Other Unpopular opinion? I want an “iPhone Fold”

[The Game 161]

Apple is said to be developing a 20 inch foldable tablet for like 2025 and onwards that seems like a real good use case. Maybe 10 inch then out to 20 Inch for other tasks or media

 

[eyoungren]

Winning in the AR space could eventually make a company into the authors/gatekeepers of our collective reality. Not saying this is a good thing, it's actually terrifying when carried towards the farther ends, but in the medium term, I doubt anyone is going to be arguing over foldable screens or tiny phones in 2028, we'll wear glasses and carry compute pebbles and have whatever display we want wherever we want it.

We have some people with drug addictions in society because drugs allow them to escape reality.

The ability to escape reality without dependence on a chemical just by wearing it? And hey, it's totally legal? Sounds like a path someone will take/push others down.

As to the rest of your comments…I will never understand the desire to use only one device. Even in all your use case scenarios here's what would happen with me. I'd buy multiple AR glasses. Why? Because each one would be used for a specific purpose. Want to be productive, wear these glasses - they are already set. TV, this pair! So on and so on.

So ultimately, in my case, the very thing this whole scenario is designed to solve, the use of one device only, means I use many. I've been told over my entire life I am not normal, and that is probably the case. But I would not be surprised if others do this as well.

 

[RecentlyConverted]

It may be an unpopular opinion but that's only because Apple hasn't done one. once apple makes one everyone on here bashing foldables will be talking about how it "changes the way I use my phone" and "its so versatile i cant go back to a slab phone".

I have noticed on this forum that a large majority of users bash the competitors and their products and when apple does the same thing its somehow revolutionary.

Absolutely, I remember suggesting before Face ID, that it would be great if Apple added a supplementary ID system, pointing out the problems that Touch ID caused some users. You would have thought I was the devil for suggesting a supplementary ID, not replacement of Touch ID.

Now there is almost universal approval of Face ID in the members of this forum.

 

[Stevenyo]

We have some people with drug addictions in society because drugs allow them to escape reality.

The ability to escape reality without dependence on a chemical just by wearing it? And hey, it's totally legal? Sounds like a path someone will take/push others down.

As to the rest of your comments…I will never understand the desire to use only one device. Even in all your use case scenarios here's what would happen with me. I'd buy multiple AR glasses. Why? Because each one would be used for a specific purpose. Want to be productive, wear these glasses - they are already set. TV, this pair! So on and so on.

So ultimately, in my case, the very thing this whole scenario is designed to solve, the use of one device only, means I use many. I've been told over my entire life I am not normal, and that is probably the case. But I would not be surprised if others do this as well.

Oh yeah, the addiction style effects would be horrific. It’s a nightmare, but one that’s likely coming.

I kinda see what you’re saying about multiple sets/devices, but the whole idea would be wearing glasses all day, like someone who wears glasses already is used to. Then you set one wall of your house as a “tv” while the area above your desk at work is a “monitor” and the glasses have a fancy way of meshing with the tower at your desk or the Roku remote/streaming device at your wall.

On their own, the glasses probably have capabilities between the watch and the iPhone, but via wireless and sometimes wired (for extra low latency/high fidelity/or high frame rate applications) connections they replace the vast majority of screens in our lives.

You can walk into a sports bar and no longer worry about someone blocking your view or getting the game you wanted, your table has its own “screens” and you can change the channel.

Want to check your flight info while walking in the airport? No more list of all departures or refreshing in the airline app on your phone, just large print details about your flight at information kiosks dotted throughout the terminal. (Kinda like the iris targeted ads in minority report, but implemented differently)

Want to go screen free and remove all distractions? Just take off/turn off your glasses and the world goes calm. Even use them like noise cancelling headphones and have the glasses block out unwanted distractions.

