GoKawiilI’m having deja vu after Apple’s “Surprise and shine” event, which introduced the company’s first-ever folding phone, the iPhone Duo. It’s on two levels: Back in 2020, Microsoft introduced its take on a folding phone, also called the Duo. I remember talking about it with Panos Panay, at that time Microsoft’s chief product officer, and realizing that a hinged, dual-screen phone was in some ways the phone of my dreams, but not in all the ways I wanted.
But that’s not all. I’m writing these thoughts about the iPhone Duo on a Magic Keyboard-equipped iPad Air that sometimes — but not always — replaces my MacBook. I’m having similar feelings about the iPhone Duo and the iPad.
Could the Duo be the iPad-to-go of my dreams? Could it easily evolve to meet my needs? Or would I still find myself wishing to go back to the iPad sometimes?
Not quite an iPad
Apple has a knack for expanding and blending its product lines while approaching, but never reaching, a place where one actually replaces the other. A case in point: The iPad’s decade-plus evolution to a device that can feel uncannily Mac-like at times, yet still not be a Mac.
I’m getting the same vibes from the iPhone Duo. The device is “inspired by the iPad” according to Apple, but it’s not actually an iPad.
Unfolded on a table, it looks like an iPad. Abrar Al-Heeti/CNET
And yet, iPad Mini-like
I felt excitement about the iPhone Duo as I watched the news literally unfold. I haven’t cared about many folding phones because they either didn’t seem like true tablets, or they looked pocket-unfriendly. The iPhone Duo’s size seems right, and its aspect ratios and design remind me of an iPad Mini.
But also, it supports the Apple Pencil! And it can run some split-screen apps in ways that look like an iPad. Could iPad apps, of which I have tons already, run on this too? Would this be a way to have the best of both worlds in my pocket for a breathtaking $2,000-and-up price?
... continue reading