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I do not suppose any smartphone has ever been fairly as polarizing because the iPhone Duo. After years of ready for Apple‘s first foldable, the result’s a cellphone that borrows some classes from its Android counterparts, ignores loads extra, and looks like Apple continues to be determining what prospects really need from a foldable. But, regardless of some questionable selections, I am unable to put it down. That contradiction is what makes the iPhone Duo so fascinating.
My verdict hinges on one issue I believe many {hardware} comparisons overlook: the hidden celebrity of Apple’s developer ecosystem. It is each a blessing and a curse for Apple’s first foldable, however in very unequal proportions. There will likely be short-term ache as builders, Apple, and customers work out what’s attainable, however the long-term achieve could possibly be monumental.
Objectively, the iPhone Duo will get loads proper, and Apple’s selections appear unnecessarily difficult in locations, particularly since Android producers have spent virtually a decade fixing most of the similar issues. As somebody who makes use of iOS and Android facet by facet, I admire the need for consistency throughout Apple’s ecosystem. However consistency should not come on the expense of performance, and a few of Apple’s selections really feel like an try and reinvent options that already work.
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And but, I maintain reaching for it. Its utility alongside my different Apple units is troublesome to overstate, and the polarizing D-shaped design has grown on me significantly. The truth is, it is likely to be my favourite kind issue for one-handed use. That is fairly a turnaround from my preliminary response. My first 15 seconds with the Galaxy Z Fold 8 informed me I liked it; the iPhone Duo took significantly longer. However the vacation spot was the identical, and that is an necessary lesson: except a design is essentially flawed, residing with it may possibly change your notion in methods a hands-on session by no means will.
The iPhone Duo is the right foldable for me
Nirave Gondhia
The interior show is one other instance. Right here, I believe Apple has pulled an absolute blinder. The nano-texture layer does not simply make the crease much less distracting; it transforms the display’s total really feel. There is a welcome friction below your fingertips that jogs my memory of studying on an Amazon Kindle or utilizing TCL’s NxtPaper shows. It is great for studying, scrolling, and typing, and makes the expertise really feel simpler on the eyes with out compromising brightness. After two weeks, I have not had a single concern about visibility on both show, even in difficult situations.
Then comes the inevitable query: is it value $2,000 or extra? That relies upon virtually completely on what you need from it. For me, the worth is not merely having a folding display. It is with the ability to progress coding sprints, entry my Mac remotely, and maintain working from just about anyplace on this planet, even on airplane Wi-Fi. It is the pocket-friendly, always-connected folding iPad I’ve wished for years, although it may gain advantage enormously from some iPadOS-inspired software program capabilities. It lastly brings a stage of multitasking and utility to an iPhone that adjustments how I exploit it. For me, that is well worth the asking value, and the reactions from others I’ve proven it to counsel I am not alone.
Apple has at the very least given its first try some reassuring foundations. IP68 mud and water resistance, a weight that is solely round 50 grams heavier than the Galaxy Z Fold 8, and the reassurance of AppleCare all assist make the compromises simpler to stay with. However that is nonetheless a first-generation product, and Apple’s strategy will inevitably evolve. Samsung has had years to refine its foldables, and Apple is beginning that journey significantly later. There may be loads of catching as much as do, and I anticipate the subsequent generations to be even slicker.
Finally, the iPhone Duo is likely to be Apple’s most divisive iPhone but, however dismissing it for what it will get unsuitable misses what makes it so compelling. Like each first-generation foldable, it charts a special path, makes compromises, and delivers a novelty that established designs merely cannot replicate. Extra importantly, Apple’s ecosystem provides it room to develop in ways in which lengthen far past the {hardware}: builders will uncover new experiences, customers will discover new workflows, and lacking options will regularly be replicated or surpassed.
The iPhone Duo is not the right foldable, and it does not have to be. It is a glimpse of what occurs when Apple’s ecosystem lastly meets a folding iPhone. There are many causes to attend for the second era, however after two weeks, I do know one factor: I do not wish to put this one down. It may not be good for everybody, but it surely’s fairly rattling near good for me.
