The foldable iPhone Duo gives you a bigger screen and bragging rights. Here's what you give up.
The new $1,999 iPhone Duo offers a foldable design with a large 7.6-inch screen, but requires significant hardware compromises compared to the iPhone 18 Pro. These trade-offs include a weaker camera system and the loss of specific lens features to accommodate the folding mechanism.
Why it matters
It illustrates the engineering challenges and consumer trade-offs inherent in the emerging foldable smartphone market.
Here are some of the compromises that made their way into the iPhone Duo's fold. Karl Mondon / AFP via Getty Images The $1,999 iPhone Duo immediately stands out. Its foldable design also introduces some nifty new iPhone features. But there are a few engineering taxes to achieve the foldable design. Here are a few areas where the Duo differs from the iPhone 18 Pro in hardware. The iPhone Duo may look flipping cool — but to get two screens and a hinge into a pocketable iPhone, Apple had to make some trade-offs. Apple's first-ever foldable smartphone, which ranges between $1,999 and $3,199, gets a 7.6-inch inner display when unfolded, which Apple calls the "largest iPhone display ever." That's 50% larger than the screen on the next-gen iPhone 18 Pro.
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