"If Your Phone Isn’t Folding, Flipping, or Flying, Is It Even Trying?

“Where’s the wow factor?”

It's that time of the year, a meme fest frenzy around the iPhone event. It used to be funny but the odd irony is that just like the iPhone the memes also seem the same!

Every year, it seems like tech reviewers and critics expect Apple to pull a rabbit out of a hat—maybe the iPhone should fold, or fly, or at least look completely different. But why? Is innovation just about flashy new form factors, or is it about making the technology we use every day better and more seamless?         

Tech works best when it’s invisible. Apple’s genius isn’t in reinventing the wheel every year. It’s in making sure the entire ecosystem—your phone, your watch, your Mac, your iPad—all work together effortlessly. The magic is in the seamless integration, not in a screen that bends for the sake of bending.

Think about cars.

They haven’t changed much in their basic form for decades. Sure, we have electric vehicles now, but they still look like, well, cars—because the form works. No one’s asking Tesla to invent a car with 20 wheels or no wheels at all to prove they’re innovating. The innovation is in the efficiency, the performance, and the experience.

DSLR cameras? TVs? The form factors have stayed largely the same for years. Yet, no one’s questioning their technological advances.

The improvements are happening where it counts: inside. You don’t need your TV to fold up into a tiny cube, (Well we do have a rollable TV, but the 5 people who bought it will probably disagree). Simple souls like most just want better resolution, smart features, and reliability. The iPhone is following the same logic and doing it better than competition.

Laptops have been around for decades, and guess what? They’re still clamshells. Sure, we’ve seen touchscreens, 2-in-1s, and hybrid devices, but the essential form remains the same because it works. Innovation in laptops is about processing power, battery life, and mobility—not flipping them into origami shapes. Tablets, too, have stayed largely consistent in their design. Does that mean they aren’t innovating? Hardly. The advancements in these devices are all about making what’s inside more powerful.

If the form factor works, why change it? Apple’s focus is on perfecting what works, not bending to the latest trend (pun intended). The iPhone’s design is already optimized for what most people need—a powerful, pocketable device that connects them to the world. The real innovation is making that form factor better, more reliable, and increasingly indispensable.

Future-proofing is the innovation driver at Cupertino clearly

The iPhone is no longer about convincing last year’s users to upgrade. Apple realized that long ago and has stopped making those promises to shareholders. The expectation management is crystal clear: it’s about keeping the 300 million older iPhones from the past 3-4 years relevant through software updates, while maintaining their place within the ecosystem. The real goal is to get those with 4+ year-old phones to upgrade and bring in the next generation of users from the same families. Apple builds devices to last, and that’s the real story. An iPhone 12 owner upgrading to the 16 is getting a device that will keep them future-proofed for another five years—far more valuable than chasing gimmicky features you’ll forget in a month.        

It's true that Android phones have introduced many features before the iPhone, but the ones that truly matter and have lasting impact are few and far between.

The claim that the iPhone is losing its status as the most desirable phone due to stagnant design overlooks a key point: cultural perception. In recent shows and movies—across various platforms, not just AppleTV+—how often do we see wealthy characters, young or old, using a Galaxy S24 Ultra or Huawei Honor? Pop culture shapes and reinforces societal symbols, and the iconic iPhone design, particularly its back, is deeply embedded as a marker of luxury and lifestyle. This ingrained association won’t fade easily, regardless of incremental design updates.

Just look at even the Airpods, probably the most subtle and the most powerful piece of tech in our pockets, all users will swear by it. It has improved by leaps and bounds but still looks the same as 8 years ago.

I believe the expectations that are attributed to the iPhone are more for Apple to speak about the "One more thing..." And that i have to agree that Apple doesn't deliver on that much more. Apple’s clearly not here to satisfy the craving for wild, short-lived trends. It’s about making devices that just work.

Instead of feeling disappointed, perhaps we should appreciate the subtle genius of a device that lasts for years and integrates seamlessly into our lives. The stock market certainly isn’t concerned, nor are the current users, so it's unclear what all the fuss is about. A foldable, flip, or even transparent iPhone is likely on the horizon, and like many, I’m eagerly awaiting the next "One More Thing..." moment.

Note: The article has been co-created with Gemini and ChatGPT. Next time probably it will be done via ChatGPT inside Apple Intelligence ;)