Worth & Availability
One of many largest surprises concerning the iPhone Duo is its beginning value: $2,000 within the US and £2,000 within the UK. That is for the 256GB mannequin, and surprisingly, it is decrease than I anticipated.
All of the rumors main as much as launch steered a record-high value, or at the very least the next place to begin than the competitors. As an alternative, the iPhone Duo appears comparatively well-priced by comparability. It is $100 greater than the equally sized Galaxy Z Fold 8, however $200 lower than its taller sibling, though each of Samsung’s foldables are at the moment obtainable with sizable reductions.
After all, 256GB is much less storage than Samsung’s double-your-storage launch promotion presents, and it falls in need of the 512GB included with the Motorola Razr Fold, which begins at $1,899.99. Even accounting for any notion of an Apple tax, the premium appears surprisingly modest. By most comparisons, the iPhone Duo is pretty priced.
However how does it examine with Apple’s personal lineup? The iPhone Air is probably its closest match by way of specs and premium novelty, beginning at $1,099. The brand new iPad mini prices $799, with an extra $100 premium for the nano-texture end. Put these collectively, and also you’re spending simply $1 lower than the iPhone Duo. It is hardly a scientific comparability, but it surely makes an fascinating level: you are getting parts of each units in a single pocket-friendly package deal. If you happen to have been already planning to purchase each, the iPhone Duo begins to seem like a compelling proposition. I might argue it is higher worth than its price ticket would possibly initially counsel.
The reactions from folks I’ve proven it to largely assist that. Three fellow passengers expressed real admiration; two instantly noticed the utility and mentioned they’d purchase one for completely completely different causes, whereas the third felt it was merely out of her value vary. Three small enterprise house owners I confirmed it to wished one virtually immediately, significantly after seeing the way it might rework the way in which they run their companies. I even encountered a courageous mother or father who mentioned they’d purchase one, though with a six-year-old at residence, that struck me as a quite daring funding!
Loads of provider offers are additionally value contemplating, with all the key US carriers providing substantial trade-in credit to carry the fee down. Ten days after launch, the iPhone Duo continues to be offered out on-line, with deliveries pushed again till late January. In-store availability continues to fluctuate quicker than a politician adjustments their stance.
Everybody ought to copy the iPhone Duo’s nano-texture display
There, I mentioned it: Apple’s implementation of nano-texture is so pleasurable that I hope each foldable producer copies it. Apple wasn’t the primary to carry nano-texture to shopper units, however its implementation on the iPhone Duo is a real differentiator, and for causes that go properly past the specs.
The primary is visibility. Apple appears to have understood one thing necessary about foldable screens: it’s not essentially the crease depth that issues, however how a lot you discover it. The Oppo Discover N6 may need the shallowest crease of any foldable, however the iPhone Duo’s nano-texture end makes its crease far much less distracting in on a regular basis use. Apple hasn’t eradicated the compromise; it is made it simpler to overlook.
The identical philosophy applies to the under-display digicam. Frankly, it is not excellent, however that is virtually irrelevant. More often than not, you overlook it is even there as a result of it blends so seamlessly into the display. It is a trade-off I’m glad to make: a much less intrusive digicam and a much less noticeable crease, even when neither is technically the very best implementation obtainable. Typically the higher expertise is not the one with the higher specs.
The iPhone Duo proves that generally the higher expertise is not the one with the higher specs
Nirave Gondhia
Past that, the show itself is superb. The nano-texture end covers a 7.6-inch LTPO Tremendous Retina XDR OLED panel, which is a whole lot of letters to explain the premium display you’d anticipate at this value. It helps a 120Hz refresh charge, HDR10, Dolby Imaginative and prescient, and as much as 3,000 nits of peak brightness in shiny situations. The weird 1.42:1 facet ratio is especially fascinating for multitasking, permitting two vertical apps to take a seat facet by facet. Or, as we’ll discover later, it lets Apple retain a facet rail whereas dividing the remaining house into two smaller iPhone-like experiences. The 5.4-inch cowl show retains an analogous facet ratio and most of the similar premium traits, albeit with out the nano-texture end.
