Apple battles rising costs in foldable Phone market

Apple’s entry into the foldable smartphone market is facing a major affordability challenge as rising memory and storage chip prices increase production costs across the technology industry.

The company unveiled its first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, in September 2026, marking a significant expansion of its iPhone lineup.

However, its premium price and limited initial supply could make the device difficult for many consumers to afford, despite growing interest in foldable technology.

The iPhone Duo starts at $1,999 in the United States for the 256GB version, making it one of Apple’s most expensive smartphones.

Device features a 5.4-inch external display and a 7.6-inch internal screen when unfolded, allowing users to switch between a conventional smartphone experience and a larger display for multitasking, gaming and watching videos.

Apple began accepting pre-orders on October 16, with availability starting October 23.

However, strong demand and production limitations have created supply challenges, with some customers facing delivery dates extending into 2027.

Apple Chief Executive Officer John Ternus recently acknowledged the difficulties, saying the company was working to get the foldable device into the hands of as many customers as possible but could not predict when supply would meet demand.

Beyond production challenges, the growing cost of memory components has emerged as another concern for Apple and other technology manufacturers.

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) has increased demand for memory chips used in data centres, particularly dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) and high-bandwidth memory.

This has created competition for limited supplies, pushing component prices higher.

In June 2026, Tim Cook, who stepped down as Apple’s chief executive in September, warned that increasing memory and storage costs would make price adjustments unavoidable.

He told The Wall Street Journal that Apple had attempted to protect customers from the rising costs but could no longer absorb the financial pressure.

During Apple’s July earnings call, Cook described the situation as a “100-year flood” in memory pricing, citing unprecedented increases in component costs.

Research firm TrendForce projected in September that prices for Apple’s iPhone 18 series could increase by between 10 and 20 per cent because of higher memory costs.

The firm also estimated that the first foldable iPhone could start between $2,099 and $2,299, although Apple’s official starting price was subsequently announced at $1,999.

Apple has already adjusted prices across several product categories, including Macs, iPads and iPhones, to offset some of the increased manufacturing expenses.

The company now faces the challenge of balancing premium technology, production costs and consumer affordability as competition in the foldable smartphone market intensifies.