Apple's iPhone Fold is already 10+ years old

Apple may finally join the foldable phone market this year, but recent leaks suggest the company has been watching Samsung’s homework for well over a decade. If those leaks are accurate, Apple’s first foldable iPhone could borrow its form factor and aspect ratio from a Samsung concept that’s old enough to feel almost prehistoric.

Rewind to 2013, when the now defunct Windows Phone OS was just 3 years old. At CES that year, Samsung ran a folding phone ad that showed off a device that didn’t actually exist. The ad itself was a little cringy, but the idea behind it was clear: this was Samsung’s vision of where phones might go once foldable displays became viable.

Fast-forward to 2026, and foldables are no longer a science experiment. Samsung’s Galaxy foldables are several generations deep, with three commercially available form factors to date: the Flip, the Fold, and the TriFold.

Now, rumors suggest Samsung is working on a fourth design. The so-called Galaxy Wide Fold is said to feature a wider aspect ratio than the current Z Fold, making video and general content consumption more comfortable on the larger inner display.

Interestingly, Apple’s upcoming iPhone Fold is rumored to follow Samsung. Both devices could end up sharing proportions that look suspiciously close to that old Samsung CES 2013 concept. Check out the screenshot and video below, courtesy of SMD Wireless on YouTube.

And yes, that concept predates the original Galaxy Fold by six years. At the time, it was little more than an idea wrapped in a flashy marketing video. But looking back at it now, it’s hard not to wonder if Samsung already had the perfect sauce for an iPhone Fold over a decade ago.

That doesn’t mean the Galaxy Wide Fold or Apple’s first foldable iPhone will be perfect. The jury is very much still out on that.

Still, if Apple ends up launching a foldable that mirrors a Samsung concept from CES 2013, it’s hard not to be impressed. Whether you call it foresight or sheer creative ambition, Samsung was thinking about the “right” foldable form factor long before the technology was ready to make it real.