Apple reportedly has big design ambitions lined up for the next few years: think of a book-style fold in 2026, a bezel-free 20th-anniversary handset in 2027, and a clamshell fold in 2028 – all pushing toward thinner frames and hidden sensors.
The roadmap, shared by a reputable Korean source (via MacRumors) on Naver, suggests Apple wants to reinvent the iPhone’s shape nearly every year for the foreseeable future.
The first on the roadmap is Apple’s alleged first foldable, arriving in 2026 as a book-style device similar to the Galaxy Z Fold. It’s said to use a flexible LPTO+OLED that opens to roughly iPad mini size, with a structural glass mid-frame to reduce the visible crease. Apple may introduce under-display Face ID and camera technology in addition to reportedly adding a circular polarizer and a colour filter-on-encapsulation stack to enhance colour and light transmission.
The second is a 20th-anniversary iPhone with virtually no bezel. If true, it’s a big design statement that may land in 2027. Reports say the OLED will wrap around all four edges and use a crater-shaped light diffusion layer so brightness looks uniform across the curbed surface. Apple is said to be going full-in on Under-Display Integrated Recognition (Face ID, camera, sensors under the glass), making the front look uninterrupted and -if it can pull it off – pretty iconic.
The last phone on the roadmap is a vertical clamshell that will reportedly drop in 2028. It’ll be lighter, curvier, and built to hide the crease. AI shortcuts, notifications, and quick information will be handled by an external screen, while new panel tech combining Clear Organic Cathode with a CFoE stack will enhance the colours and transparency of the screen.
As evidenced by the iPhone Air, it’s clear that Apple is trying to think outside of the box with its handset designs by experimenting with both form and function. And if the roadmap is real, Apple could be treating us to some absolute corkers of the next couple of years, especially with that 20th anniversary iPhone.
We can’t wait to see what it has got up its proverbial sleeves and how it’ll change our best smartphone list going forward.
