No, the Viral iPhone Fold Video Isn’t Real. How We Know It’s Fake

I know we’re all excited for the upcoming iPhone Fold, but be wary of fake leaks — like the supposed unboxing video that’s been making the rounds online.

Upcoming phones will always be the subject of rumors and leaks, and no device is more hyped than the foldable that Apple has purportedly been working on for years. Lots of that early info points toward a release later this year during the usual September iPhone release window, which makes the lead-up fertile territory for falsified leaks like the aforementioned video.

Unfortunately, with the advance of generative AI tools that fabricate videos based on text prompts and other inputs, it’s easier than ever to fake your way to internet fame. Nowadays, videos churned out by gen AI tools have the correct number of fingers on hands, better lighting and far fewer indicators that they’re inauthentic.

But there are still some tells that you’re not seeing the real deal — both in the video and when it’s released.

First, let’s dissect the video. A person in a gray long-sleeved shirt or sweatshirt rotates a box labeled «iPhone Fold» and pulls it open. On the first watch, a lot of signature Apple elements are present. The product is tucked inside snug packaging and presented screen-side-out to the opener, and there’s both a charging cord and supplementary materials tucked underneath. It all looks authentic enough — at least believably not generated by AI.

But AI or not, there are a few details that are strong evidence that this isn’t an actual Apple device. When opening the package, there’s a peel-off protector for the inner screen, not the outer. The multicolored insert claims the device is IP68 dust- and water-resistant, which is rare for foldables. Only the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold and Honor Magic V6, among a handful of others, have water-resistant ratings.

The device itself is suspect, and if not AI-generated, it’s likely 3D-printed. The cream-colored back makes an odd sound when scratched (unlike what glass or ceramic sounds like), and the device’s halves don’t fold neatly against each other — another thing that the design-obsessed Apple likely wouldn’t allow. What’s more, when it’s fully unfolded, the back of the supposed foldable has a big gap between both halves over the hinge, which other phone makers have solved in their flexible-screen devices.

There’s skepticism around its design, too. Yes, Apple’s patents point toward a wider style of foldables similar to the first Google Pixel Fold, but the supposed iPhone Fold in the video is so squat in its dimensions that its internal screen would make for bizarre dimensions that aren’t tall enough to fit the aspect ratio of, say, an iPad.

iPhone Fold may or may not be the final name of the device, as rumors have disagreed for years on its product designation, with the most recent suggesting it could be deemed the iPhone Ultra.

Since we don’t see it turn on, there’s no indication of how its software is laid out — which form of iOS or even iPadOS it might use. That makes this short, squat design even more suspect.

And then there are the factors outside of the video. Apple leaks happen, but we’ve only had a few pre-release leaks like CAD files, official renders or cases that agree on a design — and yet, this is supposedly the iPhone Fold’s final form, which looks somewhat but not completely like a recent CAD render.

To the video’s credit, taking this many words to suspect and disprove its authenticity is a credit to its plausibility. There’s a lot of commitment to Apple staples, from product packaging to theorizing the final design of the foldable itself. If nothing else, it’s a functional guess at what the supposed iPhone Fold might look like, and how it might look coming out of the box.

We’ll know in September at the earliest if Apple chooses to release its foldable in that window — and I’m sure we’ll see plenty of other leaks and rumors on the device before then.