Over the previous two weeks, I’ve used the iPhone Duo on planes, trains, and cars, each at residence and overseas, and one factor has develop into abundantly clear: each shows are a pleasure to make use of. I have not encountered any brightness or visibility issues, whatever the situations. There have been stories of show failures, as there are with different foldables, but it surely’s too early to attract significant conclusions about their frequency or long-term sturdiness.
Finally, that is the large iPhone show, or pocketable folding iPad, I have been ready for. The specs are spectacular, however what makes it particular is how little you discover the know-how getting in the way in which.
A decidedly non-flagship, non-Professional iPhone digicam
For a $2,000 cellphone, the iPhone Duo has a surprisingly strange digicam system. It is not unhealthy, removed from it, but it surely’s a transparent reminder that even Apple’s first foldable comes with compromises, and cameras are among the many largest.
Foldables have all the time concerned trade-offs, significantly with regards to digicam {hardware}. The smaller passport-style designs are much more constrained by house, which helps clarify why Samsung and Apple have opted for 2 rear cameras quite than three. However Huawei and Xiaomi have already demonstrated that you may match a triple-camera system and a large battery right into a equally compact foldable. It is clearly attainable; Apple has merely chosen completely different priorities, and I believe most Western producers will proceed down the two-camera path for now.
In on a regular basis use, the iPhone Duo’s cameras are good, however hardly ever nice. Just like the iPhone Air, it lacks a succesful devoted zoom digicam, and whereas the 2x in-sensor crop on the principle sensor helps, it is no substitute for a correct telephoto lens. You are not shopping for the Duo for its cameras. That mentioned, images at commonplace focal lengths are greater than adequate for many conditions, and the foldable design brings its personal benefits. Utilizing the rear cameras for selfies, with the quilt display doubling as a viewfinder, is especially helpful.
The iPhone Duo has fashionable iPhone cameras, simply not the very best cameras that Apple makes.
Nirave Gondhia
The 48MP essential and ultrawide cameras match these within the iPhone 17, with the principle digicam additionally serving because the iPhone Air’s sole rear shooter. These aren’t outdated or outdated sensors, they usually ship outcomes broadly akin to the equal cameras within the iPhone 17 Professional. However they fall in need of the extra superior 48MP variable-aperture system within the iPhone 18 Professional lineup. The excellence issues: you are getting succesful, fashionable iPhone cameras, simply not Apple’s finest.
The selfie cameras inform an analogous story, though there’s an fascinating twist. The 4MP under-display digicam on the interior display works for video calls in good lighting, however its high quality drops rapidly in difficult situations. Deal with it as a comfort function, not a digicam you’d select for something necessary.
(Picture credit score: Nirave Gondhia)
Way more helpful is the 12MP Heart Stage digicam above the quilt show. Though it has a decrease decision than the 18MP selfie cameras on Apple’s different latest iPhones, it retains the intelligent sq., multi-aspect sensor. Which means you’ll be able to seize portrait or panorama images and movies with out bodily rotating the cellphone. Mixed with the Duo’s versatile hinge, it is significantly useful for hands-free video calls in tent mode.
Finally, the iPhone Duo’s digicam system is completely succesful, but it surely’s troublesome to name it flagship-worthy at this value. Apple has prioritized the folding expertise over photographic versatility, and whereas that is a compromise I can stay with, anybody anticipating Professional-level images from a $2,000 iPhone ought to look elsewhere.
Nice battery life and effectivity
If you happen to’ve been fearing the iPhone Duo’s battery life, concern no extra: it is glorious. The truth is, regardless of having a battery capability just like its closest Samsung rival, it lasts a number of hours longer in my testing.
