When foldable phones were first introduced, they felt both groundbreaking and nostalgic. However, the category has started to feel stale, with few truly groundbreaking upgrades in recent years. That is why I am waiting until 2027 to buy a foldable phone, as the competition appears likely to become much more intense by then.

Foldable phones have lost their excitement

Over the years, the excitement has died down

The technology behind foldable displays was teased years before a device became available for purchase, dating back to 2011, when Samsung showed off a flexible AMOLED display prototype at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). However, it was not until October 2018 that the first foldable phone—the Royole FlexPai—became available to buy.

Then, in September 2019, nearly a year later, Samsung became the first major brand to release a foldable phone with the Galaxy Z Fold. However, its launch was not without challenges.

The phone was originally scheduled to launch earlier that year, but was delayed after review units experienced significant screen failures and durability issues.

Like any first-generation devices, the original foldable phones had a number of issues. These included durability concerns with the hardware and software optimization issues that did not fully conform to a foldable design.

• 

  Brand

  Samsung

  SoC

  Samsung Exynos 2500

  RAM

  12GB

  Storage

  256 or 512GB

  Battery

  4,300mAh Dual Battery

  Ports

  USB-C

  A wider shape and a new edge-to-edge FlexWindow make this the most usable Flip yet. It’s compact, customizable, and packed with smart AI tools right on the cover screen.

  
  

• 

  SoC

  MediaTek Dimensity 7400X

  RAM

  8GB

  Storage

  256GB

  Battery

  4,500mAh

  Ports

  USB-C

  Operating System

  Android 15

  The Moto Razr 2025 refines the popular foldable clamshell design with key upgrades for enhanced durability and performance. It features a robust titanium-reinforced hinge and an improved IP48 rating for dust and water resistance, making it more resilient for daily use.

  
  

However, those issues have—to some degree—been resolved over time, and Samsung has also since released another foldable model: the Galaxy Z Flip series. Furthermore, other manufacturers have entered the market with their own foldable devices, such as the Motorola Razr.

Although foldable phones continue to be updated, it seems that—just like standard smartphones—the updates are minimal and receive similar attention each year. They typically include faster internal components and only minor design changes without anything as revolutionary as the first generation.

This is further evident in the fact that baseline issues persist, including fragile displays that can fail unexpectedly, hardware that lags behind non-folding smartphones, and software optimization that is not yet fully adapted to the inner display’s form factor.

Before, foldable phones brought the wow factor of something radically different from a standard smartphone, but over the years, that appeal has faded. The form factor has shifted from groundbreaking to simply a thicker phone with a larger display and a much higher price tag.

More competition could shake things up

A foldable iPhone may be the kick the market needs

While foldable phones have been around for several years, one major player has been missing from the category: Apple. However, that is expected to change this year.

Right now, consumers mainly choose among manufacturers, but at their core, most foldable phones offer a similar experience. This includes them running Android and featuring comparable hardware designs, with slight differences.

A foldable iPhone could be the boost the foldable phone market needs by opening the category to an entirely new group of consumers: dedicated Apple users. It would also increase competition.

As previously mentioned, most foldable phones today run Android and use similar form factors, folding either vertically or horizontally. While each manufacturer adds its own features, the overall experience remains largely the same.

With Apple entering the market, it could push Google to further optimize Android for foldable devices and encourage manufacturers to improve their hardware.

While the foldable iPhone—rumored to be called the “iPhone Ultra”—would still run iOS, reports suggest it will include software designed specifically for the larger inner display. This would be similar to how Apple introduced iPad-specific features in iOS 11 in 2017, keeping the same operating system name across the lineup while adding features designed exclusively for the iPhone Ultra.

There are already signs from WWDC 2026 that point toward a foldable iPhone, including Apple’s push for developers to support wider aspect ratios and the addition of landscape support for many of Apple’s built-in apps in iOS 27.

Additionally, Apple is reportedly developing a new display material that makes the crease nearly invisible when the device is unfolded, addressing one of the biggest complaints about current foldable phones.

While these are still rumors, more competition would benefit the foldable phone market in multiple ways. It would push Google to improve its software and encourage other manufacturers to improve their hardware to compete with whatever Apple ultimately releases.

However, I’ll be holding off for now

I’ll be waiting till 2027

Credit: Justin Duino / How-To Geek

Even though a foldable iPhone may be released this year, and Android already offers multiple foldable phones to choose from, I will be waiting until 2027, and I am firm in that decision.

First, I would not buy the first generation of a foldable iPhone because it will likely not be fully refined. Although first-generation devices are released to the public, they often serve as a test run, with the second generation typically addressing many of the original shortcomings.

Take the Apple Watch, for example. The first generation had several shortcomings, while the second generation addressed many of them.

The same happened with Samsung’s first foldable phone. The Galaxy Z Fold2 improved on the original Galaxy Fold by fixing several issues, like increasing the outer display from 4.6 inches to 6.2 inches.

Furthermore, it will take some time for Android manufacturers to respond to Apple’s foldable phone. Those responses are unlikely to appear in this year’s Galaxy Z Fold, but they are much more likely to arrive with 2027 models.

With those two factors in mind, I am comfortable waiting until next year for a foldable phone. By then, a second-generation foldable iPhone may have addressed many of the criticisms of the first generation, and Android manufacturers will likely have had time to respond with improved foldable phones of their own.

I’ll probably get one, but now is not the time

As it is now, I will not be buying a foldable phone. I have grown bored with them, and they no longer excite me the way they did when they first came out.

When I see one in a store, I still walk over and try it for a minute, but the novelty quickly wears off, and I go back to my usual single-screen phone.

That said, I am excited about the future of foldable phones. I think increased competition will be exactly what the category needs. It will push manufacturers to make more meaningful software and hardware improvements instead of continuing to play it safe with the incremental updates they have been making.