When Steve Jobs presented the iPad in 2010he defined it as a “third device”, an intermediate point between the iPhone and the Mac that stood out for its comfort and versatility. However, with the imminent arrival of folding iPhone, that product category could be in danger.
Yes a iPhone Foldas many people are already nicknamed, it can function as a phone and, when deploying, offer an experience similar to that of an iPad Mini, will the existence of Apple's tablet make sense?
Is the end of the iPad?
Apple's first folding iPhone, which is expected for next year, will have an external 5.5 -inch screen and an internal 7.8 inches, similar dimensions to those of the iPad Mini. Although initially it will be a niche device with a high price that will be around more than 2,000 dollarshistory has shown that consumers love great iPhone. If the folding trend is consolidated, Apple is likely to expand the range and offer more accessible versions, progressively retirement to the tablets of its catalog. It would not be the first time that a product of the company becomes obsolete over time: it occurred with the iPod, the 12 -inch Macbook and other devices that, although revolutionaries at the time, ended up absorbed by new generations of technology.
The iPad has constantly fight to justify its existence. While some users have made it its main computer, others only use it for multimedia consumption and light tasks. As the iPhone have grown in size and the Macs have reduced their weight and thickness, the difference between these devices has faded. The arrival of a folding iPhone that can act as a phone and tablet could be the definitive blow for a product line that has been looking for its identity for years.
In the short term, the iPad will not disappear. Its price relatively accessibleespecially on the entrance iPad, which is around 379 euros, which guarantees its continuity. However, if the folding are popular and Apple manages to make them more affordable, the panorama could change dramatically in the next five or ten years. Will it continue to make sense when an iPhone can offer the same functionality?
Folding iPhone: It will arrive earlier than expected
Of course, there is a sector that will hardly accept the transition: content creators. Designers, illustrators and video editors value the big screen and without interruptions of the iPad to work precisely, added to the comfort it offers when taking it. A folding device, with its inevitable fold on the screen, can hardly replace the experience of an iPad Pro with Apple Pencil. Therefore, it is possible that the iPad range survives in more specific formats, focusing on Professional users or in premium models with even larger and new technologies.
Steve Jobs created the iPad with the idea that it should be better than an iPhone or a MAC for certain tasks and for years fulfilled that promise. But the future does not expect anyone. If Apple is strongly betting on the folding, we could be witnessing the first signs of the end of the iPad era. Is it the beginning of your disappearance or will you reinvent yourself once again?
