Apple Announces First Foldable iPhone, The iPhone Duo
Apple is entering the foldable category with a device that is heavier and has no telephoto camera, while competing foldables from Huawei, Xiaomi, and Samsung sit lighter and, in some cases, carry a telephoto.
Key Facts
- Apple announced the iPhone Duo, its first foldable smartphone, on September 9.
- The iPhone Duo has a 5.4-inch outer display when closed and a 7.6-inch inner display when opened.
- The iPhone Duo starts at 364,800 yen for the 256GB model and reaches 574,800 yen for the 2TB model.
- Pre-orders for the iPhone Duo begin October 16 at 9:00 PM and the release date is October 23.
- The iPhone Duo weighs 254g, compared to the Huawei Pura X Max at 229g and the Galaxy Z Fold8 at 201g.
Reporting from 4 sources: ASCII.jp, KAI-YOU, GIGAZINE, GameBusiness.jp.
Apple announced the iPhone Duo, its first foldable smartphone, at a September 9 event. The device has a 5.4-inch outer display when closed and a 7.6-inch inner display when opened. Japanese pricing starts at 364,800 yen for the 256GB model, with 512GB at 399,800 yen, 1TB at 468,800 yen, and 2TB at 574,800 yen. Pre-orders open October 16 at 9:00 PM, and the release date is October 23. The body comes in Star White and Night Sky. Apple says the opened display is the largest in iPhone history. The frame is titanium, and a hinge made of more than 100 parts handles the fold. The inner display uses a matte finish that reduces reflections and makes the crease less noticeable, and the front camera sits under the screen. The SoC is the A20 Pro chip. The iPhone Duo weighs 254g, heavier than the Huawei Pura X Max at 229g and the Galaxy Z Fold8 at 201g.
The September 9 event opened with a staged handoff from Tim Cook to new CEO John Ternus, who appeared on stage for the first time as chief executive and called the Duo "the iPhone that brings the biggest transformation since the first generation." Pre-orders open in more than 70 countries and regions, including Japan.
The Duo is 5.2 mm thick when unfolded, thinner than the iPhone Air. The display does not switch by turning one screen off and the other on; it changes with an animation matched to the opening and closing motion. Apple Pencil support is planned within the year and works on either screen.
- Duo Preview: shows a live preview on the outer display so the subject can check pose and composition.
- Kids Cue: plays animations such as Snoopy on the outer display to draw a child's gaze to the camera.
- Duo FaceTime: lets people other than the call participant join from the outer display side.
- Split View: opens two apps side by side, with Netflix, Zoom, and Slack already supporting the two screens.
The rear has a 48MP main and 48MP ultra-wide camera, with no separate telephoto. The battery is split between the left and right sides of the body, and the phone is eSIM-only.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 4 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.