Apple's first foldable iPhone is shaping up as a significant departure from the design language the company has used across its handset range for years. According to 9to5Mac, the device will drop Face ID in favour of Touch ID, carry a hole-punch front camera, and arrive with no physical buttons on its left side.
The expected launch is later this year.
Why Face ID is out
The absence of Face ID is not incidental. It is what makes the hole-punch camera possible. The current Dynamic Island and earlier notch designs exist to accommodate the sensor array that Face ID requires. Strip that out, and the front display can use a much smaller cutout, bringing the iPhone Fold closer to the full-screen aesthetic Apple has been working toward on its standard models.
Touch ID, likely integrated into the power button, handles authentication instead.
What the screen looks like
CAD leaks reported by 9to5Mac show an outer display that is wider than a standard iPhone. The inner screen, which opens like a book, is described as relatively short and wide, giving the device proportions closer to an iPad mini than to a conventional smartphone. 9to5Mac says the interior display shape is unlike anything currently in Apple's lineup.
The book-like form puts the iPhone Fold closer to Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold series in concept, though the specific dimensions appear to be Apple's own interpretation of the category.
The case of the missing buttons
The buttonless left side has a straightforward engineering explanation. According to the YouTube channel Instant Digital, Apple placed the motherboard on the right side of the device and chose not to run wiring across the display to reach the left. With the hinge also occupying that side, the left edge is given over almost entirely to screen structure and battery.
It is a practical decision, but one that will require users to adjust. Volume controls and any remaining physical inputs will sit on the right alongside the power button.
A device built around constraints
Taken together, the design choices suggest Apple has worked outward from the structural and engineering realities of a folding device, rather than simply adapting an existing iPhone form factor. The hinge placement drove the button layout. The lack of Face ID drove the camera design. The proportions follow from the inner display dimensions.
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Whether that produces something that feels coherent in the hand is a question the launch will answer.
The recap
- Foldable iPhone will include a hole‑punch front camera.
- It reportedly replaces Face ID with Touch ID for thin design.
- iPhone Fold is expected to arrive later this year.