“It’s just a big iPhone.”

A description of the Pro Max? The iPhone 6? The iPhone 6 Plus?

None of the above.

Those old enough—cough, cough—to remember all the way back to 2010’s introduction of the iPad might recall this as a common dismissal of the first generation of Apple’s tablet. Which, to be fair, was kind of just a big iPhone.¹ Not that there was anything wrong with that—in fact, it was a pretty successful elevator pitch for an entirely new product category.

But if you tuned in for Apple’s announcement of the iPhone Duo this week, you may have noticed something curious: Apple only rarely made mention of its very successful tablet line. The company’s view is clear: the iPhone Duo, even when open in all of its glory, may evoke an iPad, but it is very much not an iPad.

No padding

When introducing the device, new CEO John Ternus was clear about the Duo’s heritage:

We started with the experience that we wanted for ourselves, a larger display that feels as natural and intuitive as iPad.

At the risk of sounding like I’m nitpicking, let’s delve into that second clause there. It’s a comparison—it feels like an iPad.

Later on, when industrial design chief Molly Anderson did her best Jony-Ive-esque introduction to the device, she couched it in similar terms:

The two sides connect into a continuous frame, surrounding the largest iPhone display we’ve ever designed. Inspired by the versatility of iPad…

There’s a twofer there: the interior screen is the largest iPhone display, and it’s inspired by the iPad. Again, not an iPad.

There are only two other glancing mentions of the iPad. One when Apple mentions upcoming support for the Apple Pencil—”the first time iPhone offers the great Apple Pencil experience that iPad users love”—and slightly later when it discusses the display: “Drawing on our learnings from iPad and Mac, we developed a custom nanotexture finish…”

And that’s it. Those four mentions of the iPad are all that you’ll hear in the entire event.

Apple’s product page for the Duo takes it even further: the only mention there is about picking up a Siri conversation from your iPad and continuing it on your phone. That’s it.

By comparison, that 2010 introduction of the original iPad? You’ll hear the iPhone mentioned more than 20 times, including about how the iPad runs iPhone apps. That was a lineage that Apple wanted made very clear.

Some room of one’s own

Why am I harping on this?

Because you better believe Apple thoroughly considers its word choice in all of its marketing materials, especially in its most viewed annual event.

Like a lot of Apple product marketing choices, this one is simultaneously surprising and, somehow, obvious. Apple could have described the iPhone Duo as an iPhone that opens into an iPad, leveraging the success of its tablet product line, especially compared to its Android competitors. It might even have helped assuage those concerned about the price tag: yes, it starts at $2000, but you’re getting an iPhone and an iPad in one. What a savings!

But I think Apple was also all too aware that this would be writing checks that it couldn’t cash.² Because though the iPhone clearly takes cues from the iPad, it is definitively not an iPad. It’s not an iPad that you fold up to put in your pocket. Or an iPad with a little iPhone glued to the front. It’s not running iPadOS. You won’t be installing or running iPad apps.

And, like I said, there’s an obviousness to all of that. Because the iPhone Duo’s screen, large as it is—at 7.6 inches, it’s just .7 inches smaller than the iPad mini—isn’t necessarily ideal for all the features in iPadOS, whether it’s the multitasking windowing system, Slide Over, or even just the menu bar hanging out up at the top of the screen. Having it be an iPhone that works like an iPad when you open it up makes as much—or as little—sense as an iPad that works like an iPhone when you fold it closed.

This distinction also allows it the freedom to do things that the iPad doesn’t. Like the clever ability to pin a video to the top of the screen in portrait. Or being able to fold it and put it on its side for FaceTime calls. The way it shifts user interfaces away from the crease when it’s partially closed. All of these are specific affordances for this device, which helps set it apart from Apple’s other products. Even many of the interface layouts are distinct, like the vertical dock or the minimized status bar.

In some ways the Duo is neither an iPhone nor an iPad, but a third device. But if you’re going to pick one to connect it to, well, why wouldn’t you choose your—if not the—most successful consumer product of all time?

Verging on converging

In the end, the iPhone line is starting to impinge upon the iPad—not unlike the way the iPad itself has begun to blur the lines with the Mac by adding keyboard and trackpad support, windowing, and more.

This isn’t convergence in the way that some have feared, with all of the devices getting squished into a mushy middle ground. Instead, it’s informing each device with what the company has learned from its other products and, in typical Apple fashion, making each product the best version of itself.

Consumers fear convergence, but it’s a risk for Apple too. Because in a world where an iPhone folds out to an iPad, will people really buy both devices? The answer: some may not. But how many of those people were really in the market for an iPad in the first place? Apple is betting that people love their iPhones so much that, just as with the iPhone 6 and the Pro Max lines and even the edge-to-edge displays of the iPhone X and later, that what they really want is an iPhone, but more.

Apple’s events are always a deluge of information, delivered by smooth-talking presenters who are probably trying to hypnotize you with their soothing hand motions. So it can take a little bit of time after watching the presentation to come back to reality, and sift through the details.

