My iPhone Duo arrived last Thursday, so I’ve had a week to use it as my daily carry. My early experience has been mixed, so I keep asking myself an important question: is this the iPhone’s future and I just need to adapt, or is the Duo simply not for everyone?
After a week using the iPhone Duo, in some ways I have a lot of clarity about the product, and in other ways my thinking is very clouded.
To put it simply: I’m not having a great time with the Duo, which makes me wonder if the problem is me, not it.
I’ve seen countless social media posts from Duo owners proclaiming how much they love the product. And I absolutely believe them. The iPhone Duo is a remarkable innovation for the iPhone. It’s cool, weird, and wonderful in all sorts of ways. But for me and my needs (preferences?), it’s been more frustrating than enjoyable.
And that frustration mainly boils down to one thing: I almost never want to open it.
I’d estimate at least 90% of my iPhone Duo usage involves the front display. And when I unfold it the remaining 10% of the time, it’s often because I force myself to do it in the hopes of discovering what I’m missing out on. Like, I know I should be unfolding it more, so I do. But it doesn’t add any real value for me.
Because I rarely want to open the iPhone Duo, I’m left using the outer display all the time. In that mode, the Duo is too heavy for extended use, too wide to comfortably reach, and the UI in most apps is an adjustment.
Are these dealbreakers? No. I could live with the Duo’s outer display if I had to, but it’s definitely an inferior experience to my iPhone 18 Pro.
If I was opening the iPhone Duo more, and actually taking advantage of the key value proposition of foldables—that you can unfold them—I doubt the outer screen would bother me much.
But what I’ve found, at least so far, is that one-handed iPhone use is very important to me, which rules out using the inner display. I use my iPhone mostly for quick interactions, and often with a child in one hand (I have three very young kids). In situations when I do have two hands free to open the Duo, I’m probably sitting in front of my iPad Pro with a Magic Keyboard attached and would rather use the iPad instead.
So again: is the problem with the Duo, or with me?
I think foldables and slab phones will obviously coexist as there will be fans of each.
I’m absolutely already converted however and am loving my duo.
Considering the Air was my favourite phone up until this it’s surprised me. I love proper one handed use again on the outside screen and unfolded it’s much nicer than my old mini 7.
I get it’s not for everyone but those that click with it like myself have a superb device!
I think it’s the latter, but I’m not sure “problem” is the right word. I just don’t find myself using it the way it’s meant to be used. And that’s fine.
I want to love the iPhone Duo, because I see how much fun other people are having with it. And maybe given more time, something will click and I’ll start to use it “as intended.”
If iPhone Duo is the future of the iPhone, I’ll adapt and move on with my life. But one week in, I think it’s probably just not for me. And if it’s not for me, maybe there are a lot of people who will continue preferring non-foldable iPhones for many years to come.
What’s your iPhone Duo experience been like? Are you loving it or struggling? Let us know in the comments.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Check out 9to5Mac on YouTube for more Apple news:
Introduced in 2007 by Steve Jobs, iPhone is Appl…
Ryan got his start in journalism as an Editor at MacStories, where he worked for four years covering Apple news, writing app reviews, and more. For two years he co-hosted the Adapt podcast on Relay FM, which focused entirely on the iPad. As a result, it should come as no surprise that his favorite Apple device is the iPad Pro.
