On the flipside Could Apple make devices exciting again with its first folding phone?

Back in 2005, nothing felt more high-powered and sophisticated than ending a call by snapping shut a clamshell flip phone.

- Rachel Hall

Back in 2005, nothing felt more high-powered and sophisticated than ending a call by snapping shut a clamshell flip phone. Now, two decades since they hit peak popularity, they're back - with Apple rumored to be working on its first ever flip phone.

Little is known about how Apple's new device will look. It could resemble Samsung's current flip design, which is similar to a 2000s-style clamshell phone - or perhaps look something like a foldable iPad.

The rectangular look has been a mainstay of phone design for the past 15 years, but could Apple's bet on the flip phone be a sign that this is about to change?

Tech experts told the Guardian that the new product launch probably reflected the fact that people now mostly use their phones to access the internet, rather than using laptops or tablets, and are looking for a device that optimizes that experience.

"Apple and all other smartphone makers are stymied by the fact that the smartphone has become something of a boring category," said Ben Wood, an analyst at the tech consultancy CCS Insight. "It's absolutely essential in people's daily lives, but it no longer has the excitement of the next big thing."