As a recent Android foldable phone owner (Google Pixel), I'm excited that the Duo will get developers to actually design apps for foldables. Right now, some apps don't work at all and others are just stretched. I feel a better use of the screen space is around the corner for both Android foldable and Duo users.

- It works with the pencil! This is a big big deal. I can do whiteboarding with customers quickly without having to break out a separate device, for example. Definitely unfortunate for the reMarkable Move and devices like that.

- They actually might have nailed the hinge and crease problems.

- I've been excited for this release ever since the rumor of the iPhone Air being a prototype of sorts for this came out. Two iPhone Airs fit very comfortably in my hip pack (though I only ever have one at a time).

I'll give John Ternus credit: the demos are interesting and fun.

Maybe not $2k fun + inherent risk with buying the first generation of an Apple product particularly after the Apple Vision Pro, but still.

$2K starting price is rough. I’ve upgraded my iPhone every year since my first phone, the 3GS. It’s one of a few “splurge”-type things I allow myself. It’s a hobby and just fun to play with the new hotness. This year might break the cycle.

I don’t care for the 18 Pro colors, I still love my orange 17 Pro, and I’m not sold on the Duo (functionality or price).

I might still end up with a Duo but I’m very much on the fence. I’ll tell myself it’s for development/testing reasons, or just to play with the newest offering but I’m just not sure. I worry this will suffer from the same lack of developer interest as the AVP did. Yes, it’s very different from the AVP and SwiftUI will almost certainly make this process easier but I’m still not sure.

One thing I love about metric paper is the beauty of the simplicity: When you fold it, it maintains its ratio. This is because it is 1:1.41, aka 1:sqrt(2)

When I saw that this new phone is 1:1.4, I instantly appreciated why it is that way. Metric paper wins again!

I think the Duo looks great. And from the few hands on video I have seen I think the Apple presentation actually doesn't do it justice. There is no crease at all! [1]

On the note on this year's keynote. I can't be the only one who feels the whole vibe of the keynote changed. This isn't Tim Cook style keynote and John Ternus wasted no time to try and changed a few things already. I can't wait for John to further shake things up at Apple. But everything so far, all the small minor details suggest they are in the right direction.

[1] https://x.com/mweinbach/status/2097753099159138631?s=46

I've had two folding phones and I am not going back until the issues are resolved. Here were my problems:

1. After a while, I think dust would inevitably get in the hinges and wouldn't fold flat. I've seen demos in stores of newer gen Samsung foldable phones and it looks like those wouldn't fold flat

2. The inner screen protector eventually lifted off the screen, causing catastrophic damage, and requiring repair (under warranty thankfully)

3. The aspect ratios were weird. I ended up using native app sizes, making the extra space kind of a waste

One thing I did like about the Samsung foldables was that when they were folded and using the front screen, I finally had a phone that fit my smaller hands! It was nice being able to use my thumb to reach the other side of the screen. Will be interesting to see how this works out because it looks decidedly wider.

Genuinely bonkers. I never thought they’d do this. Just seems so like a Xiaomi Xi7 Super Max Fold Z or something. But I have to say that when I used one of those Android folding phones it was quite cool to end up with a big screen in your pocket.

Just didn’t feel it was an Appleish product.

There’s a standard for paper sizes called the ISO 216 international standard, aka A-series paper sizes. You may be familiar with it outside of the American 8.5”x11” letter size. The simplicity, for example, where an A3 sheet is exactly twice the area of A4. One A3 sheet folded in half becomes two A4 sheets. This is intentional: when you fold or divide an A-series sheet exactly in half, the resulting sheets have the same proportions as the prior. The aspect ratio is preserved across all A-series paper sizes.

The iPhone Duo is designed with this in mind. The aspect ratio any way you view it, folded or open, is preserved. Apple design knows a thing or two.

Can I buy half of one? The size and aspect ratio of the outer display sounds like it'd be pretty close to my ideal phone.

Maybe that means I want one on a technicality. I suppose the big fold out screen would be useful at time if the device isn't too chunky...

Definitely a v1 product but it's an interesting device. Apple is rarely first to market, but they definitely produce the device that indicates the point where there is a market.

You can also see where they are going. In a couple of years, assuming it sells well there will be a Pro model with a 3x fold and better camera system. I'm guessing to make in thinner they will have to drop USB-C and come up with a flat charging/data connector. The EU won't like that.

The final interesting thing is this is the first Apple product that I can think of since the iPod era that they've released a product that will cannibalize another Apple product. If you were looking at getting a high end iPad Mini this replaces both phone and tablet.

Wowza... this is the first time in recent years Apple is introducing a mobile product that is a "change" from everything they have done in 10-years...

(I want one... find phone screens too small, but don't want to carry a phone and a tablet - yes, I know there have been other offerings in the Android ecosystem, but I am not in that realm)

It looks well done. I am not spending two grand to get one.

It actually looks really nice; and I'd consider myself their target demographic conceptually. My last iPhone was a Pro for context.

But at a $2K starting price, plus likely another $200 for the storage size they really expect people to purchase, in this economy, it is so far outside of my price range it is dead to me.

Which is to say: Cool tech, but I've already dismissed it as something I want evaluate for my next phone just based on price alone.

That's maybe the real death-nail for folding phones: Price hasn't yet shifted to allow them to be mass market rather than enthusiast phones.

After four years of watching the JerryRigEverything YouTube channel snap Google's foldable phones in half at the same spot along the antenna lines, I'm looking forward to seeing how well this holds up.

Something this expensive should not be that fragile year after year.

With some of what they showed, I wish they never separated iOS and iPadOS. The duo seems to be bringing more of the iPad features and if they could position this as one device to replace both (and the price point sure reflects that) it could be interesting.

But without that, I don't see the use for myself. Though I also rock a 13" iPad Pro so even with that it would be a hard sell to replace both.

I still am not sold on the entire idea of a foldable, there is some interesting things here and I will be interested to see how they position it over the next few generations.

It felt very "un-Apple" when they called it a foldable phone _before_ revealing it.

The folding part is the thing the tech journalists say; done right, it shouldn't matter whether it's foldable or not.

Bigger screen, pencil support, nano-glass, etc. The foldable part is obvious, why say it?

Contrary to earlier rumours the Iphone Duo will support magsafe:

https://www.apple.com/iphone/compare/

The people at Microsoft who made the Surface Duo must be feeling pretty weird seeing this. The name, the aspect ratio, the way the UI works, the gestures for setting up split-screen, the "use it as a tiny laptop" mode... It's all things they pioneered.

Not that that's a bad thing. I absolutely loved the Surface Duo, it was my favorite phone until it stopped working correctly, and I hope other Android manufacturers take note of this, not just Samsung. It's just wild to see how similar this new Duo is to the original Duo.

I still don't get the fanfare over folding phones. They tend to be more fragile, and if I really need a larger screen, I'd much rather use a laptop or tablet.

Why do they insist on every new phone being bigger than the phones before them? I don't mind folding. I think it's cool, and a nice way to get a useful space. But I have big hands, and I can't use my iphone 17 now without two hands. This is even wider before unfolding.

Who wants bigger phones? Who is like, "damn I wish I had a tablet that I could fold up and still barely fit in my pocket"?

I want smaller phones. The width of the iPhone 4 was nearly perfect imo. If they would take modern display technology with approximately that width and expand it to 16:9, I think it would kill, even if it were relatively underpowered compared to the modern top of the line.

iPhace Duo https://news.microsoft.com/surfaceduo/

At some point these phones are powerful enough that we need to be able go get a desktop experience that can run macOS. Why is a 600 dollar neo more capable for productivity than a 2000 dollar iphone with a much beefier chip?

My wife's first question:

Will this fit in a woman's hand?

I think the use case here is for people who have an iPhone as well as an iPad they use occasionally for reading/watching stuff, as well as business people / execs.

Now you can (sort of) have both in one device. Reading the rumours, I was completely disinterested. Now I’m actually tempting to ditch the iPad Pro and iPhone Pro and have a Duo replace both. I’m excited to have a go with one in the Apple Store.

