Consumers Are Not Buying the Foldable Dream—Yet
Apple’s upcoming foldable iPhone and new AI‑powered Siri represent the company’s latest push to drive iPhone upgrade interest, but early survey data suggests buyers are now far more cautious about paying for premium phone features than they were in earlier upgrade cycles.
Apple is preparing to unveil its first foldable iPhone this autumn, with the device expected to share the spotlight with the iPhone 18 Pro lineup. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman points to September 8 or 9 as the likely launch date, keeping Apple on its familiar early‑September schedule. On paper, this should be peak hype season for foldable iPhone demand. Yet a new multi‑country UBS Evidence Lab survey shows something different: excitement is soft, upgrade cycles remain long, and feature fatigue is creeping in. When only about a quarter of users say new Siri capabilities would bring their purchase forward, the story is not about buzz—it is about hesitation.
AI Siri Is Not the Upgrade Magnet Apple Hoped For
Apple is clearly betting that Apple Intelligence and a smarter Siri will make people feel they need a new iPhone sooner, but the survey results suggest the opposite. The UBS Evidence Lab data shows that only 24% of respondents say they would upgrade earlier to get the new Siri, down 5 percentage points. Meanwhile, indifference is rising: 31% describe themselves as indifferent to these AI features, up 3 percentage points. One quotable conclusion from the survey is that “Apple Intelligence is not yet a significant driver for upgrades.”
In other words, Apple Siri adoption in its new AI form is not strong enough to carry a price‑hike strategy. The average iPhone age in the survey only nudged down to 22.9 months and is still near record highs, meaning people are already holding onto phones longer. Asking them to pay more for features they feel neutral about is a recipe for stalled demand rather than a surge in iPhone upgrade interest.
A USD 2,000 Foldable Faces a Value Problem
The foldable iPhone story is supposed to be about aspiration: a “book‑style” foldable with a 7.8‑inch inner screen, 5.5‑inch cover display, ultra‑thin body, side‑mounted Touch ID, and an A20 chip powering everything. It is also expected to be the most expensive iPhone ever, with consistent reports pointing to a starting price of at least USD 2,000 (approx. RM9,200) and as high as USD 2,300–2,900 (approx. RM10,600–RM13,400) for higher‑capacity options.
But foldable iPhone demand is already cooling before launch. The UBS survey’s net interest metric for the foldable—interest minus indifference—fell by 100 basis points to 39%. That is not a collapse, yet it is a warning: even before anyone can buy the device, some of the initial enthusiasm is fading. For a niche, luxury model that will likely be produced in smaller volumes, this matters. Consumers seem to be asking a blunt question: does a fancy hinge and larger screen justify laptop‑level prices when their current phones still work fine?
Apple’s Premium Strategy Is Colliding With Its Own Lineup
Apple is not only raising the bar on features; it is raising prices across its premium lineup. The iPhone 18 Pro is expected to start at around USD 1,399 (approx. RM6,400), reflecting higher memory and 2‑nanometer chip costs. At the same time, the foldable iPhone will arrive as an even higher‑priced “Ultra” option, while standard iPhone 18 and 18e models are delayed to spring 2027. This staggered launch marks a strategic shift away from releasing every model at once.
The result is internal competition for iPhone upgrade interest. Buyers who might stretch for a Pro now have a foldable sitting above it, while more affordable models are pushed months into the future. According to the survey, Apple is “banking on the new Siri’s enhanced functionality to justify the upcoming price hikes,” but that bet is not paying off so far. When premium phone features do not clearly solve new problems, they become expensive nice‑to‑haves rather than reasons to replace a 23‑month‑old device.
What Buyers Want Instead of Another Halo Device
Put together, the survey and launch details tell a simple story: the age of effortless hype is over. Foldable iPhone demand is softening, with net interest slipping by 1 percentage point even as the launch window is locked in. AI‑driven Apple Siri adoption is lukewarm, and price fatigue is real. In this environment, buyers appear to want clarity and value more than spectacle: reasonable prices, meaningful everyday gains, and fewer trade‑offs between models.
Apple can still sell plenty of high‑end phones, but the assumption that any new premium phone features will automatically unlock wallets is fading. If only 24% of users say they would move sooner for Siri’s new tricks, the message is clear. Future launches will need to be less about how futuristic an iPhone looks on stage and more about how convincingly it earns its place in people’s pockets—and budgets.
