Apple has scrapped its ambitious plans to build a radically redesigned all-glass iPhone intended to celebrate the device’s 20th anniversary, according to a report from Jefferies analyst Edison Lee (via MacRumors).
The ambitious project, which tech watchers expected to debut as early as 2027 to mark two decades since the original iPhone launched, has hit a wall due to poor production yield rates. Manufacturing partners struggled to produce enough defect-free glass units to make mass production commercially viable.
Following the supply chain findings, Jefferies downgraded Apple stock to “Underperform” and trimmed its price target down to $263.66. Apple shares dropped more than two percent shortly after the downgrade hit Wall Street.
Rumours about the all-glass concept have circulated for well over a year. Industry watchers described the prototype as the most significant hardware redesign since Apple introduced the iPhone X in 2017. Leaks pointed to a seamless curved glass enclosure wrapping around both the front and back of the device. The design aimed to feature solid-state buttons, under-display Face ID sensors, and an edge-to-edge screen completely free of cutouts or notches.
The cancellation marks a notable strategic setback for Apple’s pricing roadmap. Lee noted that the all-glass model was expected to carry a blended retail price of around $2,060, positioning it as an ultra-premium flagship. Apple reportedly intended to use the striking design to boost average selling prices across its lineup at a time when component costs, particularly memory, continue to climb.
Beyond hardware manufacturing hurdles, Lee pointed to broader challenges surrounding Apple’s software rollout. The slow integration of Apple Intelligence features makes it harder for the company to justify adding extra RAM to base models.
It remains unclear if Apple has abandoned the entire 20th-anniversary redesign project or merely dropped the seamless all-glass enclosure. Industry analysts have long questioned whether eliminating the Dynamic Island cutout entirely by 2027 was realistic from an engineering perspective.
Want to see more of our stories on Google?
P.S. Want to keep this site truly independent? Support us by buying us a beer, treating us to a coffee, or shopping through Amazon here. Links in this post are affiliate links, so we earn a tiny commission at no charge to you. Thanks for supporting independent Canadian media!
