Apple’s first foldable MacBook might see big delays

Most top smartphone vendors have released various foldable smartphones over the summer, with Google’s Pixel 9 Pro Fold being the newest addition to this year’s lineup of foldable devices. But, while Samsung is on its sixth generation of foldable handsets, Apple has yet to launch a foldable iPhone.

Reports keep saying that Apple is developing foldable iPhones. However Apple has specific requirements for the technology. One of them might be making foldable devices with screens that do not have a noticeable crease when unfolded. Also, insiders say that Apple might launch a foldable MacBook or iPad before a foldable iPhone hits the market.

The newest rumor on Apple’s foldable device plans comes from reliable tipster Ming-Chi Kuo. His latest supply chain checks show that the foldable MacBook (or iPad) might have been delayed by several years due to various manufacturing issues that need to be addressed.

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Kuo posted an update to the information he shared a few months ago about Apple’s purported foldable MacBook plans.

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Apparently, Apple has decided on the final display size for the device. The company chose the smaller 18.8-inch option over the larger 20.25-inch foldable MacBook design . However, the company has supposedly delayed the mass production by several years:

Due to technical challenges with the display and mechanical, the assembly mass production schedule has been pushed back from 1H26 to the end of 2027 or 2028

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If this roadmap is accurate, we won’t get a foldable MacBook before 2028. And that’s assuming Apple can deliver one by then.

Kuo also noted that there will be no separate foldable iPad that launches in 2025. The foldable MacBook and foldable iPad we’ve seen in rumors are apparently the same device.

The analyst offered more information about Apple’s foldable MacBook ambitions in May than other reports. He mentioned the purported screen sizes Apple was considering, with LG being Apple’s main manufacturing partner for a crease-free foldable laptop.

That’s when Kuo said Apple might begin mass production in the fourth quarter of 2025 or the first half of 2026.

Also, Kuo said the foldable MacBook will be expensive. Preliminary costs for the foldable panel and hinge amounted to $600-$650 and $200-$250, respectively:

Unless Apple can significantly improve yields and reduce costs before mass production, the BOM cost of the foldable MacBook could approach that of the current Vision Pro. However, due to the more defined product positioning of the foldable MacBook, the shipments are expected to be significantly higher than those of the Vision Pro.

Given Kuo’s new remarks, it seems Apple is making little progress in improving yields and reducing costs.

Kuo did not mention the type of display Apple will use for the foldable MacBook. I assumed it had to be an OLED panel and that we would not get an OLED MacBook in stores before the foldable MacBook launches. Given Kuo’s new remarks, I now think the OLED MacBook might launch before the foldable variant comes out.

The M4 iPad’s Tandem OLED screen tech seems like the innovation Apple would use inside a foldable MacBook. But that’s only speculation based on reports claiming that Apple is working on all sorts of thin products, including MacBooks.

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