Dual-battery code in iOS 27 fuels foldable iPhone speculation

Photo: Collected

Apple may be preparing to launch its first foldable iPhone, following the discovery of new code in the latest iOS 27 developer beta that reportedly references a device with two internal batteries, Macworld reported.

The fourth developer beta of iOS 27 contains new battery health strings referring to "the batteries in this iPhone", a change from the singular wording used for current iPhone models, which feature a single battery.

One string reportedly states that "the batteries in this iPhone are performing as expected", while another refers to the health of "the batteries" and warns that one may not be a genuine Apple component.

Macworld noted that none of the existing iPhone models would trigger such messages, suggesting that Apple may be developing software support for a device featuring a dual-battery configuration.

The discovery has further fuelled speculation that Apple is working on a foldable iPhone. Book-style foldable smartphones commonly use two battery cells, with one placed on each side of the hinge to make better use of the available internal space.

The latest findings follow earlier references reportedly discovered in the first iOS 27 beta, which included code related to fold states and angle detection. These features were viewed as possible signs that Apple is preparing software support for foldable displays.