iPhone Flip: Features Most Wanted We Wish to See
Apple Inc. is a global technology firm headquartered in California specializing in consumer devices, software, and online services. Apple is the world’s most valuable company as of January 2021, and it is the most significant information technology company in terms of revenue (expected to reach US$365.8 billion in 2021). It is also the fourth-largest personal computer vendor in unit sales and the second-largest mobile phone manufacturer. In addition to Amazon, Alphabet Inc. (Google), Meta Platforms (Facebook), and Microsoft, it is one of the Big Five American information technology businesses.
To create and market Wozniak’s Apple I personal computer, the company was officially established as Apple Computer Company on April 1, 1976, by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne. Like Apple Computer, Inc., it was founded in 1977 by Jobs and Wozniak, and sales of their personal computers, including the Apple II, increased rapidly. It went public in 1980 and became an immediate financial success. The company launched numerous computers with unique graphical user interfaces throughout the following several years, including its first computer, the Macintosh, unveiled in the highly acclaimed advertising “1984”, directed by Ridley Scott. However, the excessive expense of its goods and power disputes among its executives created difficulties. In 1985, Wozniak and Jobs parted amicably from Apple, and Jobs started NeXT, bringing with him several Apple colleagues along for the ride.
Throughout the 1990s, as the personal computer industry developed and changed, Apple suffered significant market share losses to the lower-priced duopoly of the Microsoft Windows operating system on Intel-powered PC clones and the IBM PC operating system on IBM mainframes (also known as “Wintel”). In 1997, the business purchased NeXT to rectify Apple’s failed operating system strategy and lure Jobs to rejoin the company as an executive. Jobs led the company back to profitability through a variety of strategies, including introducing popular products such as the iMac, iPod, iPhone, and iPad to the public and garnering widespread praise for them, launching memorable advertising campaigns, opening the Apple Store retail chain, and acquiring several companies to broaden the company’s product portfolio. Unfortunately, jobs resigned from his position in 2011 due to health issues, and he passed away two months later. Tim Cook was appointed to take over as CEO in his place.
Several issues have been raised against the corporation, including the labor abuses of its contractors, the company’s environmental procedures, and its corporate ethics, which include anti-competitive activities and the sourcing of raw materials. However, a high degree of brand loyalty exists among customers of the corporation, which has been named the world’s most valuable brand. As a result, Apple became the first publicly listed U.S. firm to be valued at more than $1 trillion in August 2018, then $2 trillion in August 2020, and most recently $3 trillion in January 2022, becoming the first publicly traded U.S. Corporation to achieve this feat.
iPhone
The iPhone is a range of cell phones developed and sold by Apple Inc., which run on the iOS mobile operating system developed by the company. On January 9, 2007, Steve Jobs, then-CEO of Apple, announced the release of the first-generation iPhone. Since then, Apple has launched new iPhone models and iOS upgrades on an annual basis. According to Apple, more than 2.2 billion iPhones have been sold as of November 1, 2018.
The iPhone’s user interface is based on a multi-touch screen, first for mobile devices. It can connect to cellular networks or Wi-Fi networks and do various tasks such as making phone calls, browsing the web, taking photographs, playing music, and sending and receiving emails and text messages. In addition, the iPhone has gained several new features since its introduction, including higher screen sizes, the ability to record video, waterproofing, the option to install third-party mobile applications via an app store, and other accessibility enhancements. Up to the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, iPhones had a simple layout with a single button on the front panel that sent the user back to the home screen when pressed. Since the release of the iPhone X, all iPhone models have had a virtually bezel-less front screen design, with app switching enabled using gesture recognition technology.
The iPhone, along with Android, is one of the two most popular smartphone systems globally, accounting for a significant portion of the premium market. In addition, Apple has made significant earnings due to the iPhone, propelling the company to the top of the world’s most valuable publicly listed firms. It has been said that Apple’s first-generation iPhone was “revolutionary” and a “game-changer” for the mobile phone industry, and subsequent generations have also received positive feedback. In addition to popularizing the smartphone and tablet form factors, the iPhone is credited with fostering an enormous market for smartphone applications, known as the “app economy.” According to Apple’s App Store statistics, as of January 2017, the iPhone has more than 2.2 million apps available.
iPhone Flip
A foldable phone is something that Apple is working on, and this is not a secret. Apple patent filings and advice from reputable sources like famous analyst Ming-Chi Kuo and rising display expert Ross Young have provided evidence thus far. In addition, supply chain insiders have informed us that Apple has been supplied with foldable OLED panels by Samsung for testing purposes. Of all, as the Interaction Design Foundation points out, Apple plays with a wide range of products and ideas, but this does not imply that the business will release any of them.
