What Display Daily thinks: There is a sense that Apple is taking the Vision Pro route with a foldable MacBook. That means price be damned because the BOM is going to be high no matter what they do.
The product may very well end up being a benchmark for other manufacturers. The laptop market is not a market that is lacking in demand, like the MR headset market, and MacBooks have always been overpriced so, what else is new there.
The other point of note here is that Amphenol is identified as one of the key suppliers of teardrop-shaped hinges used in foldable smartphones, which are more complex and costly compared to U-shaped hinges. Bend any solid and you’ll get some sort of crease. Will Apple really be able to go creaseless? Will it be a teardrop hinge and how much of Apple’s own hinge patent will be incorprated in the final design?
Apple’s foldable hinge patent shows that it uses interconnected links with special features, like sliding pins and curved surfaces, to ensure smooth rotation. A rotation synchronization mechanism keeps both sides of the device in sync, and a counterbalance system provides resistance to prevent accidental unfolding. It’s a pretty sophisticated design, and very intricate in manufacturing terms.
So, everything seems to hinge on a hinge. And Apple is willing to pay big bucks for the right solution.
Apple Brings Foldable Laptop Product Forward
Taiwnese all-things-Apple analyst, Ming-Chi Kuo, has recently posted about the company’s shifting plans on foldables. Apple is working on a foldable MacBook with panels exclusively supplied by LG Display. It is considering two panel sizes: a 20.25-inch option and a smaller 18.8-inch version. The difference in size will impact the laptop’s folded form, targeting designs for 14–15-inch and 13–14-inch laptops, respectively. The plan is to start mass production of the panel by the end of 2025 and have assembly underway in the first half of 2026, moving up the timeline from an earlier 2027 estimate.
The foldable MacBook is expected to be pricey due to these high component costs. Still, with its clear market position, it’s likely to ship more units than the Vision Pro, with projections exceeding a million units in 2026.
According to Kuo, Apple is aiming for a crease-free design, which has pushed up the cost of both the panel and the hinge. Currently, they’re looking at around $600–650 for the panel and $200–250 for the hinge, although these could drop if production yields improve. To tackle the crease issue Amphenol is managing the hinge as Apple’s exclusive partner.
