Apple’s iPhone Air is easily its most exciting and polarizing phone in years. Compared to the iPhone 17 (8mm) and iPhone 17 Pro Max (8.75mm), the 5.6mm iPhone Air feels wafer-thin, and its light and balanced design is comfortable and pleasant to hold for hours on end.
It’s not hard to see that this is a stepping stone to the upcoming folding iPhone, and Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman confirmed as much in his latest Power On newsletter: “As for how the foldable iPhone will look, I am increasingly told that users should imagine two titanium iPhone Airs side-by-side. In other words, it’s going to be super thin and a design achievement.”
While there’s no doubting that the iPhone Air is a design achievement, two iPhone Airs side by side would measure 11.28mm, which isn’t all that thin compared to other folding phones:
- Honor Magic V5: 8.8mm
- Galaxy Z Fold 7: 8.9mm
- Oppo Find N5: 8.9mm
- Huawei Mate X6: 9.9mm
- Vivo X Fold 5: 9.2mm
- Xiaomi Mi Mix Fold 4: 9.5mm
- Pixel 10 Fold: 10.1mm
To claim the title of world’s thinnest folding phone, Apple would need to shave about a millimeter and a half from each side of the phone, which certainly seems possible. Assuming the camera plateau continues to hold most of the components on the rear half, that leaves nearly twice the surface area for battery, which could result in a thinner body. Additionally, the folding iPhone is expected to eliminate Face ID, which could also result in some saved space.
Apple is expected to launch its folding phone next September at the 2026 iPhone event. As Gurman notes, it’s expected to be “ridiculously expensive compared with past iPhones,” likely starting at $2,000 or more.
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor, Macworld
Michael Simon has been covering Apple for more than 20 years. He started covering rumors with Spymac when the iPod was the iWalk, and has owned nearly every iPhone Apple has ever made. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, son, and far too many gadgets.