Apple's first foldable iPhone appears to be staying on schedule, with fresh supply chain signals pointing to an autumn reveal despite persistent skepticism about the device's readiness.
A report from China Securities Journal, cited by DigiTimes, indicated that component deliveries for the device have begun in small batches, with suppliers receiving guidance that an unveiling is planned for September alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. A second supply chain source confirmed it had received no word of any delay.
The news pushes back on earlier concerns from analysts and leakers. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman raised doubts in March about a September launch, while Barclays analyst Tim Long went further, predicting shipments wouldn't begin until December. Leaker Instant Digital had also flagged lingering durability issues with the hinge mechanism as recently as May.
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Apple has navigated staggered launches before. The iPhone X was announced alongside the iPhone 8 lineup in 2017, but didn't ship until November. A similar approach here remains plausible even if the September reveal holds.
As Mashable has previously reported, the foldable is expected to feature a 7.8-inch inner OLED display, a 5.5-inch outer display, the A20 chip, Touch ID rather than Face ID, and dual rear cameras. Pricing estimates from multiple analysts have clustered around the $2,399 mark.