Of course, in this timeline, we’ll get a couple benefits and a lot of dystopian terror, but I still can’t help being excited to finally be able to watch a TV show laying down without messing up my neck, or use a laptop all day without messing up my back, things I’ve been waiting for for over 20 years since I first saw glasses with built in displays on the market. I’ve never bought them, they’ve never come close to the goal, but to me, the early 2000s glasses mounted displays have been like the 80’s knowledge navigator videos were to the smartphone/tablet era. A polestar pointing towards a potential next paradigm shift in how we interact with computers.

Someday we won’t be hunching over or squinting at little screens, even our mobile devices will be able to give us a cinematic film viewing or a panoramic desktop experience whenever we are. AR is the next frontier. And if we’re not careful (spoiler alert, we’re not) it could give one or a couple companies power over the accepted perception of reality to an extent that makes current tech juggernaut dominance in our lives look inconsequential. But wouldn’t it be nice if we could just buy some smart glasses to replace our watches, phones, tablets, TVs, and computer monitors all with a single more convenient solution and without destroying society so one company can make more profit than the GDP of most nations?

 

[BryanElliott]

i would love a folding phone with ios. my ideal design would be something like the size of two ProMax phones side by side but while it’s folded, the front screen has to be just as functional as the current pro max and it can’t be too thick.

ideally each half would be the thinness of the current ProMax minus the width of however much the volume buttons take.

maybe not even a folding phone but two screens that snap together that somehow eliminate the seem or gap.

i bought the ProMax with the purpose of maximizing my “computer utility” while away from my desk. sometimes i wish i had a portable ipad like device that could fit in my pocket sorta like the old HTC flip. remember those ?

apple marking a foldable phone would be cool if they had the option.

it would also be nice if they implemented USB C a long time ago

hell, bring back touch ID so i can be more explicit when i want to unlock my phone.

also, let me rearrange my icons freely instead of being stuck in a grid.

would like it if my app library could be on the left instead of the right

#myopinionsonfoldableswitharant

 

[mk313]

I guess I have just been fortunate. I work in graphic design, and my career has largely been in newspapers. With the exception of my first job every newspaper I have worked for has been small weekly papers where the production/composing staff was either me alone or me with one other person. The majority of these companies had less than 25 employees. By the time the business I worked at last was sold, there were less than 15 employees left.

At every one of these jobs I had the luxury of using work computers for whatever I wanted. And the luxury of modifying those computers to better suit my tastes/workflow. As long as the work got done, no one cared. I even had computers of my own brought in and doing things. Some of the other hardware at work was mine.

This is primarily why I got so into laptops. I could bring them to work and use them on the network when I wanted to. And since I was at work all day, a laptop was just fine. I had plenty of space.

It's also how I came to be so into multiple displays and multiple computers. Plenty of space at work, I wanted to emulate that at home. When you have five or six computers and many displays all around you in the spaces you are all the time, there really is no need for phones/tablets to do things those computers can do better.

In my new job I was issued a MBP and told it was mine to use for work and whatever I wanted. This company is in the golf industry (we design scorecards and yardage books) and we have about 10 people total (maybe a smidgen more).

I asked about any 'laptop policy'. The boss looked at me like I had sprouted a second head and the response was 'Well, just don't fill it up with porn.' That's the laptop policy, that's it.

So, even when I was not working from home, but at the office, I still did what you did, "personal stuff on my phone (pay bills, emails, read, watch a movie, whatever)" on work computers.

And this is why I've only ever needed a phone, and that just for use as a phone.

Glad that your system works for you. I preferred to get out of the office at lunch & head to a nearby park. I'm not lugging my laptop with me for that.

 

[madrich]

I would buy an Apple “flip” iPhone; like the original Razr.

 

[eyoungren]

Glad that your system works for you. I preferred to get out of the office at lunch & head to a nearby park. I'm not lugging my laptop with me for that.

I used to do that, back when finances weren't such a worry. But the laptop was taken. Again, just me. I hate reading on small screens. But part of that was also to soak in the vibes of a public place (without having to interact with anyone). So, reading or browsing wasn't always what I was focused on. People watching.