Shame it’s so damn expensive!

I see some iPhone Pro Max buyers getting this simply because they paid around $1200 last year, then after trade-in ($885 for a 17PM), they could get into the Duo for $1,200.

If someone had that amount of disposable income last year, they might have it to throw at another upgrade this year.

A bit over a year ago I got an iPad Pro with the nano-texture display and when hearing that apple was developing a folding phone I thought, man, if they put this screen on the inner display that would be amazing.

I assumed they wouldn't do it because they were marketing the nano-texture as a specialty thing for professionals and glossy screens were the popular ones, but now here we are.

Foldable gimmicks aside the new materials and components sound really cool. How they have the screen layers that move freely seems innovative. The new ceramic they’re using for the outer shell/screen sounds great and I hope we see it in more of their devices:

“Ceramic Shield 2 on the outer display reduces glare and provides 3x better scratch resistance than the previous generation”

A lot of stuff showing its folding allowing you to "use it as a bedtime clock" - have apple done any kind if battery use trickery to make this a non-battery-draining thing to do? Or maybe I'm overestimating how much battery a screen uses? (I'd have thought a lot)

I was quite surprised to see the under display camera. Wasn't expecting that.

Other than that, looks like there are some nice Duo specific features on iOS. $1999 is also surprising given that news outlets were reporting up to $2500. Plus it's price competitive with other foldables in the market.

Reminds me of the windows fold phone. ‘‘Twas the best of phones, but out of my price range at the time. Now I have nostalgia of windows phone, the best phone os that never was.

Even though I like the form factor I doubt I’d cash out 2k for it, seems like a waste just to spend more time on another screen.

What about left-handed people? Will the controls line up on the left?

The real trick is waiting to see if they make a iPhone Duo 3 or 4. Knowing they are committed to the form factor and it’s not another Mini would be nice to know.

Also time to work out the hardware and software issues. Not trying to spend serious money on beta testing like a Vision Pro.

I'll be curious to see how the hinge holds up against wear, tear and small particle intrusion over time. If people get to 2 years and it's still going great. Then I may pick up a Duo 3. But my adoption really comes down to the problems around the hinge.

I don't think I would want this device for $500, let alone what Apple is asking.

What is the appeal? There are a few screen scenarios that make sense for my life: (1) Multiple displays at desk to work; (2) TV + couch; (3) laptop + lap or surface; (4) phone (anywhere). I'm never in need of a tablet. If I needed that screen real estate, I'd be reaching for my laptop.

It looks quite well done, though I'm definitely not in the target demographic for this. I'm happy with my high-end desktop devices and shittier mobile devices. The last thing I want is for my phone to be more capable and incentivize me to use it more lol. I use mine to call, text, listen to music, check email, use the map, track workouts, and basic web browsing. I don't need more than that.

Apple: Every one else does folding wrong!

Also Apple: We've done it the exact way Samsung and Microsoft did it! We even used the same Duo name as Microsoft!

Looking forward to the first broken screens, and Apple's official reply:

"You're folding it wrong."

It's so close to the "her" wallet thing that the main character pulls out to look at photos.

It's just too big, and too metal.

The form factor is good. I hope things move this direction.

More broadly, it's interesting that the movie has a beautiful future aesthetic that influenced tech most in the recent years. The muted colors with natural materials mixed with ubiquitous tech that was in the background of a human in a humane world where people mostly walk places. I feel like the AI company aesthetic barrowed a lot from that movie. Right down to their office furniture.

Now we just need to make a phone OS to put something like that on that isn't locked down. Forget the year of desktop linux. I am waiting for the year of phone linux. Android doesn't count.

The folding/unfolding animation is one of the coolest I've seen from a foldable. So slick.

I am 75, and have a ton of computer gear. I can imagine myself as an old man later in life, not wanting to do any programming, and just wanting a single digital device like a future version of this product. Let’s see what Apple has available in 10 years.

I’m not the target market for this phone at all, but I have to wonder how many people are going to take the 256 GB option for $1,999. It feels like that option only exists so they could show a starting price under $2,000.

The 512 GB version for $2,199 seems like option you’d really want as a minimum, and then you’d need to add AppleCare on top of that. Pricey!

Apple killed the iPhone mini because it only had a 4-6% share of sales of all iPhone models. While some people may really want this, I can't imaging that it'll get more than 5% of iPhone sales (after maybe an initial higher novelty peak).

I really hope that in the coming years we will be able to get smaller phones back into the market. Apple compared this to the size of a passport. A passport seems even bigger than a normal iPhone, even when folded. A number of people (especially women with smaller hands) I know are holding onto their iPhone Minis for as long as possible. I’d love a phone that was roughly normal iphone sized when unfolded but was a flip phone à la Motorola razrs in years gone by. I wouldn’t even need a screen on the outside. I know it’s hard for a company like Apple to be able to market “less phone” as a good thing, and I know the iPhone mini didn’t do great commercially but there’s a small cohort of users clamoring to have something for them.

I hope the tri—fold format catches on (Huawei mate xt 1&2, Samsung z trifold).

If I’m going to carry around an insanely fragile and expensive device I want to maximise screen area and aspect ratio.

I keep waiting but the phones only get bigger. Seems I’ll have to eventually replace my iPhone 12 mini with a 13 mini, or ditch Apple entirely.

The Google Nexus 4 was my all time favorite smart phone in terms of overall size. But I suppose it’s unlikely Apple will ever make a phone anywhere close to that size ever again.

Somewhat related, Apple snuck in a $100 price increase on the regular iPhone 17.

[flagged]

I've been out of the loop on foldable phones, and this is question is not related to specifically the iPhone Duo. How does it work that it doesn't show a crease in the middle? What's the breakthrough technology there? Or is there a visible crease?

I'm surprised they weren't able to figure out face id and had to go back to touch id.

"Seated. Set iPhone Duo down and watch a show or follow a workout at the perfect viewing angle — with easy access to the controls on the bottom." -- Is the outside screen REALLY that strong? Is it okay to put it on a rough surface like gravel?

I guess we'll find out of there's much of a market for $2k phones. For the price one could get a regular iPhone and a decent iPad.

I’m in a weird spot because my iPad is old and my iPhone old.

So I’m in the market to buy new ones of each.

So I’m now having to decide if I just buy the Duo … instead of a new phone and new iPad.

But seems like a worse phone and worse iPad - than standalone.

(it does look like the best foldable I’ve seen though)

I wonder if there's a practical way to protect the phone with a case, given that it folds and the dual screen is a big selling point. It feels like one accidental drop on concrete or a ceramic floor would cause a lot of damage.

I’m curious to see how using Windows Remote Desktop iOS App will feel at this size if I can be productive or not.

My previous thought was to use XReal glasses with my existing iPhone but that’s not realistic in an office environment.

Will be interesting to see what these look like in an Apple Store after a few months of people handling them. Seeing the creases and crunchy-feeling hinges on well-used Samsung Fold display models has always been enough to put me off wanting one.

Give me a single-screen phone the size of this thing closed, and use the extra space inside for more battery and not more displays.

Aside: I'd also love it if it could be plugged into an external display and have a "desktop mode" (like a macos VM) that gets suspended/resumed on connect/disconnect instead of just expanding the "mobile mode" across the new screen. I realize this is probably a dream too far for most companies though, as it doesn't allow them to segment the market as much as requiring people to buy multiple devices.

https://www.apple.com/iphone-duo/specs/

It took me a while to figure out I had to click "Explore" to get to the specs, so I'm saving you the trouble.

As long as I'm griping about the web site... Apple, when you introduce a phone with a new and different form factor, please just tell me the dimensions straightaway. This one is shorter and wider than most phones. Is it too wide to fit in my pocket? I need the dimensions to answer that question.

It was interesting to see no shots of the iPhone Duo being used as an actual phone and I think because it probably will look silly.

That being said, this is the device I always wanted. Something between an iPad and iPhone.

