Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Other Tired of waiting…
- Thread starter MrENGLISH
- Start date
-
- Tags
- all-in-one foldable folding phone tablet
- Sort by reaction score
Well, I am still waiting for iPhone 16 or 17 Mini that won’t happen.
I remember when they said smaller phone is unpopular because of low demand. Well, if the price was somewhere near SE it would have been extremely popular.
Will have to buy regular iPhone 15 instead. I am sick and tired of “phablets”, if I ever wanted one I would have got myself a new iPad. Somehow, I am still not feeling like I need a new iPad since I rarely use my older one.
For adequate display experience I have my MacBook and a 65 inch LG OLED TV, no smartphone would rival that, foldable or not
I remember when they said smaller phone is unpopular because of low demand. Well, if the price was somewhere near SE it would have been extremely popular.
Will have to buy regular iPhone 15 instead. I am sick and tired of “phablets”, if I ever wanted one I would have got myself a new iPad. Somehow, I am still not feeling like I need a new iPad since I rarely use my older one.
For adequate display experience I have my MacBook and a 65 inch LG OLED TV, no smartphone would rival that, foldable or not
Is is low quality for a VR set (I have yet to examine one)? My major problem with VR/AR glasses is that nobody asked for this. Which is an entirely different thing than making something of poor quality and then iterating it.
better start working that arm out now so you can hold it up for longer than a few minutes at a time
You are not, I want one too. I want Apple to take their time and give us a foldable iPhone on the level of quality that their current 15 Pro is. I have used foldables already and I was not happy with any one of them. Just like Android on a tablet has a mediocre UI with bad app optimization where iPads are miles ahead with features like Stage Manager and app optimization - the Android foldables are no different, I love Android (I use both Android and iOS) but both hardware and sofware of foldable Androids is not up to par.
The best foldable I used was the Google Pixel Fold as the software was decently bloat-free (the typical Pixel experience) but app optimization was still bad and the hardware is not as good as Samsung makes it and far worse than that of an iPhone. And then it cost me more than my 15 Pro! It's absurd!
The mere 3 years of new Android versions is ridiculous and unacceptable for a $1500 device and Google actually seems to be the best in that regard in the Android space currently. In the last year 2026 you won't even get one more Android version because that support expires June 2026 and new Android versions don't release until fall. So it launches with one Android version in 2023, and then you get a new one in 2024 and 2025, that's just 2 versions.
Imagine if you bought a 15 Pro on launch day in 2023 and iOS 19 were its final iOS version. Just imagine that. That's the Pixel Fold.
After using my 14 Pro with a Clicks keyboard the last few months, I think I’d prefer the current form factor over a foldable iPad/iPhone hybrid. I’m content with the amount of screen real estate I have without the virtual keyboard popping up. It’s huge, but it works for me as a carry-able computer. Ideally, a iPhone mini with this case would be perfect for me.
Before this case, I really wanted the foldable device, as I do use my iPhone as my main computer for work and personal. A bigger iPad mini sized screen I just don’t really see much benefit to me personally.
But I’d also argue for the people who do want it, it should be an option and Apple is more than capable of delivering this.
Before this case, I really wanted the foldable device, as I do use my iPhone as my main computer for work and personal. A bigger iPad mini sized screen I just don’t really see much benefit to me personally.
But I’d also argue for the people who do want it, it should be an option and Apple is more than capable of delivering this.
In 2020 I got a Pixel 3a XL and was on Android for 9 months to try it again. I ultimately came back to iOS/iPhone, but I totally agree with you on this part I quote you on above.
The kicker here is that this is a Pixel. Google Phones. But if you're a regular Android user who is using a device manufactured by anyone other than Google you're at the mercy of your carrier for upgrades. The manufacturer gets the upgrade from Google, does it's thing and then has to submit THAT to the carriers before the carrier pushes a release! This is with US carriers.
It's crazy and a very large part of the reason I chose a Pixel when I tried Android. Three years isn't much, but at least I wasn't waiting on T-Mobile to approve Google's updates! And that's really a sorry state of affairs where this is concerned.
I have strong anti-interest in a foldable phone. The materials science isn't at a Star Trek enough level to mitigate the compromises necessary for such a thing.
I get the draw of them, I understand the 'cool' factor, but the unavoidable crease/seam/etc in the middle of what is arguably the most important feature of the phone, the one I interact the most (either by sight or touch), is 100% a deal breaker for me. There are other issues, of course, but that screen impact is the biggest.
If Apple puts out a foldable device at some point in the future, that's great ... provided it doesn't reserve the highest feature set to that foldable device (e.g., best camera system, best CPU/Neural Engine/etc). That's where a lot of folks, myself included, would be upset ... and there is precedent for that sort of thing.
