I’m having deja vu after Apple’s “Surprise and shine” event, which introduced the company’s first 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 versatility of 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 $1,999-and-up price?
I’m curious how well the Duo handles the Pencil. The iPad Mini supports the Pencil Pro, but the Duo doesn’t.Josh Goldman/CNET
What it still seems to lack
The Duo doesn’t run iPadOS. Its iOS variant has what looks like a different layout, with side-oriented menus and docks, repositioned notification indicators, different layout orientations for apps, and a focus on continuity between single and dual-screen views of the same apps when folded and unfolded.
The Pencil support is for the USB-C Pencil, not any of the Pencil 2 or Pencil Pros, which have advanced pressure sensitivity, hovering input features and gyro-enabled brushes. And I’d need to carry that Pencil around in my pocket or some sort of future Pencil-enabled case, since Apple didn’t announce a tinier Pencil that could connect with the Duo.
And as I type up this story on an iPad keyboard, I wonder how well the Duo supports keyboard accessories or windowed layouts that could give me the workspace that iPads can. Possibly? I’m sure I could pair a keyboard, for instance. But would it feel good? Or would I even want it?
You can get a lot of other Apple devices for the Duo’s $2,000 price tag. Or, at least, two.Patrick Holland/CNET
A price difference
I also wonder whether the Duo would replace an iPad Mini, which it clearly looks set up to do. The iPad Mini is far less expensive, starting at just $599. There’s another OLED-screened model expected this fall, maybe at the same time as the iPhone Duo, which arrives Oct. 23. You could buy an iPad Mini and an iPhone 18 Pro for less than the cost of an iPhone Duo.
But not that much less. You’d be spending at least $1,798 compared to the Duo’s $1,999 base price.
Alternatively, a basic iPad and an entry iPhone 17E would collectively cost $1,148.
So the Duo doesn’t make sense, right? Unless it can be both? Would it be both? Or would I suddenly have two iPad-like devices, one for my pocket, one for my home?
Could the Duo’s design influence future iPads?Abrar Al-Heeti/CNET
A sign of things to come from Apple?
I’m a little annoyed that the Duo isn’t entirely an iPad, but why do I feel less upset than I do about the iPad not fully being a Mac? It might be because the iPad itself has always been a bridge device, something that’s a bit iPhone, a bit Mac.
I have a feeling that the Duo’s destiny isn’t set in stone, that this phone will transform into new forms and accessory uses. It might even become a dockable computer. After all, didn’t new CEO John Ternus reframe the iPhone as an intelligent hub? Am I hallucinating? Dreaming stupid dreams? Perhaps. Sometimes a decade can pass while you’re waiting for Apple to do something it never does.
Microsoft’s Surface Duo disappeared from the market after just a few short years, around the same time that Microsoft’s broader Windows Phone ambitions – merging the worlds of phone and desktop designs and functionality – turned to dust.
In 2026, the iPhone Duo will not be a full iPad. But maybe this new melting identity of the iPhone is a sign that all product categories are starting to flex. Even the iPad. I just wonder if the Duo’s going to feel like it’s truly the best of both worlds, or if I’d still prefer going back to an iPad after all.
Scott Stein
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