Apple is planning to use advanced liquid metal and improved titanium alloys for its first foldable iPhone, according to new supply-chain information.
According to the Korean Naver user known as “yeux1122,” citing a material company source, the hinge used in Apple’s first foldable iPhone will be made from liquid metal, an “amorphous” material Apple has been exploring for over 15 years. The main body of the device will apparently use a revised titanium material that improves strength while reducing overall weight when compared with existing titanium iPhone frames, despite having virtually the same surface area.
Apple’s relationship with liquid metal goes back years, tracing back to a 2010 deal with Liquidmetal Technologies. Apple received a “perpetual, worldwide, fully paid, exclusive license” to commercialize Liquidmetal-related intellectual property in the field of consumer electronic products.
Around the same time, Apple started using the material in small iPhone and iPad parts such as the SIM ejector tool. In subsequent years, Apple repeatedly renewed or extended aspects of its arrangement with Liquidmetal Technologies, but the material remained difficult to scale for high-volume structural components, and it has never seen significant use. Liquid metal has continued to surface in Apple patent filings and rumors over the years.