Despite what the marketing material would have you believe you can always see the fold. Even when it's fully open. Folding screens have been a solution in search of problem for like a decade now

Really want information about if there is a left-handed software setting for the new side-oriented buttons

No SIM slot. Seems like Apple is only thinking of the US market. Will not be getting the Duo as I will not be able to browse the web outside my home.

Edit: Rate limited so can't reply to the comments. I live in Spain, can't switch to eSIM. I know that the US has 100% integration of eSIM across all providers but outside the US it's not that great. I use eSIM and SIM a lot, have lots of cards and subscriptions. For my main subscription I can't switch to eSIM (yet).

Duo screen: 7.6" vs iPad mini: 8.3". Duo will support Apple Pencil later. I wonder if many people with iPhone+iPad combination can now replace it with one device.

That starting $2000 price tag.. is this going to be another Vision Pro?

Put MacOS on it and then we'll talk

I wrote a long comment about how this product does not make sense, but I changed my after having written it. There are some overlap with the iPad and I thought that this might compete with that, but I no longer believe that.

Here is why, and why I personally believe this product might be great.

I will never carry an iPad when I am out and about. If I am going to carry a device of that size, I will bring a laptop. The only use that I personally have for an iPad is laying in my couch or using it as a stationary device for a baby call or something like this.

In this scenario, the bigger screen size is nice.

I often find myself on the go, wanting a larger size screen to deal with random incoming stuff, accountant, customer issues, PRs, and so on. In those cases, it is very handy to have a larger screen. I can manage with my current screen size, but it would definitely be more productive with a larger screen.

I am personally worried about the reliability of the mechanical parts, and I would be really annoyed if the screen started to crease, as I have seen similar devices do before. But if Apple somehow magically fixes that problem, then I would be inclined to buy a product like this for my next phone purchase.

Compare those to an ipad+phone+macbook. For a $2k price. What does this duo offer over the alternative?

Does it have extended desktop support for a docking station???

Panos Panay must be so vindicated right now. The Surface Duo truly was ahead of its time.

To be honest, I'm still having a hard time believing that Apple would release a device that you can completely ruin with just your fingernail...

I might be a minority but I never had interested in this foldable phone trend where you get just a bigger screen. I can't even consider dual display smartphone as a foldable phone. The benchmark for a foldable phone was Motorola Razr V3. I am not sure where they are going they really need some new people with some fresh ideas and vision. Sooner or later someone is going to start eating their lunch.

They were very evasive on what the inner screen was made of. I'm going to assume its the same plastic all the other folding phones are made of.

looks nice, but if i still can't use terminal or closer to native cli, the pixel fold 10 with termux is still the right device for on-the-go development. termius is ok, but with termux i can run emacs on the pixel.

I find the new watches more interesting

* https://www.wired.com/story/apple-watch-series-12-apple-watc...

it's a mistake though to demand an iphone to own the watch (can't configure it otherwise)

always held me back from ever buying an apple watch, don't want an iphone or ipad

I think the Duo is a really interesting product that I am not sure I would ever get, but the form factor is interesting. I don’t know if I would want it for out and about, but it is kind of the ultimate phone for around the house, which is a ridiculous thing to say, but it kind of bridges the gap to the iPad but is more handheld, which is nice.

I love my iPhone SE 3rd gen. Perfect form factor. Neither too big nor too small to be able to do useful things on it. My hands and arms hurt using large phones. I am so used to using one hand to operate phones. My previous was iPhone SE 1st gen. Why do people need such a large phone in day to day life usage? Carry an iPad/tablet if you really need one.

The new iPhone Duo in single screen mode is the same size (5.4") as the iPhone 13 mini but with a different aspect ratio

https://photos.reportinglive.com/p/2026-09-09/f-bf86c6f5adb3...

It’s marked ip68, I wonder how they made the hinge water and dust proof

Never expected Apple to get on the foldable bandwagon. A slab is as good as it gets for something you use every day.

Here's the Tech Specs page, which is slightly more hidden: https://www.apple.com/iphone-duo/specs/

Notably, the inner screen has a nano‑texture finish (which Apple normally upcharges significantly for), which implies it is glass.

I tried the Samsung one with the same form factor in a store , and that is pretty nice. As someone traveling via plane or train, I can easily see myself using this and not carrying my tablet with me. However, just too expensive for my taste. I get a lot of new batteries for my current 12 pro for that price .

It's priced identical to the Samsung Fold 8.

The dimensions are also close.

From a visual aesthetics perspective, I prefer the square edges of the Samsung Fold 8.

Eager to check out the reviews of the software capabilities of the iPhone Duo.

And I'm not sure about the inner screen's selfie camera. The under-screen camera has failed in previous devices, especially for zoom calls, it was abysmal.

Excited for the nano texture displays though. For far too long, Samsung had beaten Apple with non-reflective displays.

The transition effect from closed to open is so chef's kiss; the little things that set Apple apart.

Why do they insist on every new phone being bigger than the phones before them?

I don't mind folding. I think it's cool, and a nice way to get a useful space. But I have big hands, and I can't use my iphone 17 now without two hands. This is even wider before unfolding.

Who wants bigger phones? Who is like, "damn I wish I had a tablet that I could fold up and still barely fit in my pocket"?

I want smaller phones. The width of the iPhone 4 was nearly perfect imo. If they would take modern display technology with approximately that width and expand it to 16:9, I think it would kill, even if it were relatively underpowered compared to the modern top of the line.

Will have to give it a fingernail test in the apple store so I'm not destroying my own $2000 phone.

What's up with all the negativity? Apple is finally doing something radical (for them) again with the iPhone, their bread and butter. And I'm all here for it. 10 years of the same form factor was getting old. I'm gonna buy this on release, easiest decision ever.

Trying to figure out what demographic this is for and I'm coming up empty. Any ideas?

It's too small to replace my ipad, too big to replace my phone. Seems too fragile for kids, plus they don't need that. Maybe it's good for the elderly?

This has some interesting features, but also a number of questionable decisions. The inner front camera placement is awkward for non-camera use, because despite being under-display won’t be completely invisible (as some shots in the presentation show). The on-screen unfolding transition is cringy and distracting. Apps and multitasking behaving differently on the inner screen depending on whether the hinge is flat or bent creates complexity and trade-offs, like when bending then phone so that it can stand on its own, or lie on an uneven surface. On the front screen, reserving the edge for special controls reduces the thumb reach for general content (like the app icons on the home screen).

I'm a little worried about the buttons moving up along the side, since I use my phone with my left hand... Hopefully there is more information about whether the OS supports moving the controls to the left, or even keeping them at the bottom.

Just a reminder to everyone, always buy the second version of any new product category, even from Apple. The first duo will look primitive in a few refresh cycles. It does look really cool though!

I get excited about this but that's because I want this... not because I need it.

What I actually need might be less of an iPhone and more of a nano than a duo. Something small and portable that doesn't make me spend every spare second on the phone.

Google and Samsung have been at this for years. Nothing here is actual innovation, is it?

So, just in general, I've been seeing more and more foldable phones like this. How well are they holding up now? Having Apple use one seems to be at least somewhat of a vote of confidence that the tech has reached some level of acceptable maturity, so I assume "not trash", but I don't know how good that represents. I'm a compulsive fiddler so I'm not really in the market for a phone I can fiddle to death without even consciously realizing it, but I'm at least curious if the tech is reaching the point where one might expect a more normal user to casually expect them to last 2+ years with normal use.

Foldables seem like Homer's car to me. It's a worse phone and a worse tablet all in one.

For reference:

https://media.wired.com/photos/593252a1edfced5820d0fa07/3:2/...

Interesting that there seems to be no FaceID? They only mentioned TouchID. I assume it’s a limitation of the under-screen camera.

They’ve been doing Touch ID instead of faceID with some of their products a few times, I think some of the iPad models? but unfortunately touchID has like a 20% success rate with my fingers. FaceID works 100% of the time for me. I’ve never had good luck with any fingerprint scanners. I hope they can someday solve the issues with FaceID under the screen.

