Making sense of the rumored all-screen foldable Mac/iPad hybrid

Apple is reportedly planning to make 2026 the year of the foldable. According to a variety of reporting, two foldable devices are in the works: a next-gen iPhone and a Mac/iPad hybrid. A foldable iPhone has seemed fairly inevitable for years, but this second device raises a lot of questions. Here’s my attempt to make sense of them all.

18.8-inch all-screen foldable coming in 2026

When it comes to Apple rumors, there is a wide spectrum of reliability in reporting. But among those with strong track records are Ming-Chi Kuo and Ross Young, both of whom are supply chain analysts. Kuo and Young have sources that learn of new Apple products when they’re still years out from public launches.

In the past few months, Kuo and Young have both reported that Apple is developing an 18.8-inch all-screen foldable device. The targeted release date is 2026.

Where things get confusing is in the identity of this device. It’s been referred to at various points as a MacBook, an iPad, or a Mac/iPad hybrid.

So what is it? And if it is a hybrid device, will it run macOS or iPadOS?

I have no insider information, but here is my best guess as to what’s going on with this device.

Solving the hybrid device confusion

Assuming the 2026 timeline is accurate, I don’t think it’s possible for this device to be a true Mac/iPad hybrid.

Why? Because a true hybrid would require significant software changes that Apple doesn’t have the resources to make happen right now.

Apple’s main software priority for the next couple years is undoubtedly Apple Intelligence. The company has already allocated significant resources into this effort. Not just money, but even more importantly developer time. And it won’t be letting up any time soon.

As a result, it seems highly unlikely that Apple would dedicate significant resources in the next couple years to work on:

• creating a brand new OS for an all-screen hybrid, or
• making macOS touch-friendly so it can run on the new device

Certainly Apple will keep making progress with its various OS platforms separate from Apple Intelligence. But major new initiatives like the above are highly unlikely.

With a brand new OS and big macOS changes both ruled out, signs point in one direction: this foldable will run iPadOS, and be an iPad, not a Mac.

It’s a foldable iPad, not a MacBook

I’m unsure why Ming-Chi Kuo recently called this 18.8-inch foldable an all-screen MacBook. But I have to think he jumped to the wrong conclusion.

I suspect that whatever Apple’s prepping involves hardware components typically associated with MacBooks. But in this case, I think they’re for a foldable iPad instead.

A foldable, all-screen iPad would look like a MacBook when folded shut. It would need a protective aluminum body like a MacBook has.

But on the inside, it would be all iPad.

The device would undoubtedly use an M-class chip, like the M5 Kuo mentioned. The iPad Pro was the first device to receive an M4 chip, so it makes sense for this futuristic foldable iPad to use an M5 or later by 2026.

I could be wrong here, but a foldable iPad makes a lot more sense than an all-screen foldable Mac.

Leave aside the big changes macOS would need before it was touch-optimized. Here’s a bigger reason this can’t be a Mac: no Mac user wants their physical keyboard replaced with a touchscreen.

An all-screen Mac is simply not a product Mac users want.

Whereas the iPad has always been touch-first, and it’s always been all-screen. A foldable version could take the iPad to the next level.

Foldable iPad could be the first iPad Ultra

An all-screen foldable iPad would represent a huge step forward…and come with a premium price tag as a result.

Apple has already been moving this direction with its iPad Pro line.

The M4 iPad Pro is very expensive for an iPad. And to get the full experience, you need to buy a separate $300-350 keyboard.

An M4 iPad Pro with 1TB of storage (and thus more RAM and CPU cores) comes out to $1,899. Add a Magic Keyboard and you’re at $2,250.

I could absolutely see a foldable 18.8-inch iPad start at $2,499, with higher storage tiers in the $3,000 range. One silver lining? You save money on a Magic Keyboard this way.

Apple could call this device the iPad Ultra, the next step in its modern Ultra era.

Wrap-up

How much of a market exists for an ultra-premium foldable iPad? It’s hard to say. But Apple knows how many 13-inch iPad Pros it sells. It knows how many of those buyers also get a Magic Keyboard.

It stands to reason that those customers would be very interested in an 18.8-inch futuristic foldable iPad. Especially if it’s not too far out of the current pricing ballpark.

I’d certainly be first in line to hand Apple my money.

Would you be interested in a foldable iPad? Do you have your own theory about foldable rumors? Let us know in the comments.