By now, it should
come as no surprise for anybody that Apple is hard at experimenting with 5G
connectivity on its upcoming devices. It is widely expected to unveil a 5G
iPhone next year when the networks are actually existent in more than a few
city blocks and the launch kinks have been ironed out.
Where 5G
connectivity is going to really shine, though, is Apple's efforts to replace
laptops with its venerable tablet franchise. Not only could we reasonably
expect iPads with 5G modems from Qualcomm in 2020, but an analyst is actually
claiming that Apple is preparing a 2-in-1 device with 5G connectivity that
would have a bendy display.
It's not an analyst
from some obscure research firm, too, but a fells who probes the supply chain
on behalf of IHS Markit - you know, the guys that break down how much it costs
Apple to build their iPhones, versus how much they sell it for.
According to
analysts Jeff Lin, Apple is working on a foldable device of its own - a kind of
a bendy iPad - with screen size that borders on its Mac laptops when unfurled.
This unicorn of a device is expected to run on Apple's future A-series
processor, hence the allusion to the iPad, and be a direct answer to
Microsoft's expected foldable Surface gear that's also in the rumor mill now.
Slated for a 2020
release, the foldable iPad could usher Apple to a whole new level, and, while
it may be brought into the Gumby phones and tablets era kicking and screaming,
Apple is, as usual, treading carefully with the application that makes the most
sense - a highly portable tablet/laptop - rather than push for something like
the Galaxy Fold that even Samsung's DJ Koh admitted was rushed out of the gate
prematurely to prove a point.
We shudder to think
what an Apple-made foldable laptop or tablet screen device could cost, though,
given the size of the flexible OLED display with plastic substrates it has to
employ.