I wasn’t going to buy this product anyway. My current phone works and I have zero reason to upgrade. But if I was in the market, no facial recognition is honestly a dealbreaker.

John Ternus, and his co-presenters, still presented with the now institutionalized Apple-voice: obviously-rehearsed, emotionally-flat, robo-replay.

They spent their time practicing to recite, instead of talk, to people.

So hard to sit through.

I had assumed that was a genuine, if not inspiring, reflection of Cook's controlled non-spontaneous personality. Relative to Steve's emotionally-rich casual-coded excited-to-share delivery.

This is an aside, but product websites are so clunky these days - they just constantly stutter, freeze and basically do not show off the product well because I'm waiting for stuff to happen. Make it smooth people!

Had the fold 8 for a while and.. People as usual focus on what they're told (the crease).

They're basically selling you a phone without 1 camera, face id, probably shitty battery to make margins enough to justify the risk. It's placed as duo because there would be not much "ultra" about it. Zf8 is def worse than my fold 8 ultra for productivity and Apple is trying to see if they can make people buy it by selling you the nerfed version first while making you think the crease it's the point. Same for Samsung, but they can afford to just "cover the position".

A 2.39:1 cinematic movie occupies about 16.13 in² on Duo and 16.26 in² on 18 Pro Max

What's the value of using one of these phones running iOS? iOS is great for media consumption and not so much for productivity... so I don't understand very well the use cases... apart from watching Netflix I guess?

Wayyy too wide. it's wider than the 17Pro. So impossible to operate. It will sell out because it's new. But it will flop. More than the mini and the Air.

They should've used the iPhone mini width, and adjust height to that.

Super skip..

I want the hardware, but with Linux! SteamOS or bazzite would be a good start..

I see the nano-texture is non-negotiable -- you won't get a clear screen with the Duo. I'm incredibly skeptical of this, and I'll have to check it out once it's in-store to see if that's even something I could tolerate in daily use. When I checked out a Studio Display with nano-texture, I could not stand it because of the shimmery rainbow grain, somewhat like staring through Scotch tape, and the general fuzziness of text. Not sure if that's improved, since Apple doesn't address flaws in their past products.

All this so people can watch The Odyssey as Nolan intended whilst on the go.

More seriously though, now do just the front screen on a non-folding device. It can even remain as thick as this thing when it's folded.

I’m a bit shocked for the design of the folio cover for iPhone duo.

1) it seems that doesn’t permit to add some mag safe accessories like extra battery or wallet with cards

2) I don’t understand if with this cover on, the first screen is not usable at all or permits to access to the “external” smaller screen

I understand that this kind of design obviously obligates to some constraints, but I think what Steve would have decided in such situation.

I hope that we don’t fall again in the Performa epoch in which we had a lot of different Mac and designs under the same line

Apparently Foldables are incredibly popular in China. They sold more foldable in China than the rest of the world combined.

I wouldn't be surprised if Apple release an iPhone Duo Max later.

I'd like to have one of these devices once the prices get a bit more normal. I remember paying 400€ for an iPhone 4 when it came out, a flagship phone at the time by all metrics. Adjusted for inflation, that's about 600€.

Flagship prices have now reached the 1000€ mark, with marginal upgrades, and in many cases actual downgrades.

There is no world in which I can justify paying 2x-4x the flagship price for a device fulfilling a fundamentally similar purpose.

For a different comparison, a 14" MacBook Pro costs that much.

I had the Samsung Flip 6 and I liked it a bit in the beginning but quickly tired of having to flip it open and so I'm back to the soap bar- but otherwise this looks cool

On a side note, the amount of text on the page is just crazy. I remember older releases of apple products being basically just a slide show. Now we have a wall of text and image carousels?

The folding phones are genuinely interesting although all the cool demos I've seen people do irl have been quite reliant on android being quite liberal as to what software you can run

$2000-3,200 for a phone?

My next phone is an e-ink Mudita Kompact with a hardware kill switch. I can run a service to bridge iMessage if I decide I care.

With every year since they arrived in 2005 or so and especially accelerating since 2010, smartphone capability has grown with their creepiness. The expectation that you own one has almost turned into a demand. It's a total turn off. You don't need these capabilities, life goes on without it just fine. The drawbacks for your mental health and privacy are material.

I wonder if you can hook it up to a monitor and use it like macOS. That would be the killer phone and killer laptop, then you just need to connect a mouse in and display or tv and work wherever. But I doubt Apple will ever do that, I don’t think they are bold enough to cannibalize their laptops.

Imagine being able to hook up a small slab to a keyboard or mouse Bluetooth then connect to a monitor, tablet or hotel tv, like the Samsung Dex can do. And run full laptop/desktop applications. One can dream

That hinge mechanism looks like some pretty wild engineering to me.

This is pretty cool as a next-gen mini replacement.

The one downside of my iPhone 13 mini is the rare case where I do need more screen.

I couldn't spend $2000 on a phone, but I don't mind the direction.

3Lakhs in India (or 3.2K USD). I use apple products across including apple tv, but this is not - all the more i have started evaluating whether to even buy any more

The hardware is probably stellar and it must be an incredible reading device, but it's 2026 and I refuse to buy a device with a proprietary locked down software ecosystem.

Well "kid cue" is pretty uncomfortable for some reason

will buy it for the kid cue feature alone; what a neat idea. i mainly use my iphone for reading books and taking pictures of my kids so the format will be perfect for me.

It looks beautiful, but it’s definitely not something I’d buy in its first generation. I'd really want to wait and see how it fares after a year of real life usage.

So I’m starting to think this is why the Microsoft Surface Neo never got released - so hyped up and then lost into thin air- circa 2019. To me it looks like it was sold to Apple to refine the design. I’m not sure I’ve seen it yet, but I’m sure you will be able to use one screen as a keyboard in a type of laptop mode - a big feature of the Neo back in the day ( I so wanted one back then, not sure how I feel now)

I really like it, but the price is prohibitively expensive. Even if I trade in my near perfect 17 pro max, it will still be prohibitively expensive.

Wow coming apple pencil support! That will be pretty awesome.

Finally, the foldable iPhone is out

It’s too expensive for me to even dare to have, but I do want to use it

But if there’s no particular improvement in the user experience, I would prefer the base model of the iPhone 18 coming out next year above all

What I’m most looking forward to on a foldable iPhone is viewing photos

I really love that sharp, fresh feel when viewing photos on the iPad, and I’m excited because I think I’ll be able to experience a similar feeling on this foldable iPhone as well.

SPOILER WARNING: There is huge spoiler for Silo in this ad if anyone is watching the show. Don't view if you don't want to learn the ending to Season 1.

To be honest a flip smartphone with three screens so one screen is always out is a bad design decision. The best thing on a flip smartphone is that it’s protect the screen cause they are inside. On this model I need a protection case, too.

On the other side I have to decide to want a big screen or a very good camera - ths sucks, too. I want one device which is high end and don’t want to make compromises at this price tag.

"Because it’s an iPhone, it holds its value longer than other smartphones." Never expected this to be called out explicitly in marketing material

$2000!

I really don't get why people spend so much on flagship phones! I tend to aim for $200 Motos for me and my family, and it feels like it's a 90%+ solution at a tenth of the price. I can still browse the web, text with people, make calls, listen to music, and take pictures. They still last for years, and if they get dropped and the screen cracks, it just means its time to upgrade. What am I missing here?

Did anybody want this?

Its about time that Apple invented the foldable phone. They dont usually wait this long after something gets popular on Android to invent it for iPhone.

I'll pass on this. Less moving parts appeals to me. I'm sure the HW and SW engineers at Apple did a great job, but, i like the current form factor.

Apple users: We won't leave apple ecosystem but those android fold phones looks cool, wish apple had something similar.

Apple: There you go.

This is the reason this exist.

I am seriously tempted to get this phone (or the next iteration) when the time comes to upgrade from my iPhone 13. I think the aspect ratio would be perfect for coding on the go which is always a bit painful on a standard phone. Although there's just some inherently uncool about a folding phone, like I'd think twice about getting it out of my pocket at a party

I would almost buy one of these even at such a ridiculous price if I could get it with all the AI features permanently disabled.

