Photos of iPhone Fold dummy units have been hitting the web a lot over the past several weeks, but those still images only show so much. This is why a thorough hands-on video of one of these dummy units is such a big deal, since it gives us a much better idea of what to expect from the Apple foldable. And there's one design choice we are not too happy about.
The hands-on comes from YouTube Channel Unbox Therapy, featuring a silver dummy unit that actually unfolds. The design is described as "strange" and likened to the shape of a passport. The fact that the iPhone Fold is opting for a shorter and wider design than most foldables is no huge surprise, but it is pretty surreal to see it side-by-side with other devices like the Pixel 10 Pro Fold.
iPhone Fold: Why go wide?
Google foldables never really subscribed to the "tall and skinny" design philosophy that we've seen from other foldables — including Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold series. But the iPhone is noticeably shorter and squatter than it, which means Apple's foldable gives off a weird vibe. It's questioned whether people would even like using the bizarrely-shaped cover display.
However, one benefit to this shorter design is that the dummy unit apparently feels very comfortable in the hand, and doesn't have the same top-heaviness you get with other foldables. The shortness also seems to make the phone more pocketable, which has been an issue with larger foldables for years now.
Another benefit to going the wide route with the iPhone Fold design is that the internal 7.8-inch display won't have big black bars on the top and bottom of the screen when watching movies.
Some design quirks (and a very big bump)
Oddly, the volume buttons are located on the top of the iPhone Fold dummy unit, similar to an iPad. That's a pretty weird placement, even for such a unique form factor.
In addition, the speakers are located on diagonally opposite sides of the phone when unfolded. That includes one speaker grill on the top left side of the phone and another on the bottom right.
The USB-C port and power button are more or less where you'd expect them to be if this were a standard non-folding iPhone.
The camera bump is notable because of just how thick it is, and in the folded state, the iPhone Fold is considerably thicker than the iPhone 17 Pro Max. The dummy unit itself is 11mm (0.43 inches) thick when folded, and the camera bump adds 5.5mm for a total of 16.5mm (0.65 inches). The thinnest point of the unit is 5.2mm (0.20 inches), which is even thinner than the 5.6mm iPhone Air.
The size of the camera bump means that there's some serious wobbling going on, and placing it on a flat surface leads to some serious instability.
iPhone Fold = iPad nano?
The design is likened to an "iPad Nano," and the similarities with the iPad Pro design are pretty clear when you look at the two devices together. Considering the foldable screen is expected to be 7.8 inches, half an inch smaller than the iPad mini 7, that's a fairly accurate description.
Obviously, this being a dummy unit, there's only so much information we can infer about the actual iPhone Fold. Dummy units are essentially reference models for the design, and are often used by case-makers to develop accessories ahead of time. We'll have to wait for the final model to learn more about what this phone has to offer — and whether that wobble really is as bad as it looks.
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