News in Short

• Apple has launched iPhone Duo, its first foldable iPhone.
• It opens into a 7.6-inch inner display and has a 5.4-inch outer screen.
• Apple says it is the thinnest iPhone ever when opened.
• Both displays support ProMotion, Always-On and up to 3,000 nits brightness.
• The phone uses Apple’s A20 Pro chip and a custom vapor chamber.
• It features a dual-battery design with up to 31 hours of inner-display video playback.
• The camera system includes 48MP Fusion Main and 48MP Fusion Ultra Wide cameras.
• Users get new foldable-specific camera features such as Smart Take, Duo Preview and Kid Cue.
• iOS 27 introduces Split View, allowing two apps to run side by side.
• Siri AI is designed to make use of the larger foldable display.
• iPhone Duo starts at $1,999 with 256GB storage.
• A leaked India price had suggested around Rs. 2,49,900, but this is not the official India price.

Apple has finally entered the foldable phone market with the iPhone Duo.

The company’s first foldable iPhone takes a book-style approach. It is designed to work like a regular iPhone when closed, but opens into a much larger display for watching content, gaming and multitasking.

The biggest change is not just the folding screen. Apple has redesigned iOS, added new camera experiences and built the phone around the A20 Pro chip to make the larger form factor useful.

Here is what users actually get.

1. A 7.6-inch display when you need more screen

The iPhone Duo has a 5.4-inch outer display when closed.

Open it and the phone expands into a 7.6-inch inner Super Retina XDR display. Apple says this is the largest display ever fitted to an iPhone and is 50% larger than the iPhone 18 Pro Max display.

Both displays have the same aspect ratio, allowing content to scale between the two screens without major changes to the viewing experience.

Both panels also support ProMotion, Always-On display and up to 3,000 nits peak outdoor brightness.

Apple has used a nano-texture finish on the inner screen to reduce glare and reflections.

2. iPhone Duo is built for multitasking

The larger screen isn’t just meant for watching videos.

For the first time on an iPhone, Apple is bringing Split View, allowing users to run two apps side by side.

You can also open two windows of the same app, such as Safari, switch between apps quickly and save pairs of apps for later.

This is arguably one of the biggest practical reasons to buy the Duo.

The phone is essentially trying to bring some of the multitasking experience associated with an iPad to an iPhone-sized device.

3. iOS 27 has been redesigned for the fold

Apple has changed the interface to make better use of the two screens.

When the phone is open, users get two Home Screen pages with Today View. The Dock, controls and some navigation elements move to the sides to leave more vertical space for content.

The interface also responds as the phone folds, turns or switches between displays.

Third-party apps are also being adapted for the larger display, with Apple highlighting apps such as Netflix, Zoom and Slack.

4. A20 Pro powers the foldable

The iPhone Duo gets the same A20 Pro chip used in the iPhone 18 Pro models.

Apple says the six-core CPU is up to 20% faster than A19 Pro, while the seven-core GPU is up to 40% faster.

The chip also gets a Dual 16-core Neural Engine with twice the compute power for on-device AI workloads.

The A20 Pro is built on a 2nm process and gets 50% more unified memory bandwidth.

5. Apple has built a new cooling system

Foldable phones have a difficult thermal challenge because there is limited internal space.

Apple has addressed this with a custom vapor chamber connected directly to the A20 Pro.

The company claims the iPhone Duo delivers up to 35% better sustained performance than the iPhone 17 Pro.

That should help during gaming, multitasking and demanding AI workloads.

6. Two batteries power the phone

The iPhone Duo uses a dual-battery architecture, with one battery on each side of the foldable.

Apple says the phone can deliver:

• Up to 31 hours of video playback using the inner display
• Up to 44 hours using the outer display
• Up to 24 hours when both displays are used equally

It can charge to 50% in around 20 minutes using wired charging and reach 50% in around 30 minutes wirelessly with MagSafe or Qi2.

7. It gets a 48MP dual-camera system

The iPhone Duo features a 48MP Fusion Main camera and a 48MP Fusion Ultra Wide camera.

The main camera supports up to 48MP photos, 2x optical-quality telephoto and sensor-shift optical image stabilisation.

Apple also says the larger sensor and fast aperture help with low-light photography.

The Ultra Wide camera supports macro photography.

The front camera is a Center Stage camera, which can automatically frame photos and videos in different orientations.

8. The folding design creates new camera tricks

Apple is using the two screens to introduce features that aren’t possible on a conventional iPhone.

Smart Take can use on-device AI to detect when subjects are ready and automatically capture the image.

You can also use the rear cameras for selfies while viewing the preview on the outer display.

With Duo Preview, the person being photographed can see the live camera preview and adjust their pose.

There’s also Kid Cue, which displays Peanuts animations on the outer screen to attract a child’s attention.

9. 4K 120fps Dolby Vision video

The main camera supports 4K video recording at 120fps in Dolby Vision.

Users can also apply Cinematic effects after recording at up to 60fps.

Time-lapse supports 4K Dolby Vision HDR, while the folding design allows users to prop the phone up without needing a separate tripod.

10. Siri AI gets a bigger canvas

The iPhone Duo also comes with Siri AI through iOS 27.

Siri can use personal context from messages, emails and photos, understand what is displayed on the screen and perform related actions.

The larger inner screen gives Siri more room to work alongside other content.

The phone also gets Apple’s latest Apple Intelligence features, including upgraded Clean Up, Spatial Reframing and photorealistic Image Playground.

11. Touch ID replaces Face ID

Apple has integrated Touch ID into the side button.

This allows authentication whether the phone is open or closed.

The phone also supports Camera Control, including a new Siri Camera mode that lets Siri understand what the camera is looking at.

12. Apple is focusing heavily on durability

The Duo uses a Grade 5 titanium frame and a precision hinge made with more than 100 components.

The front uses Ceramic Shield 2, while Ceramic Shield protects the back.

Apple says Ceramic Shield 2 provides three times better scratch resistance than the previous generation.

The phone also carries an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.

The inner folding display has additional protective layers designed to handle everyday wear.

iPhone Duo price in India

Apple has officially listed the US starting price at $1,999 for the 256GB model. Storage options go up to 2TB.

For India, Apple’s official local price is not included in the supplied announcement.

However, a recent India pricing leak had tipped the iPhone Duo to start at around Rs. 2,49,900. Multiple reports have cited this figure, but it should be treated as an estimated/leaked price rather than confirmed Apple India pricing.

At around Rs. 2.5 lakh, the iPhone Duo would sit significantly above Samsung’s current foldables in India, making it a premium option aimed largely at buyers who want the Apple ecosystem in a foldable form.

When will iPhone Duo go on sale?

Apple says pre-orders begin October 16, with availability starting October 23. The phone comes in Star White and Night Sky.

Is the iPhone Duo a big deal?

Yes, because Apple isn’t simply adding a folding screen to an existing iPhone.

The company has redesigned iOS, multitasking, cameras and even the way users interact with the phone around the foldable form factor.

The biggest attraction is therefore not the 7.6-inch screen alone. It is the ability to carry an iPhone that can become a much larger workspace when opened.

The biggest question for Indian buyers, however, will be the price. At a leaked Rs. 2,49,900 starting price, the Duo will be a luxury purchase rather than a mainstream iPhone upgrade.