Samsung Prepping for Foldable iPhone and MacBook Screens

Samsung Display’s recent organizational shuffling should put the Apple screen supplier in a good position to be able to supply foldable displays for Apple — if and when the company decides to offer iPhones or MacBooks with foldable displays.

It’s been a long-running rumor that Apple is working on an “iPhone Fold” with a hinged display that can fold in half, opening up to a smaller tablet-style device with more display area. Now, Samsung Display appears to be getting ready for when Apple finally decides to go down the foldable route with the iPhone.

Several Android smartphone manufacturers already offer foldable handsets in various forms. Google recently joined the party with the Pixel Fold, and Samsung’s popular Galaxy Z lineup has been around for a few years now, including the Galaxy Z Fold 5, which unfolds vertically to create a small tablet-like device with a larger screen than normal smartphones, and the Galaxy Z Flip 5 that sports a more traditional clamshell design like the flip phones of yesteryear. Motorola has also long offered flip-style smartphones like the Motorola Razr, modernizing its iconic Razr V3 feature phone.

A Monday report by The Elec discusses a recent organizational reshuffling within Samsung Display that centers on the team that handles display supplies for Apple. Samsung performed the shake-up of the team with the aim of focusing on improving foldable display capabilities, with a focus on foldable Apple devices.

The small and medium-sized display division of the South Korean display manufacturer makes foldable OLED panels for smartphones while also developing flexible screens. The shake-up in the division is aimed at strengthening it to focus more on the manufacturing of foldable screens, hopefully making foldable devices more mainstream in the eyes of consumers.

The report says Samsung Display and Apple’s other display supplier, LG Display, are both currently working on foldable displays intended for future foldable devices from Apple. The report says at least one panel in development measures at 20.25 inches unfolded.

While it is true that an iPhone sporting a foldable display will certainly be the star of the show for the general public, Apple could make other products with foldable displays, such as a foldable MacBook Pro.

In February 2022, we saw reports that Apple is exploring the possibility of a foldable Mac. Display industry analyst Ross Young said Apple was looking at developing a MacBook with a folding display that would come in at around 20 inches.

Such a device may not be a MacBook as we currently know it. The device may not even be called a “MacBook.” Young indicated that the foldable device would likely open up a new product category, aimed at supplementing, rather than replacing, the existing MacBook lineup.

The device would not use the typical notebook format, with a trackpad and keyboard. It would instead be an all-screen device, using a touchscreen keyboard for input, much like the iPad.

According to Young, the device would also unfold completely, allowing it to be used as a portable 20-inch display that could be used with an external Bluetooth keyboard and mouse or trackpad. A display that size could easily provide resolutions of 4K or higher.

While this all sounds like a foldable iPad, Young only uses the term “foldable notebook,” indicating the new device would be more powerful and more flexible than either an iPad or MacBook, possibly running a version of macOS or an operating system somewhat derivative of macOS.

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]