After years of rumors about Apple potentially releasing a foldable iPhone, the day has finally come when it’s the real deal. At its recent iPhone event, Apple not only revealed the iPhone 18 Pro but also its first-ever foldable iPhone: the iPhone Duo.
That’s right, it’s not called the iPhone Fold or iPhone Ultra, as many speculated, but the iPhone Duo. And if that “Duo” name sounds familiar, it’s likely because you’ve heard it before with Microsoft’s Surface Duo, the company’s long-discontinued dual-touchscreen Android phone.
In terms of design, the iPhone Duo reminds me a bit of Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8 thanks to its passport-like form factor, but it still has its own distinct shape and feel. That said, given how much the two foldable phones have in common, there are bound to be plenty of comparisons between them. So, I’ll break down the biggest differences between the two foldables to give you a better idea of how this year’s two biggest foldables stack up against each other, including their designs, displays, cameras, specs, pricing, and more.
Price, specs, and availability
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iPhone Duo Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Operating System iOS 27 One UI Dimensions 117.8 x 84.1 x 11.3 mm (Folded),117.8 x 164.6 x 5.2 mm (Unfolded) 123.9 x 81.9 x 9.7mm (Folded), 123.9 x 161.4 x 4.5mm (Unfolded) Weight 254g 201g IP Rating IP68 IP48 Cover screen 5.4-inch ProMotion Super Retina XDR outer display 5.5-inch 1972 x 1248 Dynamic AMOLED 2X Cover Display Main screen 7.6-inch ProMotion Super Retina XDR inner display 7.6-inch 120Hz 1848 x 2448 Dynamic AMOLED 2X Main Display Release 2026 2026 Brand Apple Samsung SoC A20 Pro chip Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy Storage 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB 256GB, 512GB, 1TB Battery Up to 31 hours 4,800mAh Colors Star White, Night Sky Lavender, Graphite, Cream
The iPhone Duo starts at $2,000 and will be available for pre-order on Friday, October 16, with a release date set for Friday, October 23.
The iPhone Duo is available in four storage variants: 256GB, 512GB,1TB, and 2TB. The 256GB model costs $2,000, the 512GB $2,200, the 1TB $2,600, and the 2TB $3,200. The phone comes in two colors: Star White and Night Sky.
Alternatively, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is available now, after its August release, and starts at $1,900, $100 cheaper than the iPhone Duo.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is available in three storage variants: 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB. The 256GB model costs $2,000, the 512GB $2,100, and the 1TB $2,500. The phone comes in three main colors: Lavender, Graphite, and Cream, plus an online-exclusive green Pistachio color.
Design
Apple returns to Titanium for the iPhone Duo
While the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and iPhone Duo both have a book-style foldable design and a passport-like shape, they differ in notable ways.
Starting with the overall shape, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 has a square outer display that unfolds into a wider rectangular main display. The iPhone Duo’s design is similar, but its outer display is nowhere near as square as the Fold 8’s. The left side is flat, while the right side is much more rounded. That means when you unfold it into the larger main display, you get a rounded rectangle instead, which I suspect might make the phone more comfortable to hold.
In terms of measurements, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 measures 123.9 x 161.4 x 4.5 mm when unfolded, while the iPhone Duo measures 117.8 x 164.6 x 5.2 mm when unfolded. The key difference here is thickness, with the Fold 8 measuring just 4.5 mm thick compared to 5.2 mm for the iPhone Duo, making Samsung’s foldable quite a bit thinner.
The Fold 8 is also lighter, weighing 201 grams (7.09 oz) compared to 254 grams (8.96 oz) for the iPhone Duo. That’s a difference of 53 grams, which is noticeable when you’re holding the phone.
One major advantage the iPhone Duo has, though, is its IP68 rating for water and dust resistance, far superior to the Galaxy Z Fold 8’s IP48 rating. IP68 means the iPhone Duo is dustproof and can withstand submergence in water, typically up to 1.5 meters for 30 minutes.
In terms of materials, the iPhone Duo has a titanium frame, while the Fold 8 features an Armor Aluminum frame. In my view, the iPhone Duo’s titanium design looks more premium than the Fold 8, but that doesn’t mean Samsung’s foldable looks cheap by any means.
Display
Both foldables have vivid displays
Aside from their shape, the iPhone Duo and Galaxy Z Fold 8 have quite similar displays.
The iPhone Duo has a 5.4-inch Super Retina XDR outer display with a 1398 x 2034-pixel resolution, along with a 7.6-inch Super Retina XDR inner display with a 1878 x 2670-pixel resolution and a Nano-texture finish to reduce glare and reflections. Both displays support ProMotion with an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz.
In contrast, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 has a 5.5-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X outer display with a 1248 x 1972-pixel resolution and a 7.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X inner display with a 1848 x 2448-pixel resolution. The inner display also has an anti-reflective coating to reduce glare and reflections, and both displays support refresh rates of up to 120Hz.
Overall, in terms of display size and resolution, the iPhone Duo and Galaxy Z Fold 8 aren’t far apart, with the Fold 8’s outer display measuring slightly larger at 5.5 inches compared to the iPhone Duo’s 5.4-inch outer display.
