Apple iPhone Duo debuts as company’s first foldable with 7.6-inch display and A20 Pro

Apple has finally entered the foldable smartphone market with the iPhone Duo (formerly known as iPhone Ultra). Unlike the clamshell-style Motorola Razr and Samsung Galaxy Z Flip series, Apple's first folding smartphone uses a book-style design, something we’ve already seen on current-gen foldables from Xiaomi, Samsung and Huawei.

The iPhone Duo comes with a 5.4-inch outer display that opens to reveal a 7.6-inch internal screen, the largest ever fitted to an iPhone. Apple says the inner panel offers 50% more screen area than the iPhone 18 Pro Max, while the outer display provides 90% of the screen area of an iPhone 18 Pro

Both are Super Retina XDR displays with ProMotion, Always On support and up to 3,000 nits of peak outdoor brightness. The folding display also gets a nano-texture finish, while Apple Pencil USB-C support is coming later this year. Apple calls the Duo its thinnest iPhone ever when opened, and uses Grade 5 titanium for the chassis, Ceramic Shield 2 for the outer display and Ceramic Shield on the rear. The handset is also IP68-rated.

Under the hood is Apple’s new A20 Pro, paired with a custom vapour chamber. The 2 nm SoC features a six-core CPU, including two of Apple’s new “Super” cores, alongside a seven-core GPU and 32-core Neural Engine. Apple claims up to 20% higher CPU performance, 40% faster graphics and 50% more memory bandwidth compared with A19 Pro.

The rear gets a 48 MP Dual Fusion camera system consisting of a 48 MP main sensor and a 48 MP ultra-wide. The main camera also provides an optical-quality 2x crop, while the ultra-wide supports macro photography. Apple has paired them with a Center Stage front camera and another FaceTime camera beneath the folding display.

The Duo’s form factor enables a few new camera tricks. Duo Preview can mirror the viewfinder onto the outer display. Smart Take uses on-device models to automatically capture a photo when everyone is ready, allowing the photographer to join the shot instead of relying on a timer. You can also use the rear cameras for selfies, with the outer screen acting as a preview.

iOS 27 has been reworked around the larger screen. Two apps can run side by side, including two instances of the same app, and you can save app pairs for later. Apple has also adapted elements such as the Dock, Dynamic Island and status indicators to make better use of the additional display area. StandBy works on either screen, while third-party apps including Netflix, Zoom and Slack have already been adapted for the Duo.

Touch ID also makes an unexpected return. Instead of Face ID, Apple has integrated the fingerprint reader into the side button, allowing authentication whether the phone is folded or unfolded. Apple splits the battery across both halves of the chassis and claims up to 31 hours of video playback on the inner display or 44 hours using the outer screen. Mixed usage is rated at up to 24 hours. The iPhone Duo also supports MagSafe and Qi2 wireless charging.

The iPhone Duo starts at $1,999 with 256 GB of storage and will also be offered with 512 GB, 1 TB and 2 TB. Colour options are Star White and Night Sky. Pre-orders begin October 16, with general availability from October 23.