According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo’s latest research, Apple is expected to unveil the foldable iPhone (expected to be named iPhone Ultra), iPhone 18 Pro, and iPhone 18 Pro Max at this fall’s launch. However, pre-orders for the foldable models may start significantly later than the candybar flagships released at the same time, which will “repeat the iPhone X story” in terms of overall rhythm.
Ming-Chi Kuo pointed out in a post on social media that the foldable screen iPhone still faces certain manufacturing challenges in terms of mass production, resulting in limited early production capacity. This model is said to adopt a "book-style" folding form and be positioned in the high-end range of the Apple Intelligence mobile phone product line. It will be named "iPhone Ultra" to distinguish it from the existing non-folding flagship series.
In terms of the pace of launch, the report quoted Ming-Chi Kuo as saying that the release time window of the folding screen iPhone will be consistent with the iPhone 18 Pro series, which is still expected to be during Apple’s annual autumn conference in September, but the official opening of pre-orders may be postponed to the fourth quarter of 2026. This arrangement is seen as a repeat of the 2017 iPhone
In terms of price, Ming-Chi Kuo predicts that the starting price range of foldable screen iPhones in the US market will be approximately US$2,299 to US$2,499, which is significantly higher than the current flagship price of mainstream candy bar iPhones. He believes that the high pricing will not weaken the market enthusiasm. The model is expected to be sold out quickly after pre-orders are opened, and the waiting time for shipment may soon extend to 4 to 6 weeks or even longer.
From the perspective of supply chain scale, Apple suppliers are expected to ship about 7 million to 8 million folding screen iPhones in 2026, while the total shipments of the iPhone 18 Pro series during the same period are 20 million to 22 million units. There is a big gap between the two in terms of volume. This further confirms that the folding screen iPhone will enter the market in a relatively "small and sophisticated" way, maintaining scarcity while testing users' acceptance of ultra-high-end folding forms.
Based on the current information, if the relevant predictions eventually come true, the outside world can expect to see the official debut of the folding screen iPhone Ultra for the first time at Apple’s conference in September this year. However, the time when ordinary consumers can actually place orders for pre-orders is likely to have to wait until at least October or even later.