Where Should Apple Go After The iPhone Duo? Bring On Smaller And Larger Foldables

No matter how you feel about the iPhone Duo and its exorbitant $1,999 price, its existence proves that Apple has finally figured out how to make a foldable. And on a broader level, it also shows that Apple isn’t too proud to follow in the footsteps of Samsung and other Android phone makers. If that’s the case, I’m hoping Apple also isn’t afraid to copy Samsung’s smaller Z Flip phones, which flip down horizontally, and larger devices like Lenovo’s X1 Fold and ASUS’s ZenBook Fold 17. An “iPhone Flip” could potentially satisfy people demanding a new iPhone Mini, and a future foldable iPad Pro could truly differentiate that tablet from the increasingly capable iPad Air.

This all seems obvious, of course. Now that Apple has shown it can develop ultra-thin device connected by a sturdy hinge, it should be easier for the company to scale its designs smaller and larger. I’m just hoping it doesn’t take forever. After all, it took Apple nearly seven years to finally respond to the Galaxy Z Fold (which, admittedly, was practically a beta product for its first few generations). What better way for Apple’s new CEO, John Ternus, to follow up the iPhone Duo’s debut than with a smaller iPhone Flip next year? And given how both ASUS and Lenovo have been slow to improve their large foldable tablets, there’s room for Apple to truly innovate in that space.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

What would an “iPhone Flip” look like? Apple wouldn’t have to stray far from the template laid out by Samsung and others. Take an iPhone 17, then imagine casually folding the top down, just like how we used to close older cellphones. Also like Samsung’s devices, an iPhone Flip would need a small external display to glance at notifications and handle basic tasks, like taking a selfie with its rear cameras.

Such a design wouldn’t be an exotic innovation for Apple. Small foldables have been around for six years now; they’ve been practically normalized. They typically cost half as much as large foldable smartphones (and in many cases even less). Anecdotally, I’ve also noticed many “normie” smartphone users toting the Z Flip or Moto Razr, whereas I rarely see the Z Fold being used by non-techies.

While Apple is rumored to be working on a major iPhone redesign for its 20th anniversary next year, I’m not sure a bezel-less screen with curved edges will really excite anyone. But an iPhone Flip that can easily slip into a pocket or small purse? I’ve been begging for that for years.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

When it comes to a foldable iPad, Apple also has room to do far more than ASUS or Lenovo, both of which are stuck building for Windows. Based on what we’ve seen of the iPhone Duo, Apple has thought deeply about how to juggle apps and functionality across folding screens. As usual, it has the software edge. An iPad Fold could replicate the look of the iPhone Duo by having a smaller iPad Mini-sized screen up front, and a larger screen internally. But I could also see Apple forgoing the external display entirely for cost reasons. Personally, I’d want a device like this for its fullscreen tablet and folded, pseudo-laptop modes.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

When fully opened, it could work just like any iPad today. But imagine folding it in half and using the top half as a laptop screen, while the bottom is reserved for a touchscreen keyboard with haptic feedback. Or you could use that folded formation to multitask: Play a YouTube video up top, while juggling between Slack and hand-written notes on the bottom half. I could also imagine having it stand up vertically while still folded in half, giving you taller windows for multi-tasking. Slap on a wireless keyboard, and it’s practically like having a super-light mini-desktop

Both ASUS and Lenovo relied on large 16.3-inch OLED screens for their foldable tablets, but I don’t think Apple needs to go that large. A 13-inch foldable iPad Pro would still be pretty useful when cut in half. A smaller 11-inch iPad Fold could be a great portable journal, similar to the unreleased Surface Neo. (And yes, it’s hilarious that Apple now has products using the Duo and Neo names, as if it was rubbing salt into Microsoft’s wounds.)

Figuring out the intricacies of a foldable iPad would likely take Apple years, and truthfully, there’s not a huge demand for something like that just yet. But Samsung has done much of the groundwork for delivering a potential iPhone Flip, Apple just has to follow that template.