$2,000 for a phone? Holy price point, Batman. No thanks.

I assume the people who would buy something like this have enough money not to care, and also would not care about the second part of my comment, because they want New Thing or use their phones enough for it to be useful.

I guess it might be the case that the only way to make the folding screen thing even remotely work is a very, very expensive manufacturing process. But as is often the case, I don't see how it's worth it?

I want my phones smaller and with Touch ID, not enormous and wrinkly.

Curious to see all the new interaction paradigms people come up with now that we have something physical that can sense degrees of freedom.

A dumb one off the top of my head:

When reading a book with both screens open, have the outer display show the cover of the book, and closing and opening the screens together causes a page turn. (Unfortunately also a great way to rapidly wear out the hinge mechanism.)

What is it about Hacker News that draws only criticism and negativity? Is it even possible to build a community that's optimistic?

Lately I leave my MacBook Pro at home and Codex remote for everything. It’s a dream.

But what’s missing is manual in-browser testing, on the go.

This solves that.

Think I'll just wait for the rumored iPhone Air 2. iPhone Air is for sure the best phone I've ever owned, the battery life doesn't bother me but the camera isn't ideal at all. Duo looks cool but I'm not sure I need a device that will encourage me to "play" on my phone more than I already shouldn't.

I would legitimately purchase a 'smart' phone that's just basically a 15-year old flip phone with maps and a modern battery + software stack. Awaiting the inevitable analog trend to kick back up so there are solid options here.

Competitors may have copied most of the form factor, but as usual, it’s Apple’s Special sauce that makes this thing amazing. In this case it’s how well integrated all of the screens are into the OS and its default apps and actions. SO slick and smooth. Great camera tricks, and the Pencil is a welcome addition, too.

That looks... horrible... I like the "calendar" mode, that's quite fun, but it looks way too wide when it's folded up, and a weird aspect ratio when it's open. Also they show putting the phone down on concrete half-open to take pictures, but that will scratch the outer screen, surely?

The rounded corners look ridiculous on this phone. They also cut off a non-trivial part of the displayed content now.

The video they have showing off taking photos has one scene where they open the phone like a laptop to hold the phone to take a photo. That means the front screen was face down on the concrete. Has the durability of the displays gone way up or is this just a scenario no one would ever do?

A foldable iPad that can make phone calls?

Virtually no crease. Foldables are undoubtedly the future of phones; the price is the only real dealbreaker.

As someone approaching mid 40s..

Is Apple screen enlargement over the years just matching the aging eyes of their core demographics? Close focal vision degrades, hold phone further, bigger phone useful.

Kind of like the stat how burning man is getting older every year cuz its mostly the same GenX cohort going since forever...

I would be excited if they shrunk a full laptop into a smaller format for working, but I can’t be excited about another device to steal my attention. Give me a device that’s the size of a mini tablet that expands into a laptop, not this abomination that just wants my eyeballs on advertising.

The lack of faceid is very surprising - it’s by and large one of my favorite features esp in winter.

iPhone Duo is more like iPad Pocket. Touch ID + Apple Pencil Support coming later this year. It looks physically uncomfortable to hold.

I was really hoping they were going to slap an Apple Watch screen on the back of an iPhone Air and fold that in half.

I'll be waiting for an iPhone Duo Mini, I guess.

I have not much to say about the device, probably great. But the image selection for showcasing the camera improvements seems odd. As a non US person, i have the impression it tries to tailor its branding the most cliche type of peer groups. The result seems quite ridiculous

My hope is that Apple getting in on this design will influence eBook makers to jump on the bandwagon.

Does this hand look normal?

https://store.storeimages.cdn-apple.com/1/as-images.apple.co...

There is indeed a crease: https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/1wbx1wo/there_is_a_cr...

I'd say the best practice is based on PWA. Using the tech, app can be customized easily to adapt to smart devices of different form factors using the same technologies.

I cannot believe that the central crease could disappear altogether!

Suspiciously could not see reviews of it yet - usually bloggers like mkbhd get their hands on early, and they release the reviews moment the embargo is off, usually when live event is over. This time nothing.

I'm curious how large the market for this will be. I am a big guy and the Pro Max models are already huge in my pocket. How many people are really going to want a phone that is this big and bulky in their pockets? Will we see a rise in cargo pants?

A terminal app would be cool where the bottom half is a decent keyboard with arrow/pg keys

Looks quite similar to the Huawei Pura X Max[0]. Funny how the cycle inverted.

[0] https://consumer.huawei.com/cn/phones/pura-x-max/

I'm a bit biased here, but I feel like the more form factors we introduce, the worse apps are going to get as developers now have to account for it (and they won't, eg YouTube on ipad). Do people actually like foldable phones enough?

I guess it's not cool but if i had a fold phone I'd much prefer it be like the nintendo DS with 2 separate screens (taking up the whole space though). If they can make it foldable they should be able to have 2 screens without a bezel

I you can fit an iPad Mini in your pocket, you don't need a foldable display.

Not available in US: https://consumer.huawei.com/my/phones/mate-xt-ultimate-desig...

One thing I always wondered about Apple specifically is how do they actually coordinate so many layers of integration -- materials, hardware of various kinds, manufacturing, software. How is that done on like day-to-day basis?

I'm not sure whether this counts substantive enough, but WOW that thing looks absolutely comical, lol

Naturally, I can already see people deeming it to be the most beautiful thing ever though.

Truly, I'll never understand Apple, nor their design language.

Still on a 13 mini for the same reason. The closed Duo is closer to a regular Pro than to a mini, so it doesn't actually replace the small phone — it replaces the "I also carry an iPad mini" phone.

Apple killed the one size I wanted and then shipped a $2,000 fold. I get why the fold exists. I just wish the mini line hadn't had to die for it.

I don't see the appeal of this or the Phone 18 for the matter. I have an (old) iPhone 15 Pro that just works so the upgrade just doesnt seem worth it.

Also I think it would be quite bulky to carry the Duo in a pocket all day long.

Folded phones are the essence of “just because you can doesn’t mean you should”

I was surprised Apple talked about note taking like Granola for Apple watch but didn't integrate that or talk about for iPhone Duo.

btw. we power Granola, I work at AssemblyAI

This made history because Apple never copied Microsoft before. https://news.microsoft.com/surfaceduo/

Never thought I'd say this but welcome to 3 years ago Apple hardware

After watching some reviews of the Duo, I'm convinced that Steve Jobs would have never let the inner panel be matte while the outer panel was glossy. It's too inconsistent and inelegant.

There is a reason that foldable is not taking off. The final test is this.

It's very expensive.

I think Apple is using the same method airlines use when selling seats, just in reverse. Airlines start selling seats cheaper at the beginning, and as there are fewer and fewer seats, the price increases. Apple, on the other hand, is selling at a premium price for a new product category, and I believe it is, so they can get away with it for some time, and they will lower the price as they sell more. This has nothing to do with economies of scale. They already own the premium portion of the mobile phone market.

Something less available is worth more. Those who own it now can enjoy people's attention and their curious inquiries, which are worth more than money can buy for some people.

Did anybody else notice the choppiness when the guy was texting on duo?

Imagine buying a 3000 phone but typing on a screen like it’s 2015.

So much for Apple doing it better than competition despite being years late to the party.

I was skeptical until they whipped out the pencil support. Then the price… not that bad for Apple device. Replacing both my iPhone and my iPad mini would be nice

Whats the use case? Is this a phone or a size-reduced ipad? This looks hard to keep in you pocket, and even worse to operate with one hand.

Im having a hard time to understand what and who this is for.

I have never understood the appeal of foldables, but I guess with Apple launching them now, they're probably going to see significantly improved software support within the next few years

Anyone noticed the headline has two "Hello"s for a phone that folds in two? John Ternus' first tweet was just "hello" and he opened the event the same way.

