Apple Foldable iPhone May Launch With Other Models but Go on Sale Later, Analyst Says

Apple’s foldable iPhone may be unveiled alongside other iPhone models but could open for preorders and go on sale later, as supply constraints persist, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said. According to Jin10, TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo wrote that his latest industry survey estimated foldable iPhone assembly shipments at about 7–8 million units in 2H26, including 0.5–1 million units in the third quarter of 2026, or about 10% of the period’s total. By comparison, Kuo estimated total shipments of the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max at about 20–22 million units in the third quarter of 2026, which he said was significantly higher than the foldable iPhone and already met inventory requirements for an official September launch. Kuo said that, based on third-quarter 2026 inventory preparation levels, the foldable iPhone was likely to repeat a situation similar to the iPhone X in 2017: being announced together with other models, but with later preorder and official release dates.