Apple

Consumer Hardware · Smartphones · AI

Launch

Apple unveils $1,999 foldable iPhone Duo, its first new form factor since 2007

Pricing it above rivals' entry folds signals Apple is betting on brand premium, not undercutting, to win a still-tiny category.

• Apple revealed the iPhone Duo, its first foldable iPhone, alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max at a Cupertino event led by new CEO John Ternus.
• The Duo opens book-style to a 7.6-inch inner display, the largest ever on an iPhone, with a 5.4-inch outer screen and Apple Pencil support coming later this year.
• The Duo starts at $1,999 for 256GB, runs Apple's A20 Pro chip, and preorders open October 16 with sales beginning October 23, a month after the standard iPhone 18 lineup.
• Apple also detailed new Siri AI capabilities emphasizing privacy, plus a feature called Apple Reference Image meant to verify photos haven't been AI-altered.
• Apple's $1,999 starting price undercuts Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra by $100 but sits $100 above the standard Z Fold 8, per The Verge's comparison.
• The launch arrives seven years after Samsung's first Galaxy Fold and comes a day after Huawei and Xiaomi both unveiled new foldables in China.
• Analysts including Forrester's Dipanjan Chatterjee warned the Duo risks becoming a 'premium-priced ornament' that adds badge value without driving meaningful growth.
• Foldables remain just 2.2% of global smartphone shipments, so Apple's entry is less about near-term sales and more about validating the category and defending its premium positioning as new CEO John Ternus makes his debut.