Commentators are sure that if we see a foldable iPhone from Apple, it will be a “flip-type” device, similar to smartphones’ Samsung Galaxy Z Flip line. However, according to MacRumors ‘ sources, it has been reported that Apple has previously tried and rejected the notion of a smartphone-tablet hybrid, similar to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold series. Apple believes that the flip-style phone will appeal to a broader audience, maybe similar to the historical flip phones such as the original Motorola Razr, than the traditional smartphone. On the other hand, Apple is known for playing a “wait and see” game when it comes to embracing new form factors, so we may not see this decrease until 2024.
If and when it does arrive, the following are the things that we would want to see included.
Durability
One of the most important characteristics that we’d want to see in Apple’s iPhone Flip is its durability. Before Samsung’s disastrous introduction of the initial Galaxy Fold, there were concerns about the long-term durability of foldable phones. These worries were exacerbated when Samsung was forced to postpone opening its Galaxy Fold smartphone after many reviewers expressed severe concerns about the device’s soft plastic foldable OLED display, according to The Verge.
According to TechCrunch, Samsung went back to the drawing board and released an upgraded version of their product. However, the Galaxy Ford is still a fragile gadget that has eroded customer trust in foldables due to its design. Despite this, it was still susceptible to dust infiltration and was not water-resistant. Since then, Samsung has made considerable improvements to its foldable designs, incorporating ultra-thin glass and water resistance to the mix. According to a prominent data analyst, with Apple’s existing foldable prototypes, durability is reported to be a significant problem, so anticipate the Apple iPhone Flip to take things to an even higher level in this respect.
Design
In terms of industrial design, Apple has gained a solid reputation, and we would expect the company’s high-end product in this area to be something that sticks out from the crowd. On the other hand, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 3 is the most aesthetically pleasing flip-style foldable smartphone on the market, and it also has a secondary display. Samsung has even taken things a step further in some areas by providing clients with a unique design studio to personalize their Flip 3 phone by mixing and matching colors.
According to Tom’s Guide, a few iPhone Flip folding designs floating around the internet feature a premium iPhone sharing Pro-like camera array mixed with a back secondary display for displaying alerts while the device is closed. Apple would be prudent to incorporate a pro-level camera setup to separate itself from Samsung’s offerings, which, although excellent, are not at the level of a premium flagship device. In addition, the secondary display must also be available at all times to be helpful. However, Apple has yet to include an always-on feature in its current premium iPhones.
Optimized User Interface
According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone Flip might feature a screen as big as 8 inches when it is released. This might imply that Apple believes the foldable flip-style form factor would allow it to utilize a bigger screen than it would use with a regular-format phone. Even though it has a smaller display, Samsung has shown with the Galaxy Z Flip 3 that flip-style foldables have a natural inclination for multitasking. The top half of the collection is dedicated to one program, and the bottom half is dedicated to another app. It also allows creative control schemes on the bottom half of the screen when used in a single application environment.
Apple has taken the lead in optimizing its mobile operating systems for use on smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches, and it continues to do so. Likewise, we anticipate it to be a leader in optimizing its operating system for foldable devices. Even if Apple does decide to go with a more prominent display for the iPhone Flip, this will merely broaden the range of options even further.
Concluding Remarks
When it comes to releasing goods in new categories, Apple isn’t always the first to the party. For example, according to The Verge, smartwatches have been present for many years before Apple produced the Apple Watch, which debuted in 2015. When it came to smartwatches, Apple spent the time required to research the aspects that people enjoyed and utilized before concluding that giving the gadget a fitness emphasis would provide it with the essential value. According to CNET, Apple has gone on to dominate the smartwatch area, and as of 2020, the company owned 55 percent of the worldwide market in this category.
You can guarantee that Apple keeps a close eye on the market for foldable smartphones as it develops. Although there has been a lot of commotion about foldable phones, the industry hasn’t taken off, with Samsung initially aiming for a maximum of 6 million foldable phone sales in 2021. However, despite the recent introduction of some new alternatives, like the Oppo Find N, there are still just a few options available on the market, many of which are at a premium price range. Counterpoint Research predicts that foldable sales will climb by a factor of ten in 2023, which should assist in raising consumer awareness of the category in general. Foldable technology will continue to advance in the interim, laying the groundwork for the predicted iPhone Flip launch in 2023 or 2024, depending on when the device is released.
