides, I have little doubt that the Vision Pro team is part at work on the second generation of the spatial computer that’s expected in (at best) 18 months.