Courtesy of Apple

Apple Introduces iPhone Duo, Its First Foldable Smartphone

by · Variety

Apple is giving a new twist to its flagship smartphone line: The company unveiled the iPhone Duo, its first foldable smartphone model.

The company’s iPhone Duo foldable has an internal screen panel (plus one on the front of the device) that provides the largest, most immersive screen size ever at 7.6 inches diagonally — and it’s also the thinnest iPhone ever, according to Apple. The company also announced the single-screen iPhone 18 baseline model and Pro 18 and Pro Max 18 versions, as well as AirPods 5 and other new products.

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The iPhone Duo is priced starting at $1,999, with storage options ranging from 256 gigabytes to 2 terabytes. Preorders start Oct. 16 and the device will begin shipping Oct. 23.

The Apple launch Wednesday of iPhone Duo comes seven years to the day after Samsung shipped its first foldable smartphone, the Galaxy Fold, in September 2019.

The iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 event is the first product launch presided over by newly installed CEO John Ternus, formerly Apple’s head of hardware engineering, who took over from Tim Cook at the helm of the tech giant as of Sept. 1.

Other foldable designs feel like “two phones that have been stuck together,” Ternus said about the new foldable phone. Controls are located on the side of the iPhone Duo, and you can launch two different apps on the left and right screens for side-by-side comparison.

Apple is releasing software development kits for developers to design (or redesign) their apps for the iPhone Duo.

Apple also touted AI features for the new iPhones, which act as “your intelligent personal hub,” Ternus said in a video played at the top of the event. He underscored that its Apple Intelligence AI features — including an enhanced Siri AI app that has more “expressive” voices — run locally on the device whenever possible to protect users’ data privacy.