Former Apple design chief Jony Ive had a long-standing dream: an iPhone that appears as a single slab of glass.
A new supply-chain report suggests Apple was aiming for the iPhone 18 to realize that vision, but it may not happen as soon as some had hoped.
MacRumors reports that Apple wanted to unveil a “zero-bezel” handset by 2026, but ongoing discussions with Samsung Display and LG Display point to possible delays.
The ‘single slab of glass’ vision
Ive might be gone, but the concept lives on at Apple. From the front, you’d see pure screen, with no visible border. The first stride in that direction arrived with the iPhone X back in 2017. Since then, the bezels have gotten slimmer, but they’re still there.
To erase them completely, Apple needs a display that curves around the device edges. The Apple Watch has a glass cover that masks its bezel, but it doesn’t actually extend the live display all the way to the edge. Apple wants the display to be active even at the sides.
Samsung managed a curved display with its Galaxy Edge lineup, though it still had notable “forehead” and “chin” areas. Apple’s ideal scenario is to remove those entirely on all four edges. That’s no small feat.
iPhone 18 was the target, but might slip
A report in The Elec, cited by 9to5mac, explains that Apple tasked Samsung Display and LG Display with creating an OLED iPhone panel free of bezels, hoping to launch it in 2026. One industry insider noted that if Apple wanted this done on schedule, the technical details should have been finalized by now. Instead, it seems those talks are still underway.
Several obstacles stand in the way. Apple must ensure a watertight seal between the curved display and the chassis, reduce any “magnifying glass effect” at the edges, make sure the antenna performs correctly, and deal with the added risk of the edges cracking on impact.
Some believe a punch-hole camera would still appear on the front in 2026, as under-display cameras may not meet Apple’s quality standards yet. That’s a longer-range objective, according to the same sources. In short, the quest for an iPhone with no border whatsoever continues, but the finish line might lie beyond the iPhone 18.