This has to be on purpose.

IFF I can replace some of what I almost never use my iPad for with this, it _might_ be worth that price tag.

I'm on the fence! I do like a bigger but not too big screen for movies on planes etc.

For those asking who wants this, Marques Brownlee pointed out in his quick review that this is mostly targeted at China's market, which apparently loves foldable phones.

While 4x3 is great (for 1998) and I do run server windows in 1280x1024, all the widescreen media is gonna look terribad.

Are we going back to 'modified to fit your screen' days?

$2000? Let me reach into my wallet and pull out the bird flip.

A $3,500 AUD phone. That's where we're at these days.

This is insane.

The weight is interesting: 8.96 ounces (254 grams).

Not much more than the 18 pro max - 8.78 ounces (249 grams). The Duo sure looks chonky, but that's not the end of the world.

Whats the point of big screen when we can't even install the app we want. Sideloading works for 7 days and there is artificial limitation of 7-8 App Ids which sucks.

How do you put a case on a foldable phone? Or do you not put one on, rely on the ceramic to protect the screen, and pay for Apple Care for cheap replacement screens?

This is really nice for people who read books and want to ditch carrying around a mini tablet or e-reader, I just wish it had the camera array of the iPhone Pros.

Watching my iOS colleagues tear their hair out with SwiftUI's lack of proper support of foldables for the next... Two years about will be highly entertaining.

No SIM slot. So I have to carry a mobile hotspot if I want to browse the internet outside my home.

It’s like Apple forgets there is a world outside the US where eSIM is not a thing.

I used to be one of those people that would countdown the hours to Apple's launch events and tune in for the live stream. I was never someone who updated my iPhone every year, but I _did_ update my iPhone every two years.

Now, I can't even remember what version iPhone I have. I just remember that I bought it after my last one stopped working (after maybe 5 or 6 years of having it). I won't lie: part of the reason is that I'm just getting older and care less about these things.

But a bigger part is that new tech just isn't fun anymore...

I _hate_ using my current iPhone for surfing the web... because I can't run the full suite of ad-blocking software that I run on my computer (Firefox + uBlock, sponsor block; Little Snitch with tons of block lists). I hate that all that ad-blocking software is necessary... but that's a totally different rant.

I _hate_ that I'm being asked to spend $2000 on a device that will, by default, surveil me 24x7. I can spend HOURS trying to disable every feature designed to track me... and still not be certain that somewhere in the TOS that I've still given permission for them to vacuum up SOME piece of information about me.

And I _hate_ that Apple is now an ad company.

And yes, I acknowledge that with respect to privacy, Apple is STILL the less bad choice (compared to Android).

And yes, I acknowledge that there are other options. In fact, when this iPhone dies, I plan on getting a Pixel and putting GrapheneOS on it.

I guess what I'm saying is... I hope that there are more people like me out there... who are sick of paying thousands of dollars for devices that, instead of serving me, serve those who want to collect my information so they can sell me stuff.

edit: "because I can't" instead of "because can't"

Feels like a tag-along solution looking for a problem.

Been using a galaxy fold for years now. This is the future.

The issue with this form factor is that the on-screen keyboard will take up half the screen on landscape with the phone open.

Typing in portrait should be very nice, however.

The phone shows a date of April 1 in several screenshots. I would guess that is to pretend that the images were for an april fools joke in case they leaked?

Can I pay $1,000 and just take one of the smaller halves?

Oh thanks but I need less screen in my life, not more.

It looks very useful with all the software integrations. Now the price tag however... Without financing it would be hard for majority of buyers to justify.

We need the same that runs Linux. I want to connect a Bluetooth keyboard, open my favourite Kitty terminal and ssh to my work server anywhere I go.

What is a common use case for these kind of phones?

Has anyone lived with a foldable phone for a while? I just can't believe that the actuated element isnt going to end up a bundle of dead pixels.

Total e-waste product.

Everyone knows how badly these things break with moderate use. You’re basically buying with the expectation you’ll have to replace it.

Boring company, lost vision.

I wonder if they will ever see the wobble as a problem or if it is something people like about the iPhone somehow.

My iPhone 15 pro survives another generation.

It looks very wide in the unfolded configuration.

TouchID only is an interesting choice, very interested in the 2nd iteration after we see the crease and hinge wear after a few thousand actuations.

Are the on screen controls fixed to the right ?

The curved right side makes me think so, but it sound like a pain for people using their phone left hand dominantly.

In practice, it'll just be for TikTok (or other shorts) permanently on one side, right?

I guess people spend more money than even this on other addictions

I actually really like this and I'm not sure why. I've been a folding phone skeptic for years but I really am intrigued.

Personally I love this concept. I’d be able to stop carrying my laptop around and just monitor/respond to things via SSH from my phone.

Nice form factor.

I have a Samsung Fold 4. The front screen is too narrow and the folding screen doesn't open all the way anymore.

Not what I expected from a 1400€ phone.

Phone trends seem to go from big to small, and now back to “bigger is better” again. Such a cyclical pattern, but it does make sense.

I don't see the appeal of foldables personally but the way the screen animates during folding/unfolding is a very clever touch

Buying this immediately and getting rid of my laptop, going full AI native to do all my work. Never sitting in front of a laptop again.

So excited to see if the "apple adoption delay" holds true here. Like more durability and actual long term software support.

I'm looking forward to doing code review on the go on a phone like this! Once a GrapheneOS-compatible brand copies it, that is.

Boooring. Apple stopped innovating. They just copy and integrate new things into their phones. Steve Jobs is turning in his grave.

I just wanna know, what does it do when I dock? Are we talking iPad mini level kvm docking or iPad m-series?

What I am most interested in is what the fold line looks like and I guess we won’t know until we start getting YouTube reviews.

I don't think the price is that crazy considering how often you use your phone

What other item do you own that you spend so many hours using

2,000$. No thanks. Not convinced there is a big market for this device although not upset Apple trying new things.

Something, something.. rolling in his grave..

These threads are often amusing with people obliviously asking: why doesn't Apple make exactly what I want? And then stating with certainty how well their custom requirements would sell.

I'll probably wait and see how this phone does over the next few years. If it is still highly regarded by version 3 then I could imagine making the switch to a folding phone. For now I will remain conservative since my phone is such a critical piece of tech.

I am surprised that foldable phones are lasting so long I thought theyd just be a fad

Can’t wait until my colleague who DMed me mid presentation to get one and break it like he did with his two Samsung ones.

Why not make it have equal corners. This forced rounded edges is insane. The lack of symmetry is absolutely bad design

I saw it reported that it has a crease. personally I liked the surface duo better with it's 2 seperate screens.

Looking forward to reviews after a few months of use. So far all the foldables I've seen get destroyed quite fast.

- where do i get a 5 inch iphone?

- no seriously i dont want a 6 inch / 6.5 inch screen, any recommendations?

- ok how about a 5 inch anyphone?

Love the FaceTime camera behind the display

Oh wow.

That looks extremely boring and unexciting. It doesn’t look like it’s Apple, it looks like Xiaoco Fold Z Duo 16.

my beloved surface duo has returned <3

I wonder if the side bar controls can be moved to the left side. I always hold my phone using my left hand.

PSA: Spoiler alert for the show Silo in some of the demo shots.

Product demos spoiling TV shows… What a time to be alive.

I see apple keeps copying Microsoft. Can't they come up with any original ideas of their own?

$2000?! I know this is mostly sticker shock, but I wasn't expecting this price.

Looks like a cool device though.

for a first foldable iteration - apple has hit it out the park compared to other foldables on the market.

when the google & Samsung ones first came out they were plagued with problems.

but I think apple should've also had a foldable in the form of a razr ultra since they already have an iPhone air.

let's see, next year i'll be due for a new iPad mini and iPhone pro max. $1300 for one, $600 for the other (or $750 if I want cellular, which I actually do), and suddenly this doesn't look out of reach... if only I could use a stylus with it!

If there was an iPhone like a pen in form factor (like nokia 7280) I would buy it in a heartbeat.

