Forget the iPhone 17, 2026 and 2027 are shaping up to be massive iPhone
Information on the iPhone 17 series continues to unofficially spill out, and while a new-look camera setup is set to divide opinion this isn't the iPhone you need to be getting excited about. I'm instead talking iPhone 18, iPhone 19 and iPhone Fold.
The latest reports have shed more light on the future of iPhone, and if the rumors turn out to be accurate we're in for significant iPhone installments in 2026 and 2027.
Recommended Videos
That's not to say there won't be anything to write home about on the iPhone 17 series. 'Inside sources' claim the 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max will be the first iPhone with a vapor chamber cooling system for improved heat management, which could see Apple shift to lighter aluminium frames (bye bye titanium?).
And let's not forget the on-going chatter around the super slim iPhone 17 Air, which Apple is apparently lining up to directly rival the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge. But compared to what's rumored to be coming in the next couple of years, you may want to hold off an upgrade this year.
2026: the foldable iPhone
Apple has been sitting back and watching Android phone manufacturers bring foldable phones to market, iterating and improving year over year. They've basically shown Apple all the pitfalls of getting into the foldable market, and how to solve them.
So if Apple is to launch the much-rumored iPhone Fold, it's unlikely we'll be served up a device which feels first-gen. What's more likely is a slick, polished foldable capable of challenging the established names, while delivering the form factor in a uniquely Apple way.
And according to respected analyst Mung-Chi Kuo, Apple is currently on track to deliver the iPhone Fold in the second half of 2026.
If the foldable iPhone is to arrive next year, it will likely appear as part of the iPhone 18 series, which is being tipped to feature a significant advancement in chipset technology.
The A20 chip expected to be used in these iPhones is said to be the first based on a 2nm architecture. What does that mean? Smaller transistors, allowing companies to pack more into a chip, resulting in significant performance enhancements. If these reports are true, the iPhone Fold might well be one of the most powerful foldables on the market.
We're also seeing some enticing iPhone Fold specs being rumored, as well-known leaker Digital Chat Station claims the phone will feature a 7.58-inch inner display, titanium frame and dual 48MP rear cameras.
While the screen size would be a little smaller than the Oppo Find N5 (8.12 inches), Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold (8 inches) and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 (7.6 inches), it might mean we get a compact and pocketable device which doesn't feel big or bulky.
As for the cameras, the iPhone 16 Pro Max has two 48MP rear cameras, alongside a third 12MP telephoto lens, which suggests the iPhone Fold could well have some serious photography chops.
But if even the best foldable phones don't float your boat, 2027 may have something even cooler in store for us.
2027: the all-screen iPhone 19
2027 will mark iPhone's 20th anniversary, and word on the street is Apple might be cooking up something pretty special to mark the occasion.
Notable Apple reporter, Mark Gurman, said in one of his recent Power On newsletters for Bloomberg, that Apple is working on an iPhone 19 with no notch (the physical Dynamic Island) and virtually no bezels around the screen – giving us a fully edge-to-edge display.
To make the all-screen iPhone a reality it will have to pack in some new tech (for Apple), with an under-screen Face ID and selfie camera for a truly uninterrupted screen experience.
These reports make the iPhone 17 series sound a little less appealing. Sure a new cooling system and funky rear camera layout will be interesting, plus iOS 26 will make it feel like a bigger upgrade, but 2026 and 2027 is where the iPhone is set to revolutionize the market… again.
Now, what's happening about that portless iPhone rumored back in 2019?
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Bloomberg
10 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Musk Rages as Trump Tax Bill Slashes Electric Vehicle Credits
Elon Musk slammed the US Senate's latest version of President Donald Trump's multi-trillion dollar tax bill Saturday, raging online that the cuts to electric vehicle and other clean energy credits would be 'incredibly destructive' to the country. Musk, the chief executive officer of Tesla Inc. and SpaceX, posted on his social media platform X about the bill, which the Senate was planning to put to an initial vote on Saturday. Musk recently left Trump's side after working for several months as the head of Trump's so-called Department of Government Efficiency.