Apple does not formally disclose battery capability, however estimates put it at round 4,883mAh, cut up between each halves of the cellphone, as is typical of foldables. If correct, that is barely bigger than the 4,800mAh battery within the equally sized Galaxy Z Fold 8, though each pale compared to the 6,000mAh battery contained in the Xiaomi 18 Fold.
The distinction is in endurance. With blended utilization, the iPhone Duo persistently lasts round 13–14 hours, in contrast with roughly 11 hours for the Galaxy Z Fold 8. That is a considerable enchancment from a battery that is solely marginally bigger, and certain displays Apple’s software program optimizations and the effectivity of its C2 modem, though isolating their particular person contributions would require additional testing.
It is a lot nearer to the bigger Galaxy Z Fold 8 Extremely, which manages 14–15 hours with its 5,000mAh battery. The Google Pixel 11 Professional Fold trails at round 12 hours, whereas the Motorola Razr Fold additionally delivers roughly 14–15 hours. I have not completed testing the Xiaomi 18 Fold, however none of those units match the Oppo Discover N6 or Honor Magic V6, each of which have achieved round 18 hours in my testing.
Apple has additionally made an fascinating engineering trade-off. In contrast to a number of Android producers, together with Samsung, which adopted silicon-carbon battery know-how for the primary time with the Galaxy Z Fold 8 collection, Apple has caught with standard lithium-ion cells. The Duo is approaching the sensible capability limits of that know-how inside this kind issue, so Apple seems to be counting on effectivity and a barely thicker chassis to ship aggressive endurance. Given the outcomes, that is a trade-off I am pleased with.
The iPhone Duo proves that battery effectivity issues greater than battery capability.
Nirave Gondhia
Charging is equally reassuring. The iPhone Duo helps as much as 60W wired charging, though thermal constraints forestall it from sustaining that peak. Utilizing a MacBook Professional charger and an Apple USB-C cable rated for 60W, I recorded 43% cost in quarter-hour and 68% after half-hour. That is aggressive with the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and most different foldables I’ve examined, though the Duo seems to scale back charging speeds earlier and falls barely behind some rivals by the half-hour mark.
There’s additionally assist for 25W magnetic wi-fi charging, full with built-in magnets and Qi2.2 compatibility. It is a welcome comfort, significantly on a foldable the place built-in magnetic alignment is not all the time a given.
Finally, I’ve zero complaints concerning the iPhone Duo’s battery life or charging. That is the place the advantages of Apple’s thicker design develop into significantly clear: you are buying and selling a little bit sleekness for glorious endurance, quick charging, and on a regular basis comfort. If Samsung takes an analogous strategy with the presumed Galaxy Z Fold 9, significantly by including built-in magnets, I might have only a few complaints.
Apple nailed the iPhone Duo {hardware} in a couple of key methods
There’s one thing significantly fascinating occurring with Apple’s latest iPhones: the corporate has made monumental strides in battery life and connectivity. Larger batteries clarify a few of that progress, however a handful of much less apparent {hardware} selections are making simply as a lot distinction.
Two of crucial are the Apple C2 modem and N1 wi-fi networking chip. The previous is Apple’s second-generation in-house mobile modem, changing the third-party options it beforehand relied on. Having examined each the iPhone 18 Professional and iPhone Duo extensively, I’ve observed one significantly significant enchancment: community connections really feel significantly extra steady and dependable.
It is a distinction that is exhausting to understand from a specs sheet however instantly noticeable in each day use. My iPhone 18 Professional delivered considerably higher battery life than the iPhone 17 Professional on the identical networks, and I’ve seen equally spectacular endurance from the Duo. The C2 modem seemingly contributes to that effectivity, whereas the N1 brings extra of Apple’s wi-fi connectivity {hardware} below its personal management. Collectively, they symbolize an more and more necessary benefit, though separating their particular person contributions would require extra managed testing.