I feel like the aspect ratio is a lot better than existing phones. It's basically a tablet.

So where's the add-on that adds a thumbstick and some buttons so I can play DS games on it?

You know Steve Jobs would have said it's 2x too thick, 2x too big and way too asymmetrical

What is still missing is non foldable passport format. It is just great fit one hand operation

I’d like a comeback of the live events at some point. Especially now that there is a new CEO.

Huh, I kinda like the form factor of the folded Duo...don't even need to unfold it...

Huh, I kinda like the form factor of the folded Duo...don't even need to unfold it...

“From 1999$”. We truly have gone insane. For a phone most people keep 5 years tops.

What happened to faceid and island? Is this actually just a straight up Huawei clone.

maybe this will finally solve the problem of every phone I use causing my old man eyes extreme eye strain. I hope they solved the issues with other foldable phones though. At these prices a single issue wouldn't be fun.

It looks neat but I’m confused by the layout. It has a smaller screen on the “outside” and then a big foldable double screen on the “inside.” Why? Why not wrap around the outside? You’d get to use all of the screen real estate at once, and the fold would be around a larger radius.

I’m sure there’s a good reason but what is it?

Not sure if this new reimagining of the Apple Vision Pro is going to make it a hit.

The completely non-optional case situation for this is going to be a nightmare

big milestone. the iPhone design engineering group might be one of the most hardcore and intense engineering orgs in modern technology.

software people have no idea how incredibly cushy they (still) have it.

Sandy ant video intro is good. Love the whimsical fun music, whatever it is.

Absolutely none of the announcements today, make me want to go out and get something. I am giving the Duo a year or two, to work out the bugs, and get more capability. The extra screen space isn't really interesting to me.

The only ones I might consider, are the new base AirPods. I have never really warmed to the Pros (I have two pairs, but like the regular ones better).

I am looking forward to iOS27. I'm interested in seeing how the simulator presents the Duo.

As my wife would say, “just because you can, doesn’t mean you should”.

One could get an iPhone 18 and an iPad Air for the same cost as this.

A stand-alone e-ink e-book reader in this form factor would be amazing.

They never mentioned wireless charging so I assume there's none?

Was there a reference to using AI to decide where to place the hinges?

Steve Jobs would roll in his grave due to lack of symmetry in this.

It makes the worst part of the iphone: text entry, even worse. I love the idea of a more capable PDA, but typing is more important than ever and it must be improved. Keyboards need to be a focus. Use eye tracking, use finger tracking, add physical buttons, just try something. Also, please fix the swiped keyboard software. It's unbearable. Admit it, fix it, quickly please.

I want it, but for $2,000, I want to be able to do so much more.

The top right selfie camera is a "courageous" choice.

I'm interested to see what cases for this will look like.

I am left-handed (as is 1 in 10?), new UI really makes it unusable: dock and buttons are at the right side instead of being at the bottom.

And given the selfie camera position, I really doubt there is an accessibility setting to mirror the UI.

I can't wait to see how bad the hinge does with ifixit.

I think I'm just getting old because I no longer see the appeal nor do I understand the hype of new phones. It bends? Wow a useless gimmick for 3000$, just what I need.

I'm sure someone will love it, but it won't be me.

I feel like they should have started with a folding iPad.

This looks like an IPAD in your hands. looks great <3

It looks very wide in the unfolded configuration.

Honestly don't see the appeal of foldable phones. I don't use my phone a lot, but the form factor even as a small tablet is not something useful for my phone use-cases.

When I'm at home, I can just use my iPad. When I'm on the road, I don't need to be watching content on a slightly larger screen.

I get that I'm not the target audience, but it's still confusing to me why people like foldable phones.

First iPhone I've actually wanted in a long time.

Spoiler alert: Silo

This is neat but feels like an uninspired shot in the dark. Apple’s been turning from industry leading to people pleasing in recent years. Not that its a bad thing entirely, but something is lost.

interesting design, would like a phone that opens up with a touch-typeable keyboard / nub mouse (to be like a pocket laptop / umpc)

bow howdy imma get one for me and the wife. I'm sold.

gonna be expensive but this is a first gen product I could see a ton of use cases for me with.

It took them only 7 years to catch up to Samsung!

10 years from now people will claim Apple invented folding smartphones or made them mainstream, just like they claim the same thing now about smartwatches.

Can't wait for the JerryRigEverything video

We keep putting more powerful chips into phones, and giving them bigger screens, but we never turn them into useful computers. Why is this?

These scroll down websites are so bad on desktop.

I like the idea, but I really want iPhone Nano.

Is it thicker than iPhone pro when folded?

I want it more thinner!!

Marques Brownlee's take on the iPhone Duo, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od6M0AXpcxQ&t=531s

  But! just in my... scattered couple hours of using the iPhone Duo today, the iPhone... has a bunch... of...these tiny, frankly unnecessary, but also very awesome... quality-of-life things... that make it feel...like a more fun phone to use.

  I forget the specs and numbers and like raw horsepower and megapixels and stuff, but just, just the... fit and finish and the little animations and stuff like that.

  And the... feel of it. I feel like the iPhone kind of mogs the Samsung.

  Like, it really all starts with that animation... switching between the inner and outer display. It's... really clean and it's fast.

[edit2] Who wants foldables? China bought more foldables than the rest of the world combined.

I'm so happy I stopped caring about new phones about five years ago, since then I've spent about $200 on phones – for a used pixel 8 that I installed GrapheneOS on.

Consumerism is mad.

Price is just pure insanity.

50% more than the Z Fold 8, and still several hundred dollars more than the Z Fold 8 Ultra.

Who is this actually for? It's not for the average consumer that's for sure.

Anyone understand how cases will work for this?

I honestly don't believe the foldable tech is there. Most I've seen from Samsung, Motorola, etc. are so, so very fragile they don't last the year. I've been burnt and everyone I know has too, I wouldn't have a foldable ever again. I hope Apple figures out some magic hardware but I'm doubtful.

Why is there no iPhone 18 (basic) this year?

Do you think this would work well for coding?

Surprised it was not named iPhone 18 Duo.

I thought this was a joke at first. I do not understand the demand for such a device at all.

It's not pretty, it doesn't look very functional. The selling point is "a bigger screen", but never once in my life have I looked at my phone and thought "Make it bigger."

how do i put the inevitable military-grade case on it so when I bounces it off the ground it wont smash?

f*ck you if you’re left-handed like me

$2000 and they can’t give you the full display? What stupid design document from 1985 says people want the corners of their screen cut off?

$2000 for a phone?

In this economy?

Feel like a $2000 computer in the 1980s made a lot more sense, even if damn expensive back then. Certainly would have lasted longer!

Only duo thousand dollars

Great branding by the new CEO

Oh gosh, Phone costs $2K to $3K now!

Looks very similar to Samsung z fold

John Ternus as CEO seems to be good.

App developers gonna have extra work

$1999 dollaroos? Yeah, no thanks.

Honestly not even touching on what the thing actually costs on its own, I don’t like the idea of signaling to people so clearly that I had 2k +tax to spend on a cell phone

I’m not always in the best areas so this def comes up for me personally

Outside of that I think I’d give this a shot

How will a case work on this thing?

I love the opening and closing UX

can i just have half this phone?

I really like the iPhone 4s.

Steve Jobs is rolling in his grave at this atrocious design. Apple is lost without his vision.

The hard corners when its folded is a huge design breaker. The whole thing is THICK when folded. Jobs only added the bezel because it competed with the cases wrapped on phones. I don't see how any case will work on this behemoth.

I've seen what happens to the fold crease after a year, its a bit noticeable. It will degrade the prestigious quality of the brand.

Lastly, this copies all other fold phones. I'm surprised is all.

Steve Jobs would have hated it

One thing I really find disingenuous from reviewers is when they say there is no crease when there is, and they try to move it out of frame so quickly.

Disappointed this isn't a new Macbook Duo. i want to plug my phone in to a dock and have real Mac OS. Like the Duo line of laptops they used to have...