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Elizabeth Warren has a harsh response to Jeff Bezos
Elizabeth Warren has a harsh response to Jeff Bezos originally appeared on TheStreet. On X, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) called out that Jeff Bezos shouldn't be spending $50 million on his wedding in Venice if he can afford to spend more on taxes. Warren wrote: "If Jeff Bezos can afford to rent Venice for a $50 million wedding, he can afford to pay his fair share in taxes." Bezos and Sánchez got married on a private island in Venice, and many wealthy guests arrived by private jets. The couple requested no wedding presents and donated about $3.5 million to local charities. Warren has been highly critical of billionaires like Bezos not paying their fair share in taxes. She has advocated for legislation to increase the tax burden on the wealthiest Americans, particularly those who accumulate wealth through investments that are not currently taxed as regular income. She is also a vocal opponent to the government's recent halt to some crypto investigations. Warren penned a letter with fellow senators, calling on the Department of Justice to rescind its decision to disband the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, as reported by Reuters. Join the discussion with CryptoWendyO on. She argued that such development would support bad actors who rely on cryptocurrencies for their nefarious operations, such as scams and drug trading. Warren previously expressed alarm that President Trump's interest in crypto — including investments he owns in digital assets — might be spurring these changes. She cautioned that scaling back crypto enforcement could put the public at risk. Warren has been one of Washington's most vocal advocates for tighter rules on both billionaires and the crypto industry. Interestingly, Amazon uses blockchain technology through the Amazon Managed Blockchain (AMB) service, but Bezos warned that Bitcoin may crash in 2024. His skepticism stemmed from the worry about Bitcoin's significant price volatility. Elizabeth Warren has a harsh response to Jeff Bezos first appeared on TheStreet on Jun 28, 2025 This story was originally reported by TheStreet on Jun 28, 2025, where it first appeared. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Goldman Sachs warns tariffs won't help the U.S. boost manufacturing productivity as tech in American factories continues to lag
U.S. manufacturing has decelerated recently, both as a result of increased competition from China and as part of a broader manufacturing productivity slowdown. Goldman Sachs analysts argue tariffs will not lower supply chain and labor costs enough to boost reshoring, and instead, increased automation will be the most likely driver of a manufacturing productivity boost. As China continues to best the United States in manufacturing capabilities, tariffs may not be America's best bet to boost factory productivity. Instead, the U.S. should look to AI and automation to gain an edge in manufacturing, Goldman Sachs analysts argue. President Donald Trump aspires to return factory jobs to American shores by imposing steep tariffs on U.S. manufacturing rivals, but the taxes can only incentivize reshoring so much, analysts said in a note published Thursday. Instead, manufacturers should look to automation and the ever-more-accessible artificial intelligence as their best chance for boosting domestic manufacturing. 'A pickup in the pace of innovation—potentially from recent advances in robotics and generative AI—therefore remains the catalyst most likely to reverse the long-run stagnation in manufacturing productivity,' analyst Joseph Briggs and colleagues said in the note. As China capitalizes on automation and cheaper labor to grow its export footprint, the Bank of America Institute has found mounting evidence of a recent U.S. manufacturing slowdown, including U.S. Census Bureau data showing new orders for manufactured durable goods decreasing 6.3% in April. The Institute of Supply Management Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) has fallen since March, also indicating a contraction. The U.S.'s productivity woes are part of a larger manufacturing productivity slowdown happening over the last two decades as a result of investment pullback following the global financial crisis, as well as a slowdown in the burst of technological advancements of the early 2000s, according to Goldman Sachs. Trump's tariff plans for China—which the president has not disclosed, despite touting a new trade deal—aim to help the U.S. claw back manufacturing opportunities from its economic rival. But while they make consumers' lives more expensive, they are not a panacea for manufacturers, the bank argued in its note. 'Tariffs are unlikely to result in much reshoring because production costs in other countries are well below the U.S.' for most products (even after accounting for tariffs), and China will likely continue to grow its exports on the back of cost advantages and industrial policy support,' the note said. Instead, analyst Briggs said, the U.S. should focus on another area in which it's lagging: automation. The U.S. has trailed other manufacturing giants in implementing AI into factory operations, according to a Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Henderson Institute report released earlier this month. Only 46% of U.S. respondents of BCG's Global Manufacturing Survey of 1,000 manufacturers reported multiple use cases of AI in their plants, falling short of the 62% average and lagging behind China's 77%. 'This is one of the key technologies that I think could drive productivity growth in a cost-competitive manner,' Briggs told Fortune. 'And we just haven't seen that occur on a meaningful scale yet.' The U.S. did not previously invest in factory automation as a result of a 'hangover' from the global financial crisis, Briggs said, but the U.S. now has a real shot at prioritizing factory technology updates, given the growing ubiquity and therefore affordability of automation and AI. Companies such as aviation precision parts-maker MSP Manufacturing have already begun to adapt accordingly. MSP president and chief operating officer Johnny Goode recently learned of an AI-powered software able to program the machine building the precision parts, reducing production time from an hour and a half to seven minutes per part—plus 15 minutes necessary for a human operator to refine it. 'I was like, holy snap, this is going to be a game changer,' Goode told Fortune's Jeremy Kahn this week. 'Going from 90 minutes to 22 minutes is a big deal, and we've seen that get even better as we've learned to use the software more.' Goldman Sachs analysts conceded that while automation provides the largest area for growth in manufacturing productivity in the U.S., it is unlikely to solve the broader manufacturing slowdown, which is global. The slowdown is 'historically unusual,' Briggs said, with the maturation of the tech sector the likely culprit. Any hope for a global uptick in productivity would come from mass advancement and adoption of AI and robotics on a large scale. 'The main thing that would drive a large pickup in manufacturing productivity and manufacturing growth would be a sharp increase in the pace of innovation,' Briggs said. 'And this type of inflection upwards and technological progress are very hard to predict.' Advancement in tech could have a two-fold benefit for domestic manufacturing productivity, both in driving factory investments and in bettering technology to be installed in factories to automate tasks. But with the specifics of the future of AI and automation applications still unknown, it's difficult to predict whether a reversal of a domestic manufacturing slowdown is truly possible. 'We just need to see it happen before we have a lot of confidence in that dynamic being a big driver,' Briggs said. This story was originally featured on
