Apple's first foldable iPhone is reportedly getting a dual-cell battery. That's expected for a book-style device. What's less expected is the total capacity: 4,883mAh — smaller than the iPhone 18 Pro Max's rumored 5,235–5,425mAh, and meaningfully lower than earlier leaks had suggested.
Digital Chat Station posted on Weibo that Apple's battery supplier recently registered two new cells — one rated at 1,921mAh and one at 2,962mAh — for a combined minimum rated capacity of 4,883mAh. DCS added that the wider supply chain expects a range of 4,800–5,000mAh, with the exact figure still subject to confirmation. Apple will likely market this as "approximately 5,000mAh," consistent with how the company rounds battery figures.
Summary
- 4,883mAh total, dual-cell design: One 1,921mAh cell and one 2,962mAh cell — split across the two halves of the foldable chassis, standard for book-style foldables.
- Smaller than expected: Earlier leaks had pointed to a 5,400–5,800mAh battery for the iPhone Ultra. This figure is well below that.
- Smaller than the iPhone 18 Pro Max: The Pro Max is tipped for 5,235–5,425mAh depending on SIM configuration. The Ultra has less battery despite needing to power two displays.
- Sits between Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Pixel 10 Pro Fold: Samsung's Fold 7 has 4,400mAh; Google's Pixel 10 Pro Fold has 5,015mAh. The Ultra lands in between.
- September launch remains on track: DCS separately confirmed the iPhone Ultra is already in production, with a September announcement alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models.
Why This Number Is Complicated
Four thousand eight hundred and eighty-three milliamp-hours sounds reasonable for a standard phone. A foldable is not a standard phone. The iPhone Ultra is expected to carry a 7.8-inch inner display and a 5.5-inch cover display — two active screens drawing power simultaneously. The capacity needed to run two panels at Apple's typical performance level is meaningfully higher than running one.
The downward revision from 5,800mAh to 4,883mAh appears to reflect real engineering trade-offs. A foldable chassis has a hinge mechanism, folding display layers, and a thinner profile — all of which compress the available volume for battery cells. Ming-Chi Kuo had previously indicated Apple would use high-density battery cells to compensate, which may help close the efficiency gap even if the raw number looks modest.
Read also
The iPhone 18 Pro Max Comparison
Here's the uncomfortable comparison. The iPhone 18 Pro Max — a conventional slab phone — is tipped for 5,391–5,567mAh depending on SIM configuration. The iPhone Ultra, at $2,000+ and dual-display, carries a smaller cell. That's not necessarily fatal — Apple's A20 chip efficiency and iOS power management have consistently outperformed Android rivals with larger batteries on screen-on time. But it's a question that reviewers will answer definitively in September.
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