Apple’s massive iPhone makeover revealed: Thin, folding, and curved models all on the way

Macworld

If the rumors are correct, Apple will hold its annual iPhone event in just two weeks, on Tuesday, September 9. That’s nothing new, as Apple always announces a new Phone around the second week of September, but this year’s event could be as big as the iPhone X launch in 2017, according to a new Bloomberg report by Mark Gurman.

In his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman lays out Apple’s plans to “reinvigorate its flagship phone” over the next three years. It starts with the iPhone 17 Air, expected to launch as a new model this year. Rumors have long pointed to the model as a super-skinny replacement for the iPhone 16 Plus with a slightly smaller screen and single rear camera. Gurman also reports that the model will have “subpar battery life” and use Apple’s C1 modem, which was introduced in the iPhone 16e earlier this year.

 More importantly, Gurman says the iPhone 17 Air’s “engineering and components will set the stage for future innovation” across the next two generations.

First up will be Apple’s first folding iPhone, due in 2026. Gurman says the handset will feature four cameras (one on the front, one on the inside, and two on the back) and use Touch ID built into the power button instead of Face ID. It will reportedly include the next generation of Apple’s modem, the C2, “with capabilities approaching the latest from Qualcomm,” and might only be available in black and white.

In 2027, Apple is planning yet another massive redesign to commemorate the iPhone’s 20th anniversary. Gurman reports that the iPhone 20 will “finally break from the squared-off slab we’ve lived with since 2020 and move to an approach with curved glass edges all around.” He provides few details but notes that it will “fit nicely” with the Liquid Glass redesign coming to iOS 26 next month.

Gurman doesn’t speculate on the price for these new models, but they’re certain to come in higher than the $1,199 starting price of the Pro Max. Samsung’s flagship folding phone starts at $1,999, and analysts expect the folding iPhone to be a bit higher than that, with Gurman noting that the folding iPhone “will be hugely popular with Apple’s legion of consumers who are willing to spend whatever to get the latest and greatest.”

Altogether, it’s a very exciting time for the iPhone with new flagship models launching every year. And it looks like the days of boring iPhone releases are over.