Apple's first foldable could come with an unexpected feature, claims expert

We've heard a lot of chatter about Apple's upcoming devices of late. There have been a number of reports talking about a slimmer iPhone, predicated to be called the iPhone 17 Air, but there have also been a number of rumours floating around about a folding iPhone and/or iPad.

Only a few days ago, it was suggested that a folding Apple device could appear towards the end of 2026 or early 2027, and now the same source has offered a little more information about it. He also makes quite a bold prediction.

Could a folding iPad run macOS?

According to the renowned analyst Jeff Pu (via MacRumors), the foldable iPhone will have a 7.8-inch inner display when unfolded, while a second, larger foldable device will have an 18.8-inch screen.

In his research note for investment firm GF Securities, Pu also suggests the larger folding device will be a MacBook/iPad hybrid, and this is where the bold suggestion comes in: he believes this device will run macOS over iPadOS.

The suggestion implies that the larger folding device is more like a touchscreen Mac than a folding iPad, which is something that's been rumoured for years.

Pu's comment also supports a report from The Wall Street Journal that said the 18.8-inch foldable device was "intended to serve as a laptop", but with such a large screen, it's only natural it would be able to offer some laptop functionality.

That said, another recent report, this time by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, also said the rumoured design changes for iOS 19 and macOS 16 will set the stage for new hardware designs including "foldable devices and touch-screen Macs". There could be something in the macOS suggestion, therefore.

For now, do take all of this with a large pinch of salt as nothing is confirmed and plans can change. We're very much keeping fingers crossed for a touchscreen Mac at some point however, so if the 18.8-inch foldable device from Apple runs macOS, we would be absolutely fine with that.