Then there’s the A20 Professional chip, which is absurdly highly effective. The iPhone Duo flies by way of all the pieces I’ve thrown at it, with no single noticeable slowdown or stutter. Extra importantly, that efficiency permits experiences that distinguish it from a standard iPhone, together with driving the quilt and interior shows concurrently. It is not merely about benchmark scores; it is about having the headroom to make a folding iPhone really feel easy.
Not each {hardware} determination is sort of as profitable. The earpiece sits above the quilt show, and I’ve repeatedly discovered myself misaligning it with my ear when answering calls. Maybe it is muscle reminiscence from utilizing bigger telephones, however I did not encounter the identical concern as typically with the Galaxy Z Fold 8. I often have AirPods in anyway, so it is hardly a dealbreaker, but it surely’s value mentioning when you steadily make handheld calls.
iPhone Handoff makes me wish to personal two iPhones
Lastly, there’s iPhone Handoff, and this is likely to be one in every of Apple’s most underrated new options. On supported carriers, it allows you to seamlessly switch your energetic SIM connection between two iPhones as you turn units. My UK provider, EE, helps it, and transferring between the iPhone 18 Professional and iPhone Duo has been remarkably slick. It is the type of expertise that feels quintessentially Apple: a sophisticated technical course of made virtually invisible to the consumer.
Every little thing necessary already syncs between my iPhones, however Handoff removes one of many final remaining inconveniences of utilizing two units. I not want a separate SIM or cellular plan for every cellphone; my connection merely follows whichever one I am utilizing. If you need the iPhone 18 Professional’s cameras and the Duo’s folding versatility with out juggling a number of numbers or subscriptions, this makes that mixture way more sensible.
Apple hasn’t nailed each facet of the iPhone Duo, however the mixture of dependable connectivity, easy efficiency, and seamless machine switching makes a compelling case for the {hardware} selections it has made. These aren’t essentially the options that promote a cellphone in a retailer, however they’re those that make you admire it daily.
iOS, Apps & The Apple Ecosystem
Here is the place the iPhone Duo positively outshines each different foldable: Apple’s ecosystem, and particularly the developer relationships it has spent practically 20 years cultivating. The corporate that popularized the cellular app retailer was all the time going to lean on third-party builders to unlock new experiences for its first folding cellphone. That technique is each its best benefit and, at the very least initially, a double-edged sword.
Apple’s developer ecosystem is its hidden celebrity
At launch, comparatively few apps have been optimized for the Duo. Black bars, awkward layouts, and wasted house have been significantly jarring on the massive interior show in portrait orientation, and Apple understandably acquired loads of criticism. However the state of affairs is already altering quickly. Lower than two weeks after launch, with tens of millions of units nonetheless awaiting supply, greater than a thousand apps have reportedly been optimized for the Duo’s uncommon kind issue.
I’ve additionally spoken with a number of builders behind apps I exploit repeatedly, and plenty of informed me that delayed machine deliveries have prevented them from absolutely exploring what’s attainable. Crucially, although, they have already got substantial updates deliberate, together with options designed particularly across the Duo’s folding display.
Apple constructed the framework. Now it is giving builders a canvas to reinvent the folding cellphone
Nirave
That is what makes Apple’s strategy so compelling. It has constructed the framework and handed builders a brand new canvas on which to experiment. There are already playful examples that allow you to make toasties, pour a drink, or play Battleship, alongside a rising variety of genuinely helpful optimized apps.
There’s additionally an fascinating knock-on impact: as builders rethink their interfaces for the Duo, a few of these enhancements might ultimately profit Android foldables by way of cross-platform apps. After all, the reverse is already true in locations. British Airways, for instance, works significantly properly on Android foldables, whereas its iPhone Duo app stays poorly optimized. Apple’s ecosystem has monumental potential, however that does not imply it is forward in each particular person app right now.
