Even before its unveiling, Apple’s first foldable iPhone has already become the design benchmark the rest of the industry is racing to copy. Google, Oppo and Vivo are now preparing to adopt the same dual ultra-thin glass (UTG) structure Apple pioneered, TheElec reports citing industry sources.
The dual-UTG approach places one sheet of ultra-thin glass above the OLED panel as the cover window and a second sheet beneath it for structural support. The upper layer, thinned to tens of micrometers, protects the display from impacts and scratches while still folding repeatedly. The lower layer spreads stress around the hinge and stiffens the panel from below. Together, the two glass layers give manufacturers tighter control over rigidity and folding stress, which helps reduce the crease that has long defined cheaper foldables.
Apple chose this construction as a late entrant precisely because it wanted to minimize crease visibility and raise overall quality rather than simply match existing products. That decision is now being treated as the new premium standard. Samsung Display is already building dual-UTG OLED prototypes to the specifications of Google, Oppo, and Vivo, working with partner Dowoo Insys on both the upper and lower glass layers. Mass production is targeted for the companies’ 2027 launches.
Samsung’s own Galaxy Z Fold8 series takes a different route: a single UTG layer on top plus a titanium alloy film and reinforced titanium plate underneath. That architecture is simpler and cheaper to manufacture at scale. Apple’s rivals, however, have decided the extra glass is worth the cost. Oppo and Vivo in particular have made crease reduction and durability central selling points for their Find N and X Fold lines. Google is expected to follow the same path with its next Pixel Fold.
The three companies all sell book-style foldables — the Pixel Fold series, Find N series, and X Fold series. Their current flagships are the Pixel 11 Pro Fold, Find N6 and X Fold6. New models using dual UTG are slated for early 2027 at Oppo, the first half of the year at Vivo, and the second half at Google.
For the UTG supply chain the shift is unambiguously good news. Even if overall foldable shipments stay flat, each device will now consume two sheets of glass instead of one. Apple’s decision to lead with dual UTG did not just improve its own product; it doubled the material content the rest of the market is now lining up to use.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple leads. All others follow. As usual.
As with fingerprint and facial recognition, when Apple debuts a foldable iPhone, then foldable smartphones will have been done right. – MacDailyNews, January 17, 2019
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