Apple's upcoming foldable iPhone Duo and the iPhone 18 Pro line will both use the new A20 Pro chip, built with an 'M-class-inspired' packaging design borrowed from Mac processors. To manage heat in the foldable's tight, hinge-divided chassis, Apple engineered a graphite thermal pathway that runs through the hinge itself to spread heat away from the chip. Apple silicon engineering VP Dan Murray and thermal design manager Banafsheh Barabadi described the design choices to accommodate one chip across two very different phone shapes.
Apple executives Dan Murray and Banafsheh Barabadi described to PCMag how the iPhone Duo's foldable design required new thermal engineering, including a flexible graphite pipe built into the hinge and a new 'metal over foam' material that links the A20 Pro chip to its vapor chamber. The A20 Pro, Apple's first 2nm iPhone chip, also gets a second display engine in the Duo variant to run both screens at once and support a FaceTime camera placed behind the inner display.
Apple has launched a configurator page on apple.com letting customers save color, storage, carrier and payment details ahead of iPhone Duo preorders opening at 5 a.m. PT Friday. The foldable device, unveiled at Apple's Surprise and Shine event, features a 7.6-inch unfolded display, folds to passport size, and supports split-screen multitasking and Apple Pencil under iOS 27. Pricing ranges from $1,999 for 512GB to $3,199 for 2TB, making it Apple's most expensive iPhone yet.
JP Morgan increased its AAPL price target from $340 to $360 and kept its Overweight rating, days after reports that Apple told suppliers to cut iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max component production due to soft demand. The firm said the cuts match Apple's typical production patterns and expects the new iPhone Duo to offset lost sales from the delayed standard iPhone 18, projecting 8.5 million Duo units sold in the December quarter alongside a 2% drop in iPhone revenue but 2% overall revenue growth.
Apple has activated its 'get ready for pre-order' feature on the Apple Store Online and app, letting customers select their preferred iPhone Duo color, storage, and carrier before pre-orders open. Shoppers can also set up payment methods, including full payment, Apple Card financing, or the Apple Upgrade program. Official iPhone Duo pre-orders begin Friday, October 16 at 5 a.m. PT/8 a.m. ET.
Chinese outlet Securities Times reports Apple has raised its supply chain orders for iPhone Duo by about 30%, pushing total 2026 production close to 10 million units from an earlier estimate of 6-7 million. The increase comes just before iPhone Duo pre-orders open on October 16. Supply chain sources also indicate a shift within the iPhone 18 Pro lineup, with Pro Max orders up 10-15% and standard Pro orders down a similar amount, though total Pro-line supply is unchanged.
Apple's new foldable iPhone, the Duo, has distinct dimensions—164.6 by 117.8 by 5.2 mm unfolded and 84.1 by 117.8 by 11.3 mm folded—that make most existing cases, screen protectors, car mounts and lens attachments incompatible. USB-C peripherals and most wireless chargers still work with the device, and Apple has released dimensional drawings to manufacturers so new accessories can be built to fit.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports Apple is preparing an unusually large retail rollout for its first foldable iPhone, the iPhone Duo, ahead of its October 23rd launch. Flagship stores like Fifth Avenue in New York will reportedly get more than 150 demo units, Apple Park nearly 100, and other major stores 30-40 units each, while smaller stores get around 20. Apple has also reportedly designed new MagSafe stands and untethered demo units so customers can try features like StandBy mode, plus a new fixture showing the device opening and closing.
CNET tested Vivo's new X Fold 6 foldable phone for several days, praising its vibrant blue frosted-glass design, strong camera performance and battery life. The device is a traditional book-style foldable running last year's MediaTek Dimensity 9500 chipset, and is not officially sold in the US or UK, though it can be imported from resellers in China or parts of Europe.
Apple's first foldable iPhone, the iPhone Duo, is set to go on sale October 23 with pre-orders starting a week earlier, following the already-available iPhone 18 Pro. Competitors including Xiaomi, Oppo, Motorola and Samsung have been developing foldable phones in a similar compact 'passport' format, positioning themselves ahead of Apple's entry into the category.
Foldable phones like Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold8 and Apple's new iPhone Duo include a factory-installed protector on their flexible inner displays, since the screens use layered flexible material rather than rigid glass. Apple's version adds a nano-texture coating that creates a matte finish and reduces crease visibility. Both companies warn against removing or replacing this protector yourself, offering official repair channels instead.
Following Apple's unveiling of the iPhone Duo foldable, launching October 23, social media users have been using third-party apps and GitHub developer tools to recreate its cascading unfold animation on Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 8. Samsung's One UI software, unlike Apple's iOS, does not include such a transition effect when switching between the cover and inner displays.
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