Apple is making thinner hardware, like the foldable iPhone 17 Slim, and it eventually needs these devices to develop a foldable iPhone.
Several reports in the past few months claimed that Apple is working on a so-called “iPhone 17 Slim” model that will be larger than the usual iPhone Pro size but smaller than the iPhone Pro Max. The Slim moniker isn’t official, but it indicates that the iPhone in question might be thinner than other iPhone 17 variants.
A proper name for it might be the iPhone 17 Ultra, as it may be even more expensive than the iPhone 17 Pro Max. I already explained why the iPhone 17 Slim might be a bigger deal than we initially thought. Apple will need sophisticated technologies to make a thinner iPhone, including a slimmer OLED panel, thinner batteries, and a powerful yet efficient high-end A-series chip.
A new report claims that Apple also wants to make thinner MacBook Pros and Apple Watches in the future now that the thin M4 iPad Pro is here.
All this made me realize that Apple’s quest to make slim hardware isn’t only about reducing the weight and size of these devices. It’s also not about proving to the world that Apple has the tech innovations to make these designs possible. It’s all tied to Apple’s purported plans to release a foldable iPad/MacBook and a foldable iPhone in the coming years.
Over the weekend, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman released a new Power On newsletter where he specifically tackles Apple’s plans for thinner devices:
I’m told that Apple is now focused on developing a significantly skinnier phone in time for the iPhone 17 line in 2025.