There was a time when my kids were smaller that we hit Starbucks on Saturday night. All of us had our laptops out and the kids had their hot chocolate and snacks while I had my coffee.

 

[JtheLemur]

You rarely come in contact with the crease.

The crease literally disappears with most content on the screen. You'll see the crease from certain angles or when the background is off/black but majority of the time the crease is not noticeable.

Completely overblown by those that have little to no experience with foldables.

Lastly, foldables are getting better with every generation and the new teardrop hinge design will eliminate the crease in future foldables.

Defending a purchase I see lol

 

[Wanted797]

I would really like to see a folding iPhone. The new Pixel Fold is the first time I've been strongly tempted to buy a non-Apple phone since the iPhone's introduction.

Having the ability to read books anywhere on the go is something I would pay a premium for. The screen size of the folding phones is just big enough to accomplish that, for me.

I understand the appeal.

But I was reading a book on my iPhone mini yesterday….

 

[Wanted797]

…without needing to have to carry two devices.

I’m generally curious how often you think you’d carry and iPad out of the house?

 

[theotherphil]

My opinion is it's just another gimmick. Much like the Surface line of devices, not a great laptop and not a great tablet.

Poor screen quality, poor qc on the screens, worse reliability, shorter lifetime, greater energy draw, thicker, heavier. Just a compromise that may work for a minority of people. I'd prefer a great phone, and a great tablet....like the iPhone PM & iPP.

The times I want to use my iPP, I pack it with me. The times I don't, I have a thinner and lighter device. With a foldable, you're carrying all those downsides all the time.

 

[Smartuser]

Am I the only one hoping Apple releases a fold?

Yes, absolutely, your opinion, which comes up here every five minutes and tends to be posted every week or so in a thread that then drives engagement until the subject is ready for the next copycat thread, is totally unpopular, no doubt.

It's okay if someone wants a foldable iPhone, but I could do without the "My opinion is so unpopular and if they don't do it, they're doomed!" baggage. Simply state your opinion and try to back it up.

Good Luck!

 

[poorcody]

I understand the appeal.

But I was reading a book on my iPhone mini yesterday….

Not as ideal as a regular sized iPad, but unlike an iphone, very acceptable. Most Kindles are about that size.

 

[NeonNights]

Defending a purchase I see lol

Or maybe I'm trying to inform and clear up misconceptions, backed up with real user experience.

 

[subjonas]

Just need to clear up, there are two types of foldable phones—the tablet that folds in half so that it can be used as a phone, and the phone that can fold in half just to be less long. Note that of course these double in thickness when folded.

Assuming the folding works flawlessly for the life of the device…

I’d be somewhat interested in both types, but with caveats. Either not as they’re probably going to be designed or not as they’re intended to be used.

I’d want a small tablet that can fold in half to be even more portable, but not to replace my phone. I generally have no interest in using a tablet when I’m out, only at home or work. So I prefer a small as possible phone for when I’m out, but at home I set my phone charging and just use my iPad Mini (with Continuity I generally don’t need to pick up my iPhone). So it would be nice to be able to fold my Mini in half and carry it around my home in my pocket. Again, I wouldn’t want to take this out as my main phone because it would be way too huge even when folded, and I’d never use the unfolded screen outside of the house, so it would be pointless for me. I’d want to continue using my small phone, and this would just be my home device. I bring my bigger 12.9” iPad to work in my bag. That doesn’t really need to fold since it goes in my bag, but assuming the folding works well, then sure why not have the folding option—it might be easier to pack in some situations. Maybe it could fit in a jacket pocket.

