iPhone Ultra to sport a liquid metal hinge

Apple’s first foldable smartphone, widely rumored to be coming this fall under the name iPhone Ultra, is now said to sport a liquid metal hinge. This information comes from one of the most prolific leakers over on Weibo.

According to this source, the development of the iPhone Ultra is progressing rapidly, and prototypes have already been shipped to carriers worldwide for testing ahead of the launch.

Despite the name, “liquid metal” is an alloy that isn’t actually liquid, but unlike traditional metals, which have a rigid, crystalline atomic structure, it has a disordered, non-crystalline atomic structure, similar to glass.

This means it’s highly elastic and can absorb massive amounts of stress and snap back to its exact original shape perfectly. It’s also stronger than both titanium and stainless steel while being significantly lighter, and it has a microscopically smooth surface so it won’t get loose or wobbly even after hundreds of thousands of folds.

The iPhone Ultra is expected to be unveiled in September alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.

Source (in Chinese) | Image source (in Chinese)