So, if other folks want a bendy phone, that's cool. If Apple makes a bendy phone for people that don't mind the compromises, that's cool too if it doesn't force people looking for top performance to make a choice they really don't want to make. The fear, though, is that that's exactly what will happen, hence my anti-interest.
I get the draw of them, I understand the 'cool' factor, but the unavoidable crease/seam/etc in the middle of what is arguably the most important feature of the phone, the one I interact the most (either by sight or touch), is 100% a deal breaker for me. There are other issues, of course, but that screen impact is the biggest.
If Apple puts out a foldable device at some point in the future, that's great ... provided it doesn't reserve the highest feature set to that foldable device (e.g., best camera system, best CPU/Neural Engine/etc). That's where a lot of folks, myself included, would be upset ... and there is precedent for that sort of thing.
So, if other folks want a bendy phone, that's cool. If Apple makes a bendy phone for people that don't mind the compromises, that's cool too if it doesn't force people looking for top performance to make a choice they really don't want to make. The fear, though, is that that's exactly what will happen, hence my anti-interest.
I've been using an iPhone since 2007. Twice since then I have given Android a try. Once with the HTC One M7 and again with the RED Hydrogen One. While there were things I liked about each phone, I ultimately got annoyed with Android and switched back to an iPhone. That is why I've held off for so long hoping Apple would make a foldable. I much prefer iOS and I love being integrated into the Apple ecosystem with all my hardware being mostly in sync.
But I'm just getting to the point that I am tired of waiting for Apple to make the product that I am most interested in.
I recently had a serious health scare (bilateral pulmonary embolism) and was told by the Drs that I am lucky to still be alive. That is also playing a role into why I feel like I don't want to wait any longer to buy something that I've been wanting to own for a few years now.
I am far more invested in the Google/Dropbox ecosystems than I am in Apple's ecosystem. I do use iMessage a lot, but that's mainly with three people. Everything else is SMS. And I do have an iCloud sub, but for convenience, not actual backup/storage purposes.
I just happen to use all my Google/Dropbox services on Apple hardware is all. It's convenient because it's cross-platform and I don't have any issues going back and forth between devices. I still prefer iOS though, so that keeps me on iPhone.
You're waiting for a foldable. Others are waiting for the return of Touch ID and the headphone jack. I am waiting for Apple to remove the fugly camera boil on the back of the iPhone and make the camera flush with the housing. Between you and me and those waiting for Touch ID/headphone jack, who do think Apple will serve first?
I mean, get what you want. I don't like compromising, but my desire to use iOS is more than my irritation with the camera bump. If you continue to wait on Apple you may be there for a very long time - not using what you want to use.
I'm not sure I want a phone that becomes a tablet. I use my phone and my tablet for completely different things, and I like to keep them separate.
I would love a phone that becomes a smaller phone, though.
I would love a phone that becomes a smaller phone, though.
If the rumors are true that Apple is back to pursuing thinness over functionality, I think the camera bump is only going to get worse since they always ignore that area in their thinness benchmarks.You're waiting for a foldable. Others are waiting for the return of Touch ID and the headphone jack. I am waiting for Apple to remove the fugly camera boil on the back of the iPhone and make the camera flush with the housing. Between you and me and those waiting for Touch ID/headphone jack, who do think Apple will serve first?
Speaking of headphone jacks returning, HTC just came out with a new phone that did just that. Very surprising!
That was part of the reason I bought an iPad. I thought I would use it more and didn't want to drain the battery on my iPhone if I didn't need to. But I found myself hardly ever using the iPad and instead always pulling out my iPhone. I guess it is more of a convenience thing since I always have my iPhone on me. Having a foldable just feels like it would be the best of both worlds for someone like me.
My first smartphone was the HTC Touch Pro in May 2009. It was funny waiting for my iPhone friends to catch up. MMS and cut and paste didn't come until later for iPhone and my Touch Pro was doing that out of the box.
I went right from that phone to the iPhone 5 in 2012 though. Great phone (the Touch Pro), I still have it. HTC made/makes some good stuff I think.
Last edited:
Is your phone a Plus/Max? That could be a factor. Having a greater size difference helps separate the two spaces for me, mentally at least.
I use the regular size iPhone, it's smaller in the pocket, easier to use one-handed.
I have the 15PM and a 12.9" iPad Pro. It could also be that my iPad just feels too large for me. It was definitely a different story back when I had the iPhone 4S and the iPad 3rd gen. Back then I was using my iPad all the time. But yeah, once Apple started offering the Plus/Max sized iPhones, I found myself using an iPad less and less often.
I remember those days too. Back then jailbreaking your iPhone was a must to get features that were missing.