This year’s iPhone event¹ was no exception. The company rolled out new Pro iPhones, two new Apple Watches, a new pair of AirPods, and, of course, the first folding iPhone. Having had a couple of hours to poke around and think about the slew of announcements, I’ve been mulling over the implications of Apple’s newest phone.

One of the biggest questions around the expected folding iPhone, now officially dubbed the Duo, was how much of a trade-off it would be compared to the year’s Pro model iPhones. There was a similar dynamic last year with the iPhone Air, which also offered a novel form factor, though at the cost of the iPhone 17 Pro’s additional cameras and battery life.

In the end, every Apple product—and probably every product—is a story of trade-offs. So, the thinking went, what will we give up to get the benefit of a small iPhone that unfolds into a larger iPhone?

The answer: some things, but less than I’d feared.

Saving face

Perhaps the biggest casualty is Face ID. That’s not really a surprise: it’s an expensive component that takes up valuable space inside the phone chassis, as well as on the screen. Then factor in that the iPhone Duo would probably need two Face ID cameras modules, one each for the exterior and interior screens, and we’re talking double trouble.²

I’ll certainly miss Face ID in the cold New England winter when I don’t want to take off my gloves, but hopefully the Apple Watch unlock will mitigate the frustration.

Camera shy

It also seemed a foregone conclusion that at least one of the iPhone Pro’s many cameras wouldn’t make the cut, and sure enough, the Duo lacks the 4x/8x telephoto lens. But it still features the ultrawide lens, which is the better choice, since that also enables macro features. The main 48MP camera also only has Apple’s first-generation sensor-shift optical image stabilization, compared to the second-generation tech on the 17 Pro and 18 Pro.

The Duo’s dual screens also raise questions about the front-facing cameras. While both its interior and exterior selfie cameras are capable of Center Stage and can flip between landscape and portrait at the touch of a control, neither is as good quality as the front-facing camera on the Pro models.

The 18 Pro, like the 17 line before it, boasts a hefty 18MP sensor; the iPhone Duo’s exterior camera, by comparison, is just 12MP. As for the interior screen’s camera, which is the first one that Apple has tucked under the display, the current specs say only that it records video at 1080p. The exterior front-facing camera also doesn’t support the new smart focus tracking feature the company announced for the 18 Pro (which does support it on both front and rear-facing cameras).

Unsurprisingly, the Duo also lacks several of the Pro models more, well, pro features. You won’t find support for ProRes or ProRes RAW, ACES, Apple Log 2, and Genlock. In other words, Apple’s probably not shooting its next event on a bunch of iPhone Duos because that would be a ridiculously unnecessary flex unless they’ve got a whole bunch of extras lying around. The Duo also doesn’t shoot spatial video, probably due to the horizontal rather than vertical side-by-side camera arrangement. I’m sure there are dozens of people who will be upset.

Lights, camera, no action?

The Duo’s other casualties seem to mostly have succumbed to the one-two combo of high cost and low return. For example, few will likely shed tears on the lack of the LiDAR sensor.

There may be more complaints, however about the lack of the Action Button first included with the iPhone 15 Pro. That’s a bummer for folks who enjoyed the customization of the hardware button, but again an understandable absence. However, the Duo does, to my surprise, have Apple’s Camera Control button for quickly launching the camera and taking photos.

MagSafe and sound

Some were worried, given its lack of mention in the Apple event, that the iPhone Duo eschewed MagSafe, not unlike the oddity that was the iPhone 16e. But the good news is that MagSafe is apparently considered critical enough to merit its inclusion on the Duo.

However it’s not without an asterisk. Unlike other iPhones which Apple says “Compatible with MagSafe cases, wallets, wireless chargers, and more” the Duo’s says only “Compatible with MagSafe cases, wireless chargers, and more.” Note the difference? That’s right, the iPhone Duo just stole your wallet—in more ways than one.

But this one’s just a matter of space, as an image from Apple’s accessories page clearly illustrates: Apple’s MagSafe wallet simply won’t fit on the shorter, squatter Duo. Will that stop someone somewhere from making a Duo compatible wallet? You might struggle to fit your credit cards, but I wouldn’t bet against it.

And because I really need something audio-related to justify this section header, in a blow to podcasters everywhere, the Duo does not have the much vaunted “studio-quality” four-mic array of the Pro models. I’ll pour one out.³

Size matters

I’ll leave you with this last thought, which amused me. Apple touted that, when open, the iPhone Duo is the thinnest iPhone ever at just 5.2mm, dethroning last year’s record-setting iPhone Air with its bulky 5.64mm thickness.

However, when folded, the Duo is itself a chunky 11.3mm. I found myself wondering if that was, in turn, the thickest iPhone ever. The answer? Just barely not. But you have to go all the way back to 2009’s iPhone 3GS, which—like its predecessor, the iPhone 3G—rang in at 12.3mm, in large part due to its slightly convex back.⁴

The thinnest iPhone ever and the thickest iPhone in 17 years. Something for everyone!