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Apple’s foldable iPhone is coming, but Samsung is already several steps ahead
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8 closely resembles Apple’s rumoured foldable iPhone, but arrives after years of foldable and Galaxy AI development
- PUBLISHED: Thu 30 Jul 2026, 8:23 PM
For years, Samsung was painted as the smartphone company chasing Apple. But that description now feels increasingly out of date.
The new Galaxy Z Fold8 is the clearest example. It is a compact, passport-shaped foldable with a 5.5-inch outer display and a 7.6-inch screen when opened. That sounds remarkably close to reports surrounding Apple’s first foldable iPhone, which is expected to have a roughly 5.5-inch cover screen and an inner display approaching eight inches. Apple has not announced the device, but credible reports suggest it could arrive later this year.
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In other words, Samsung may have launched something resembling the long-rumoured foldable iPhone before Apple has even acknowledged that one exists.
The important point is not that Samsung arrived first, it is that Samsung has spent years learning what works.
Its original Galaxy Fold was ambitious but flawed. Subsequent generations improved the hinge, reduced weight, strengthened the display and made the outer screen more usable. The eighth generation now offers three distinct choices: the portable Flip8, the entertainment-focused Fold8 and the productivity-heavy Fold8 Ultra. Samsung is no longer trying to convince customers that foldables can work; instead, it is refining them for different kinds of users.
The Fold8 in the newest form factor may be the most interesting of the three. At 201g, it is Samsung’s lightest Fold yet. Open it and the 4:3 display feels better suited to videos, games, websites and books than the narrow layouts of some earlier models. It simply feels like a small tablet that remains genuinely pocketable.
Then there is the Fold8 Ultra. Its 8-inch screen, 200MP camera, 5,000mAh battery and multitasking tools make a stronger argument for replacing both a phone and a secondary productivity device.
Samsung’s other advantage is AI. Galaxy AI and Gemini are now integrated around the shape of the hardware rather than added as isolated party tricks. The larger screens allow conversations, documents and supporting information to remain visible together, while tools such as Now Nudge and Gemini Intelligence can suggest and complete actions across supported apps. Samsung has said it plans to double the number of its AI-enabled mobile devices to 800 million in 2026.
Apple will almost certainly bring its usual strengths when it enters the category. Its cameras remain among the most consistent for video, while its ecosystem, software polish and customer loyalty should not be underestimated. Apple may also avoid many early foldable mistakes precisely because Samsung and others made them first.
But arriving late only works when the final product changes the game.
Samsung is entering its eighth generation while Apple is preparing its first. The Fold8 already appears remarkably similar to what Apple is rumoured to be building, and Samsung has the advantage in experience, product choice and foldable-focused software.
Apple may still produce the most polished first-generation foldable ever made. But this time, it will not be defining the category. It will be entering one Samsung has spent years building, and trying to catch a company that is already ahead of the curve, or in this case, fold.
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