New report backs iPhone Fold punch-hole camera with Touch ID

While the end of the wait for a foldable iPhone appears to be in sight, there’s uncertainty over Apple’s plans for the outer and inner displays of what’s being colloquially referred to as the iPhone Fold.

A new report adds weight the the suggestion that there will be no Dynamic Island on the outer display, Apple instead opting for a single punch-hole for the front-facing camera, with Touch ID used to unlock the device …

The iPhone Fold

For a long time, two things have been unclear. First, will Apple take the Flip or a Fold approach? It now seems clear the company is taking the Fold path, with a normal-sized iPhone unfolding into something roughly the size of an iPad mini.

Second, will Apple embed Face ID beneath the display – a problem the company has reportedly solved – or would it instead put a Touch ID sensor into the power button, iPad Air style?

There’s now growing evidence of the latter approach.

Punch-hole camera, with Touch ID power button

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo indicated last month that Apple would not use Face ID on the iPhone Fold, as there simply isn’t room in the thin display.

Kuo says thickness and internal space constraints appear to prevent the Face ID module from being included in the first-generation device. Touch ID biometric authentication will be available instead, through a capacitive side button. This is similar to the Touch ID button in the iPad Air.

If accurate, this would mean Apple could forgo the Dynamic Island in favor of a simple punch-hole camera, and a new report backs this. The yeux1122 blog, which rounds up reports from Chinese social media site Weibo, says that the device will have a punch-hole design.

The content about the internal and external display of Apple’s first foldable device came out. (@ weibo)

Internal 7.76 inches 2713 x 1920 resolution

External 5.49 inches 20881422p resolution

Punch hole solution that is almost the same as the existing foldables.

The screen size and resolution almost certainly comes direct from yesterday’s Digital chat station report, while the reference to “existing foldables” means existing Android folding phones like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 and the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold.