Everyone’s days iPhones the flat rectangles seem to end quickly. Speculation continues to intensify about the launch of Apple’s first foldable phone in the latter months of 2026, and a new report suggests that the company is also working on a future version – a clamshell flip.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, known for his accurate Apple scoops, says the clamshell model is smaller than the book-style foldable that the company is also reportedly working on, and is more square in shape. Don’t get too excited — Gurman says “the product is far from guaranteed to reach the market” — but if the foldable is a hit, the clamshell could follow quickly.

A clamshell phone is a flip phone that, like a clam, folds toward you via a hinge in the middle. Some foldable phones fold like a book, opening to become almost a tablet, but a clamshell offers a more compact design for easier portability. Before the advent of foldable screens, some may remember the popular flip phone Motorola StarTAC from the 1990s.

A representative for Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“Apple is betting that its first foldable iPhone will be successful enough to create real demand for the category and that customers will want more shapes and sizes, like they have with traditional slab-style iPhones,” Gurman wrote.

Apple had a strong year, with iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max represents more than half of all iPhones sold in December. The company also reported iPhone sales record for the year.

Read more: Best Foldable Phones of 2026

But as CNET’s Andrew Lanxon notesthe clock is ticking on a company keeping pace with the competition when it comes to foldables. Apple hasn’t officially announced a release date, specs or even a name, but most leaks and rumors point to a launch in late 2026. However, there have been rumors of a foldable iPhone for years.

If Apple is indeed working on a small clamshell foldable, it should be different from Motorola and Samsung, which have square-shaped clamshells – the Motorola Razr and the Samsung Z Fold 7each one.

The style of the phone has its fans

Austin Evans, with over 5.7 million subscribers on his YouTube channelwhere he tests all kinds of new gadgets and devices, saying that an iPhone clamshell “can be is cool.”

“I’ve been a big fan of the flip form factor since Samsung first launched the Z Flip in 2020,” Evans told me. “In many ways, to me it feels like the evolution of the ‘normal’ smartphone. While the fold form factor is a great way to turn your device into a mini tablet, the flip form factor shrinks your phone down to a more pocketable design.

“I really like it as a concept; you get extra benefits like a phone that can stand on its own and an exterior display that helps keep you from doomscrolling as effortlessly as a normal device. I like the Fold but the Flip is my heart.”

Gurman also speculated in his report that Apple might make a larger, book-style foldable phone. The first foldable is reported to have a 5.5-inch display, which is smaller than Samsung’s 6.5 inches.