Apple's First Foldable iPhone Ultra Faces Limited Initial Supply, Prioritizes US Market

Apple's first foldable phone, the iPhone Ultra, will have limited initial production capacity due to manufacturing yield and component supply constraints. The new product will adopt a regional phased launch strategy, with first-batch stock prioritized for the US market. Retailers and carriers in regions such as Australia have confirmed they will not receive units at the initial launch stage.

The production shortfall stems from multiple factors. The assembly process for the new hinge and flexible screen is complex, keeping overall manufacturing yields under sustained pressure. Component delivery gaps and quality issues exposed during testing of production models have further reduced the number of shippable units.

The iPhone Ultra adopts a 4:3 wide-format foldable design. When unfolded, the inner screen measures 7.76 inches with a resolution of 2713x1920, with a visual aspect ratio comparable to the iPad mini. It is paired with a 5.49-inch outer screen at 2088x1422 resolution. The outer screen retains only a single punch-hole front camera, removing the Dynamic Island design for a cleaner front appearance.

The device uses a lightweight titanium alloy frame, with the hinge area combining stainless steel and die-cast liquid metal structures. Total weight is kept under 250 grams, with a thickness of 4.8 millimeters when fully unfolded and 9.6 millimeters when folded closed. The hinge is a key research and development focus, incorporating internal metal stress-distribution plates and a self-healing coating on the screen surface. It has undergone durability testing of hundreds of thousands of open-close cycles to address issues of hinge loosening and screen creasing from long-term use.

On hardware, the iPhone Ultra is powered by TSMC's 2-nanometer A20 Pro chip, with 12GB of standard RAM. It is deeply optimized for iOS 27's dedicated foldable split-screen system, enhancing productivity features such as multi-window parallel operation and cross-app drag-and-drop workflows.