iPhone Duo, Apple’s first foldable phone, packs a 7.6-inch display and A20 Pro chip

Apple has entered the foldable smartphone market with the iPhone Duo, a $1,999 device that opens into the company’s largest iPhone display yet while remaining pocketable when closed. The iPhone Duo has a 7.6-inch inner display when unfolded and a 5.4-inch outer display when closed. Apple says the inner screen is 50 percent larger than the iPhone 18 Pro Max, while the outer display provides 90 percent of the screen area of the iPhone 18 Pro. The device is also the thinnest iPhone Apple has made when opened. Both displays use the same aspect ratio, allowing content to scale proportionally as users move between the folded and unfolded configurations. Apple has built the phone around a precision hinge made from more than 100 components. The device uses grade 5 titanium, Ceramic Shield protection, and an IP68 rating for splash, water, and dust resistance. Its inner display also gets a scratch-resistant coating and a nano-textured surface designed to reduce glare and make the crease less noticeable. Bigger screens, tougher build The iPhone Duo runs on Apple’s new A20 Pro chip and uses a custom vapor chamber for thermal management. A dual-battery architecture places one high-energy battery on each side of the phone to make better use of the available internal space. Apple claims the A20 Pro delivers up to 35 percent better sustained performance than the iPhone 17 Pro. The chip includes a six-core CPU, seven-core GPU, and dual 16-core Neural Engines, while being built using a 2-nanometer process. Battery life is rated at up to 31 hours of video playback using the inner display and up to 44 hours using the outer screen. With equal use of both displays, Apple says the device can deliver up to 24 hours of usage on a charge. The camera system is also designed around the foldable form factor. The phone has a 48MP Fusion Main camera with 2x optical-quality telephoto capability and a 48MP Fusion Ultra Wide camera. A Center Stage front camera can automatically frame photos and videos in different orientations. The folding design enables several camera functions unavailable on other iPhones. Users can preview a selfie taken with the rear cameras on the outer display, while Duo Preview lets subjects see the live camera view and adjust their position. iPhone gets new interface Apple has also redesigned iOS 27 around the two-screen format. When opened, users can run two apps side by side with Split View, switch between apps and open two windows of the same application. The company is also bringing its latest computing capabilities to the device. Siri AI and Apple Intelligence can use personal context and onscreen information to perform tasks, while the new hardware is designed to handle demanding on-device workloads. “This is the most transformational change to iPhone since the original. With an entirely new design and intuitive experiences, it shows what’s possible when hardware and software are engineered together and redefines what it means to use a foldable phone,” said John Ternus, Apple’s CEO. The iPhone Duo starts at $1,999 in the US with 256GB of storage and is also offered in 512GB, 1TB and 2TB configurations. It is available in two colors: star white and night sky. Preorders begin October 16, with sales starting October 23 in more than 70 countries and regions. Apple’s long-awaited foldable Apple’s entry into foldables marks a major change for the iPhone, which has retained its basic slab-style design since its introduction in 2007. Samsung and other rivals entered the foldable-phone market in the late 2010s, but Apple waited years before joining the category. Reports indicate that Apple began testing prototypes of foldable iPhone displays as early as 2021, although there were no immediate plans to launch the device at the time. The iPhone Duo uses a book-style folding design, allowing its large inner display to open while retaining a smaller screen on the outside when closed. The launch is also the first major iPhone event for John Ternus as Apple’s CEO, following his takeover from Tim Cook on September 1. Get the latest in engineering, tech, space & science - delivered daily to your inbox.With over a decade-long career in journalism, Neetika Walter has worked with The Economic Times, ANI, and Hindustan Times, covering politics, business, technology, and the clean energy sector. Passionate about contemporary culture, books, poetry, and storytelling, she brings depth and insight to her writing. When she isn’t chasing stories, she’s likely lost in a book or enjoying the company of her dogs.