Earlier, some foreign media bloggers and technology media predicted that Apple was steadily advancing the research and development of folding screen iPhones. Recently, the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office officially announced a patent for Apple's latest folding screen mobile phone.
According to the content of the patent, Apple's patent uses a spring layer design, which is composed of a metal spring array, and then embeds sensors such as a force sensing structure in the spring layer, and the patent also states that if necessary, foam columns and other compressible structures can be interspersed with the spring to help adjust the performance of the spring layer. It is reported that the introduction of a spring layer in the folding screen device can alleviate the external pressure of the device in the event of impact and extrusion on the one hand, and on the other hand, it can also alleviate the stress affected by the screen during repeated folding and unfolding, thereby improving the durability of the folding screen device. It's unclear whether the patent will apply to the mass-produced foldable iPhone.
There are currently different opinions on the progress of the folding screen iPhone, some media bloggers said that there will be a folding screen iPhone as soon as next year in 2025, but the latest source of speculation about the progress has come to 2028. Many details such as the specific design, configuration specifications, and release time of the folding screen iPhone are yet to be confirmed by more leaked news.