Mobile Devices - Page 2

Apple could release its huge 18.8-inch foldable device alongside, or close to the reveal of its 7.8-inch foldable iPhone Ultra that we've been hearing about, sooner, rather than later.

In a new research note covering all things post-tariff scenarios for Apple, investment firm GF Securities' lead analyst Jeff Pu says both the 18.8-inch and 7.6-inch foldable devices have seen development progress, and should enter mass production in Q4 2026.

Pu said last month that Apple had two foldable devices that had recently entered the New Product Introduction (NPI) phase at manufacturer Foxconn, and if mass production is expected in Q4 2026, then we could see the foldable iPad and iPhone in late 2026 and if not, 2027 for sure.

Ahead of Apple's official unveiling of its upcoming iPhone 17 line-up, a dummy unit for the company's rumored iPhone 17 Air has surfaced, showcasing what will be Apple's thinnest iPhone ever released.

Bloomberg reporter and Apple insider Mark Gurman put to bed some Apple rumors over the weekend, which previously suggested Apple was introducing a two-tone color design for its iPhone 17 Pro, with the Bloomberg reporter clarifying the upcoming device will have a mono-color design, meaning the camera area will be the same color as the rest of the device.

As for the elusive iPhone 17 Air, a dummy unit has appeared in the hands of X user Majin Bu, who posted a selection of photos of the unit showing it also features a mono-color design. Notably, the color of dummy units isn't indicative of the final design of the device, as dummy units are mostly used for dimensional purposes by accessory manufacturers to prepare their products ahead of the launch. The color of the dummy unit won't influence the dimensions.

Apple will launch the iPhone 17 later this year without many changes to the design, and while the new iPhone 17 Air will be an ultra-thin experience, from the front it shouldn't look any different... but the company has a major design overhaul teased for the iPhone 18.

In a new post by Bloomberg insider Mark Gurman in his latest Power On newsletter, we're learning that Apple is reportedly preparing a "major shake-up" for the iPhone and its huge 20-year anniversary in 2026. Gurman says that we can expect a foldable iPhone -- something that has been rumored as the iPhone Ultra recently, with more on that here -- but a "bold new Pro model" that makes more "extensive use of glass".

Apple's next-gen iPhone 18 Pro could be a single piece of glass, with its compute stick at the bottom, and cameras on the rear... something that has been rumored since the iPhone 8 in 2016.

Apple is thirsty for the health market, with some rumored upgrades coming from the company that would add an AI doctor into its Health app, using its wearables to monitor users' health and alert them to any issues, or help them with their general health along the way.

In a new report from Bloomberg insider Mark Gurman, Apple "has some moon-shot initiatives in the works that could indeed transform the health industry. That includes a 15-year-plus project to create a noninvasive glucose monitor. The idea, which originated while Steve Jobs was still alive, is to add a sensor to the Apple Watch that can inform users if they are prediabetic, helping them potentially avoid the full-blown condition".

This project remains "active" at Apple notes Gurman, and has reached "key milestones" but they're still "many years away" from delivering this new feature. Apple has hit some issues regarding health sensors, including for blood oxygen and hypertension. The blood oxygen monitoring feature was dropped from the Apple Watch over a patent fight, while the hypertension feature has had issues in development.

Apple's upcoming foldable iPhone Ultra smartphone will reportedly use a liquid metal hinge that will resist deformation, improving durability and help minimize creases in the foldable screen.

In a new post by a Chinese leaker, we're learning that Apple has used a metallic glass (amorphous metal) for the hinge mechanism inside of the foldable iPhone, something we've heard analyst Ming-Chi Kuo refer to Apple's use of "liquid metal" which is a common marketing term for the same thing.

The difference between regular glass and metallic glass is that traditional metals feature a regular, repeating crystalline atomic structure, compared to metallic glass that features a disordered arrangement of atoms that just so happens to be more resistant to bending, deformation, and denting -- perfect for an ultra-premium foldable iPhone.

Apple has long been rumored to be preparing to release a foldable iPhone, but one major problem has prevented the company from doing so - the dreaded crease.