The reason I switched to the HTC One M7 was because it was the first Android phone that looked Mac-like to me. It also had features that, at the time, I really wanted on my iPhone. Larger screen, stereo speakers, FM radio, IR remote control, etc. But it was annoying me how Android felt like apps were sluggish and navigating around took an extra step or two to complete. The final straw for me was when the main camera stopped working about 9 months in. I was never a fan of the 5/5S design (I previously had the 5 before buying the One M7). So I decided to go back to a 4S until the 6 Plus was released a few months later.
With the RED Hydrogen One, I was curious about its glasses free 3D screen and cameras. While the device itself felt very solid to hold, the 3D cameras were horrible (they must not have been spaced out correctly and they ended up having to fake the 3D depth via software). There was also an issue where they got locked out of their own Android build and could no longer provide any updates - especially security updates - just a few months into its release. My guess is that they pissed off whoever they outsourced it to and learned a hard lesson from that experience. Thankfully with that device, I never committed fully to making a switch and still had my iPhone X as my primary phone.
Understood the meaning but hey, joke was there to grab 😂😂.
But now you mention the iphone as an ipad mini i have to say that depending on how apple’s executives and the market advances in the next years it will decide wether the foldables become a iphone with a flip style or fold or even both.
My thoughs on the current apple philosophy is the fold will be the new ipad “mini”, and by that i mean an actual ipad that belongs to the ipad lineup, and the flip will become an iphone. I dont see apple making a fold like phone soon at least or in the first years of the folding era.
Apple likes to differentiate devices and draw a line. Hence why ipads are not macs yet ( mostly in OS, though they are getting close in other aspects) and macs dont have touchscreens and other tablet like things. They just dont cross the line… yet 😏.
Following this “law” it makes sense that they choose a flip/clamshell like design, it fits perfectly for an iphone and fold for an ipad making both compact in its way. Might be also possible that the iphone will be first in the foldables lineup, following by a ipad.
I have spent the last nine years with round sided phones. iPhone 6 Plus, 6s Plus, Pixel 3a XL and my 11 Pro Max. I won't be upgrading this year, but when I do it will be to a flat sided phone.
Last edited:
You have absolutely lost your mind if you think Apple will *ever* release not only an iPhone/iPad hybrid, but that also runs macOS.
There is precedent for Apple introducing products that they know will cannibalize other products of their own. See the iPhone and iPod.
But they absolutely are not going to cannibalize the candy bar iPhones, the iPads, and the Mac all in one go.
I wouldn’t even be shocked if Apple releases a foldable, and still restrict sfeatures like split view, slide over and stage manager to the individual iPads.
Really just proves how difficult it is for any company to please everyone's wants and needs. Even something as simple as the edges of a device can make or break a purchase for some people.
I think it's more to how long you're using a device. I didn't care from the beginning that Apple went to round sides. But I was coming from an iPhone 5. I'm sure if I'd spent a long of time with later phones that had flat sides I might be a little less interested in flat sides. I won't know for sure until I've spent a bit of time with a newer phone.
Last edited:
I honestly think the edges of the 15 (or at least on my 15PM) are a nice compromise between having rounded and flat edges.
Personally, I'm not a fan of the rounded edges of the 6-11 iPhones. But that has more to do with the issues it creates with screen protectors than the feel of the phone itself in my hands.
I had to always make sure I bought one of those "3D" screen protectors that had the soft, flexible, curved outer edge along the glass in order to get maximum coverage. A non-issue with flat edge phones.
It is impossible to make everyone happy. I still think the iPhone 5/5s was the highpoint of phone design. If a new iPhone generation came out paying homage to the 5/5s, at least slightly smaller than the base 14/15, no camera bump, flat sides, enough bezel at the top and bottom to hold the phone without touching the screen, I'd be queuing up for one on release day, especially if it were thick enough to have better battery life! Clearly that's not going to happen because that's not the way design is going.
By the time I'm ready for a new phone, they'll have an entirely new design, that'll probably be quite nice, and I'll be happy enough with it. I just hope the 'MAKE IT BIGGER AND THINNER' push is over by then, people who want their iPhones and iPad minis folded in half have them, and phones are trending smaller again. I loved going down in overall size from the 8 Plus to the 14, and hopefully my next phone can be slightly smaller again. I don't think I want to go all the way back down to a 5, in size, but no bigger than a 14!
Sorry for the incoherent rambling. I just got up and haven't had my coffee yet.
By the time I'm ready for a new phone, they'll have an entirely new design, that'll probably be quite nice, and I'll be happy enough with it. I just hope the 'MAKE IT BIGGER AND THINNER' push is over by then, people who want their iPhones and iPad minis folded in half have them, and phones are trending smaller again. I loved going down in overall size from the 8 Plus to the 14, and hopefully my next phone can be slightly smaller again. I don't think I want to go all the way back down to a 5, in size, but no bigger than a 14!
Sorry for the incoherent rambling. I just got up and haven't had my coffee yet.