Internals
The iPhone Duo supports MagSafe
Under the hood, the iPhone Duo and Galaxy Z Fold 8 differ substantially.
For starters, the iPhone Duo runs on Apple’s A20 Pro chipset, which the company claims is the “fastest CPU in a smartphone.” On the flip side, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset. Since the iPhone Duo isn’t out yet, a head-to-head performance comparison isn’t possible, but the A20 Pro sure does seem promising. Last year’s A19 Pro chipset generally has stronger single-core performance than the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, but it fell slightly behind in multi-core performance and gaming. The A20 Pro may help Apple come out ahead on all fronts again.
Chipsets aside, the iPhone Duo also has built-in magnets, so it supports MagSafe for magnetic charging and works with MagSafe accessories. This contrasts sharply with the Fold 8, which has no magnets and requires a case with a magnet to use magnetic charging or any accessories.
Turning to battery life, Apple has provided some specific numbers for video playback depending on which screen you’re using, with the company saying it supports up to 44 hours when using the outer display, up to 31 hours when using the inner display, or up to 24 hours per charge if you use both the inner and outer displays equally.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8, on the other hand, has a 4,800 mAh battery, which can last up to 26 hours of video playback, but Samsung doesn’t specify the conditions as Apple does. I got all-day battery life no problem when I reviewed the Fold 8 last month, but considering Apple is saying up to 44 hours just using the outer display alone, I suspect the iPhone Duo might beat the Fold 8 here, but I can’t say for sure until I’ve actually tested it.
Software
iOS 27 vs One UI 9
Software is another major factor when comparing these phones. The iPhone Duo runs iOS 27, which Apple says it has “tailored” specifically for its new foldable experience. This includes moving the lock screen controls, the home-screen dock, and app navigation and controls to the right side of the screen “to maximize vertical space for content.” Apple has optimized all of its apps to adapt to the Duo’s larger display, and the company has said it’s released its tools, so other developers can do the same. The iPhone Duo, of course, supports Apple Intelligence and Siri AI. Apple has also added a smooth transition animation when you fold and unfold the phone, as you can see below.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 runs One UI 9, based on Android. Since Samsung has been in the foldable game for a while, its software experience is pretty solid, making the transition from using the cover display to the inner display seamless, making multitasking tools extremely easy to use, and most apps adapt well to the larger foldable display, in my experience. The Fold 8 also supports Galaxy AI and Gemini, so it offers plenty of AI tools and features if you want them.
Cameras
The iPhone Duo has an under-display selfie camera
Both the iPhone Duo and Galaxy Z Fold 8 have two rear cameras and two selfie cameras.
Looking at the iPhone Duo, its rear cameras consist of a 48-megapixel Fusion main camera with an f/1.6 aperture and a 48-megapixel ultra-wide camera with an f/2.2 aperture. The iPhone Duo supports 2x optical zoom, 2x optical zoom-out, and 4x optical-quality zoom, along with up to 10x digital zoom. For selfies, the iPhone Duo has a 12-megapixel Center Stage camera on the outer display and an under-display FaceTime camera on the inner display. Apple doesn’t specify the megapixel count for the latter, only saying that it supports 1080p video.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8, meanwhile, has two rear cameras: a 50-megapixel wide camera with an f/1.8 aperture and a 10-megapixel ultra-wide camera with an f/1.8 aperture. It also lacks a dedicated telephoto lens. Both the outer and inner displays have the same 10-megapixel front-facing camera with an f/2.2 aperture.
The Fold 8 takes some pretty vivid photos, and given that the iPhone Duo has the same 48-megapixel main camera as the iPhone 18 Pro, it’s likely to take some great photos as well. I’d definitely give the iPhone Duo the edge here, though, because it has an under-display selfie camera on the inner display. I suspect that will be a lot less distracting than the selfie camera on the Fold 8’s inner display, which can stick out like a sore thumb at times.
Verdict: Which should you choose, the iPhone Duo or the Galaxy Z Fold 8?
The Fold 8 has a better price, but the iPhone Duo is more premium
Both the iPhone Duo and Galaxy Z Fold 8 are extremely impressive foldable phones, so choosing between them can be tricky.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 does have a price advantage, starting at $1,900, which is $100 cheaper than the iPhone Duo’s $2,000 starting price.
- Brand
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Samsung
- SoC
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Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy
- RAM
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12GB, 16GB
- Storage
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256GB, 512GB, 1TB
But the iPhone Duo also has several features that help it stand out, including its titanium build, MagSafe support, A20 Pro chipset, and under-display selfie camera on the inner display.
Ultimately, if you want to try a foldable phone, would prefer to spend a little less, and don’t mind using Android, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is a great option. But if you’re a staunch iPhone user and have been eagerly waiting for Apple to release its first-ever foldable iPhone, then the iPhone Duo is the clear choice.
- Brand
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Apple
- SoC
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A20 Pro chip
- Display
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7.6-inch inner display; 5.4-inch outer display
- Storage
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256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is available now, while the iPhone Duo will be available for pre-order on October 16 and launch on October 23.