Honestly I just want a folding phone so that I can review split code diffs on the go. Paired with agentic coding I feel close to being able to develop software almost entirely without a laptop now.

Ladies and gentlemen, unfold your planned obsolescence! Be right at the crease of the progress!

I just want a smaller phone

Why do these things exist?

I mean I do understand the appeal of the idea of folding smartphones, but I did not hear about any miracle material breakthroughs lately. So.. how can this exist? Why does it say that it is durable, when it has to be made out of materials that cannot be durable or else they wouldn't fold.

Did something change there and I'm just using stale data for that assessment, or is "durability" just not as valuable to the target audience?

$1999

only 5 years or so late? How is this different then Samsungs foldable?

I remember clearly Apple fans making fun of Samsung when they did their foldable phone.

Neat idea I guess

For two thousand dollars

To be honest, not bad.

I am really quite disappointed this was not taken as an opportunity to make the default form factor smaller. Instead it seems like the folded mode is larger than a pro max, which is insane. I guess I'll just continue with the normal phones.

It seems they are segmenting the market on creator vs consumer between the pro and the duo, and betting the consumers want this form factor.

To be honest, not bad

A bigger screen is nice and all, but it doesn't solve the input problem. Touch inputs are just terrible compared to a keyboard with a pointing device that isn't a finger or stylus. I always thought I had a problem with the size of the screen until I tried a foldable, and that taught me that I simply hate touch inputs on any screen size.

$1999 is ridiculous.

Edit: Wow, I didn’t know Samsung foldable was priced similarly. It’s a lot of money to pay for something inherently fragile.

Tim Cook you sly dog!

As early foldable adopter I'm excited for Apple camp to finally join the superior pocket computer format! That being said rounded corners are bad and anyone who's part of this decision should be ashamed. Also corner camera placement? Just all around question marks for the design team, very uncharacteristic.

Who even wants this?

See also: Microsoft Surface Duo https://news.microsoft.com/surfaceduo/?msockid=23b070bbb5b76...

Can Apple do anything original?

I was thinking it would be priced cheaper than an 18 pro and an ipad mini

iphone 13 mini was the best phone ever made.

Think different :-D

$2000 is crazy talk

$2K is quite a lot.

This defeats the purpose. Even when folded it is too large! Fail.

I am buying this.

You're going to look very silly taking a call on that.

RIP iPad mini?

This would have been quite impressive just 5 years ago.

I took a one look at this and my worst reaction was: ”No. Just. No.” I really need to start looking into Graphene OS or something similar for my new phone, when the time comes. Apple used to have great products, but these days…

Hey Siri, what is "jumping the shark"?

I would like to buy just the back half please. I’m not even joking. I couldn’t find the exact dimensions but at 5.4” diagonal, that would make it even easier to use one handed than the mini

Seems like a big engineering feat by Apple, but for real, who asked for this?

Edit: Is there that many demand for a foldable iPhone that justifies Apple making such engineering investment?

From $1999

$2000.

$2000.

Hideous

9oz

I'm really happy about this new form factor. Things were becoming too conformist where everyone needed to adopt the lowest common denominator in order to fit in. It seemed like anything different was met with significantly more skepticism than curiosity. I embrace informed skepticism but most of it is ignorant. I think people will still be skeptical about the foldable iPhone but mainly out of ignorance of this form factor.

This phone will suck for the concern trolls who are best described as deeply conservative but will try their best pointing out concerns while masquerading as whatever will convince people.

Annoying that they gave this thing touch id but not the non-folding version.

Restoring Touch ID is one of the things that might make me upgrade my existing iPhone before its time.

>"breakthrough foldable design" - and what exact part of it is "breakthrough"? Do they have "invisible fold"?

samsung fold lookalike

unleashes unparallel, unrivaled, totally new, amazing, exciting new ways of interacting with the MOST POW3RFUL!!!!!

then all the photos either what's on the inside it's repeated whats on the outside,

or... and hold your breath... you can show on one side the calendar and on the other side the clock... now you can breath...

Meh, another 2 or 3$k gadget that does the same as the previous one?

This is the kind of product the make all out lives better. I mean the pure entertainment value it will bring being able to watch eager Apple fan bois new iPhone Duo screen crack, or the hinges start grinding, or ...

A $2000 phone. Read the room, Apple. Fuck off.

if only it ran linux

Looks cool, but as a web developer all I can think about is another screen layout I have to support.

Reminder that bigger screen = more screentime. Which is why we will not see an iPhone SE again.

Another status symbol has been created.

But once again as I said before [0][1], don't buy the first version of an Apple product.

[0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23638202

[1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26361985

I'm disappointed that it doesn't let you take stereo photos/videos.

> Because it’s an iPhone, it holds its value longer than other smartphones. And switching from Android is easy.

I'm neither an Apple fanboy nor a marketing professional, so this might be more normal than it appears to me, but this section of text seems really strange.

1. Doesn't Apple have a standing rule to not use articles (a, an, the) in front of product names? 2. How in the world can resale value take a top spot in marketing copy, 1) for Apple, and 2) for a product that isn't even on the market yet? 3. What does switching from Android have to do with a foldable design (or value retention, for that matter)?

I feel bad for iOS developers... Good luck supporting yet another format for your apps

This looks absolutely horrendous especially horrendous to hold, yeah, no thanks.

It's amazing

$2,000 for a fucking phone. We really have collectively lost the plot.

"reinforced antenna lines" Shots fired at google lol

Apple is simply repeating Samsung, Google and the other companies with their Duo model. Nothing revolutional, nothing "one more thing amazing". Another heavy and clunky foldable phone. I bet that folding durability will disappoint the users after all.

isgood

wo,good

"Short everything this guy has ever touched ..."

Am I the only one not interested in a folding phone?

“The largest iPhone display ever”

Gosh I hate that idiotic marketing.

cool. now can we please get a 32 inch iMac next?

Just bring back the iPhone mini, please.

2300Euros in Germany. That’s a hard pass.

Lmao why is this worthy of HN top...

What a complete piece of shit

nothing new...

It looks meh. Seems like Apple is following, no longer leading. Samsung feels more polished.

shit, I'd take this form factor but with a physical keyboard.

$2000 are they serious?

perfect for Termius... keyboard on one, tmux on another

Lol $2K. Fuck that.

I guess Apple is done. It had its time. Great company.

LOL!

Steve Jobs is folding in his grave.

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What has HN come to? this comment section looks like linkedin for CS people.

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So the iPhone has finally fallen from grace. Apple’s copying the Chinese smartphone playbook now.

Interesting, but of no use as I can't replace its OS.

So brave of Apple to make the world's first foldable phone

I suspect I would get greater value by simply duct-taping two iPhones together into a fold.

Go Apple, bring up the rear!

Can they even do anything new?

Looks like an Android. Couldn't frame it like the iconic notch / dynamic island. Not immediately recognizable. Arrived too late.

why is Apple releasing new products when Siri is falling so short compared to the industry. Make Siri amazing would improve every apple product immensely.

I’ll not buy a new iPhone until they release a new mini. No, this duo is not worth it.

This will be another flop just like the iPhone Air. $2000 is f**ing crazy. A MacBook Pro is the same price haha. The storage is also shit 256gb??

Worse in most ways than every other iPhone, more expensive, gets permanently (sometimes deathly) damaged by fingernails, keys, sand, plastic and literally anything that's harder than about a fingernail. All the supposedly unique usecases can be resolved by a $1 kickstand, a $50 speaker, or a $500 iPad plus a non-foldable phone. You can get a whole MacBook too. So, no thanks.

Ugh; folding screens are so failure prone these things just exacerbate e-waste problems

Would rather ditch my phone size thing and be able to pair a cellular Watch to iPad Mini size thing that also has "50% more screen" than iPhone Max

Gen AI could take telemetry like GPS from Watch and recreate most adventures without need of all the pictures; I don't care if every little thing like a day hike is captured "for real"

Would still hire a photographer for actual meaningful moments like weddings and graduations