I MIGHT be interested in a phone that can fold in half, but not so much because it’s practical. I’m not convinced that a folded in half but double thickness phone is much more comfortable in the pocket than a normal slab phone. But anyway, as I said I like small phones, and especially for a small phone there’s no need for it to fold in half. But I do really miss the old “dumb” phone clamshell form factor, in particular the old Motorola Razr. I kind of wish I could get some special version of iOS on pretty much that exact device. Maybe even keeping some of the physical buttons. But the keyboard should be touch so that I can use QuickPath. This phone would be more for whimsy though. Probably not very practical. But depending on specifics, I might be willing to sacrifice some practical for whimsy.

 

[RedTheReader]

I’m generally curious how often you think you’d carry and iPad out of the house?

I don’t understand the use of this word. People have had iPads and other tablets for decades at this point. Why would you think they wouldn’t have noticed wants or needs their iPads can’t fulfill by now? People notice when their existing technology can’t do something they want it to do.

 

[Wanted797]

I don’t understand the use of this word. People have had iPads and other tablets for decades at this point. Why would you think they wouldn’t have noticed wants or needs their iPads can’t fulfill by now? People notice when their existing technology can’t do something they want it to do.

you'd
/juːd/

contraction

1. you had.
   "you'd better remember it"
2. you would.
   "I was afraid you'd ask me that

I’m using the 2nd version. I’m just asking OP about having 2 devices and when they’d be used. I know many people with iPads and nearly all don’t take them out of the house as much as they predicted (myself included).

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

I see the inherent design and mechanics that go into a foldable to be antithetical to everything Apple users expect and want more of from Apple:

Many moving parts, displays with creases, hinges, semi-squishy flexible glas/plastic displays -Those are inevitable when creating a foldable and almost in direct opposition to what we've seen from Apple thus far.

Consider the fact that Apple won't even do a sliding cover for a built in camera, or any types of detachable styluses or other accessories that other brands gladly do.

I see Apple betting everything on meeting this exact same need by giving us a much bigger "display" inside its "mixed-reality headset", possibly in a smaller device, instead of finding new ways to make physical displays fold or slide together.

 

[Yoms]

And I want an iPhone with the size of the iPhone 5 / SE 1st gen with full screen (no home button).

 

[Jackbequickly]

How many would still be happy if the screen developed a crease? As picky as Apple customers are, including me, I would not be happy unless the opened screen was perfect. I have friends with folding phones and after only a few months, they are no longer perfect.

 

[eyoungren]

And I want an iPhone with the size of the iPhone 5 / SE 1st gen with full screen (no home button).

I'd be first in line for an iPhone that is somewhere in size between the Plus/Max and the iPad Mini.

 

[RRC]

Rival companies need folding devices because their tablets are garbage. Apple customers likely have an iPad already if their phone isn’t big enough for their needs.

I honestly don’t see folding phones being the future. That’s not to say they won’t make one, but I’m yet to see any folding device being used in public so it won’t happen anytime soon, if at all.

 

[Applɘ Aꙅylum]

Big screen like iPad that are affordable, and screen that fit in pocket are iPhone which are also affordable

BUT

A foldable device (think iPad and iPhone morphed into one) that aren't affordable AND bulky in the pocket.

High price and crease are both cringey.

Pass.

 

[baker12]

I’ve read many different conversations and such with many users who don’t care about a potential “iPhone fold” or straight out think it’s a bad idea.

Meanwhile, I’m here, with an iPhone 14 pro ready to say “my next phone has to be a fold, apple or otherwise”. That said, I’m happy with the apple ecosystem which makes this difficult.

The reason why I want a fold is for the “fun convenience” of having fun tech without needing to have to carry two devices (I’d be ok with an iPad mini size)

Now, OS wise - I have an iPad that I never use because to me it’s still a glorified iOS device. Sure it has improved on multitasking and such, at the end of the day, it can’t replace my MacBook which is what I’d need to justify using it - this is my personal experience, others use it religiously and that’s great for them.

That said, a larger screen can be useful for very specific takes on the go, so having an “iPhone / iPad mini” would be nice, but again, the thought of having to carry two devices is not appealing.

Am I the only one hoping Apple releases a fold?

if iPad is not used why buy it in the first place