Multitasking is proscribed, however essentially completely different
Then there’s multitasking. Lastly, we’ve got an iPhone that may correctly run two apps directly, and Apple has adopted an iPad-like split-view structure. As anticipated, although, it is a essentially completely different expertise from Android multitasking: inferior in a number of methods, however arguably higher in a single significantly necessary respect.
Let’s begin with the constraints. You’ll be able to’t resize the cut up between apps; it is an excellent, side-by-side division or full-screen, with nothing in between. There is no superior window administration, floating apps, or assist for greater than two simultaneous functions. By comparability, the Xiaomi 18 Fold can run six or extra apps in independently resizable home windows. If flexibility is your precedence, Android stays comfortably forward.
However this is the place Apple has executed one thing intelligent: multitasking on the iPhone Duo is not actually about operating two apps facet by facet. It is about turning one giant display into two iPhones operating facet by facet.
Every half successfully behaves just like the Duo’s cowl show, permitting you to run an app on one facet whereas persevering with to make use of your cellphone usually on the opposite. That features interacting with the house display and widgets, quite than being locked into two energetic functions. It is a refined distinction, however one which makes the expertise really feel instantly acquainted to anybody who already makes use of an iPhone.
The iPhone Duo does not simply run two apps facet by facet. It turns one display into two iPhones.”
Nirave Gondhia
And it really works. I exploit multitasking extensively on the Duo, significantly when cross-referencing data between apps or maintaining one activity seen whereas engaged on one other. I might nonetheless love the pliability Android presents, however Apple’s strategy makes a stunning quantity of sense for its current interface.
Finally, extra succesful AI assistants would possibly make a few of these guide workflows pointless. Siri has improved considerably, however I nonetheless discover myself utilizing it far lower than the AI options on my Android units, and we’re nowhere close to that future but.
For now, the Duo presents a particular compromise: much less freedom than Android, however a well-recognized, genuinely helpful multitasking expertise that feels designed round how folks already use their iPhones. It is one other instance of Apple prioritizing consistency over flexibility, and whereas I do not agree with each limitation, I can see why it made that selection.
The iPhone Duo is my favourite first-generation foldable
This may come as no shock: I really like the iPhone Duo. It’s miles from the right foldable, and it has most of the quirks you’d anticipate from a first-generation machine, but it surely’s additionally some of the totally pleasurable telephones I’ve ever used.
Apple’s ecosystem performs an enormous function in that, significantly the builders who construct experiences you merely cannot discover elsewhere. However there’s additionally the great nano-texture show, the surprisingly helpful kind issue, and, sure, the sheer novelty of a folding iPhone. A few of that novelty will inevitably put on off, however for now, the Duo feels each bit as particular as Samsung’s first foldable did at launch, or because the passport-sized Galaxy Z Fold 8 did extra not too long ago. The iPhone 18 Professional is a greater cellphone, however the iPhone Duo is a greater expertise.
Apple might have made loads of completely different selections, and I’ve spent a lot of this overview explaining the place I want it had. But, in some way, its first foldable has develop into my favourite iPhone ever.
The iPhone 18 Professional is a greater cellphone, however the iPhone Duo is a greater expertise.
Nirave Gondhia
That is the excellence that issues most to me. Just like the bigger show of the iPhone 6 or the all-screen design of the iPhone X, the Duo represents a significant shift in how an iPhone appears to be like and feels. However not like these transitions, its bigger folding display presents potentialities that ought to proceed increasing as builders uncover what to do with it.
After all, it’s best to by no means purchase a cellphone solely for its future potential. The iPhone Duo is already a superb all-around machine right now, albeit one with apparent trade-offs and a value that calls for critical consideration. It is enhancing with each passing day, and I anticipate that evolution to proceed for years.
I’ve no regrets about shopping for it. You would possibly resolve its compromises aren’t well worth the asking value, and that is completely affordable. However for me, the Duo has executed one thing few telephones handle anymore: it is made utilizing an iPhone really feel genuinely thrilling once more.