Previous rumors about Apple's foldable developments indicated that the company gave its engineers a list of stipulations that needed to be met, one of which was to solve the problem of the crease seen on every major foldable smartphone device. One insider I reported on last month stated Samsung Display will provide the foldable screen for Apple's upcoming device, and that Apple's unnegotiable requirement to "make the crease disappear" meant having to obtain new materials and to take a step back from the entire design of the phone.

Now, a Chinese leaker has stated Apple has selected metallic glass (amorphous metal) for the iPhone Fold's hinge mechanism, which industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has referred to as "liquid metal". According to a report, the metallic glass differentiates itself from traditional metals in its disordered arrangement of atoms, which are more resistant to bending, deformation, and denting. The metallic glass is made through rapid cooling, and its structure means its 2.5% harder than titanium alloy, but it's also smooth and has a glossy finish that makes it look similar to stainless steel.

Several articles have surfaced online sourcing a leak about Apple's upcoming iPhone 17 Pro, with the reports citing a leak that claims the 17 Pro will support 8K video recording. These reports are citing a mistranslation.

Firstly, here's the rumor. The Weibo-based account Fixed Focus Digital posted on Wednesday that the iPhone 17 Pro is "something to look forward to," adding Apple has implemented a "special process" by using a mixture of "aluminium and glass" to create a gradient presumably for the backplate of the device. The account also stated the following: "If you have 8K in hand, you should look forward to the iPhone 17 series even more." According to comments by other accounts, that last sentence was mistranslated and taken as the iPhone 17 series will come with support for 8K video recording. Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case.

According to the comments, the "8K" is actually Chinese internet slang for ¥8000 RMB, which is approximately $1,100 to $1,200 USD. So, the user is referring to the price of the device, not the camera capabilities. This means the sentence should read like this, "If you're someone who's holding onto a phone worth ¥8000 (or paid that much), you should definitely look forward to the iPhone 17 series."

Apple's upcoming ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air is back in the headlines, this time with another CAD leak that compares the iPhone 17 Air against the iPhone 17 Pro to show just how thin that ultra-thin 5.5mm thickness really is. Check it out:

In a new post by X user Majin Bu, we're getting another CAD-powered look at the iPhone 17 Pro against the iPhone 17 Air, with the iPhone 17 Air being an ultra-thin 5.5mm to 6mm or so, with a maximum thickness of 9.5mm with the camera bump included.

Inside, the new iPhone 17 AIr will reportedly feature a 6.6-inch display, in-house A19 processor, 8GB of RAM, 24-megapixel front-facing camera, 48-megapixel rear-facing camera, Face ID technology, titanium casing, Apple's in-house C1 5G modem, and charging speeds of up to 35W power.

Last year, we reported on Arm announcing its new Arm Accuracy Super Resolution, or Arm ASR, upscaling solution for gaming on mobile devices. Based on AMD's open-source FSR 2.2, Arm brought its new ASR technology to GDC last week, announcing that it was now available for game developers to play around with.

The open-source Arm ASR Experience kit includes an Unreal Engine plug-in for the complete source code and various tutorials and samples. In the official announcement, Arm notes that a Unity engine plug-in will be available later this year.

"With Arm ASR, you can easily improve frames per second, enhance visual quality, and prevent thermal throttling for smoother, longer gameplay," the company writes. Based on AMD's FSR 2 technology, which considers motion vectors and data, Arm has developed ASR for upscaling from sub-1080p resolutions.

Apple's upcoming foldable 'iPhone Ultra" will reportedly adopt a style similar to Samsung and its Galaxy Z Fold series of foldables, while sharing many of the same technologies expected inside of the ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air.

In his new PowerOn newsletter on Bloomberg, insider Mark Gurman says that Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold smartphones are a "dream device" for things like work tasks and watching videos, and it's a category that "Apple can't ignore". Gurman says that he believes that Apple will launch a foldable iPhone in 2026 that will have a "similar design" to Samsung's foldable Galaxy Z Fold.

Inside, Apple's new purported iPhone Ultra will have many technologies shared with the company's also purported ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air, with Gurman noting the foldable iPhone should cost around $2000. He says that we can expect to wait a while before Apple ships its foldable iPhone Ultra in any large numbers, but the company has been severely lacking a foldable device, and it seems 2026 is when we'll see it happen.