Following Apple’s unveiling of its first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, at its annual September product showcase, Amanda Mitchell, Senior Analyst – Telecoms Practice at GlobalData, a leading intelligence and productivity platform, offers her perspective on the company’s move into the foldable smartphone market.
“The move signals Apple’s intent to put its brand gravity and installed base behind its first foldable to accomplish what the foldable market has not in seven years: pull the category from niche to mainstream while making foldables’ already-premium pricing feel like the new normal,” Mitchell said.
According to Mitchell, Apple’s late entry into the foldable market could work to its advantage, giving the company time to refine technologies and design approaches pioneered by competitors.
“The upside of arriving late is having time to refine what others pioneered, and the iPhone Duo looks unmistakably Apple: polished, tightly integrated, and designed to make folding feel like a natural extension of the iPhone rather than a technical novelty,” she said.
She pointed to several elements that reinforce that approach, including the device’s specially engineered aluminum hinge, IP68 water- and dust-resistance rating, fluid transition between displays, and an internal-screen crease that Apple says is nearly imperceptible.
Premium Pricing Meets First-Generation Trade-Offs
Despite the product’s design and engineering polish, Mitchell noted that the iPhone Duo remains a first-generation device, with a premium price range of $1,999 to $3,199.
Some of that pricing pressure, she said, reflects an industry-wide memory crunch, as strong AI data-center demand competes with consumer electronics manufacturers for chips and drives component costs higher—particularly for flagship devices with significant storage requirements.
At the same time, the Duo’s premium price comes with several compromises when compared with Apple’s own Pro models and Samsung’s latest flagship foldable.
The Duo features a two-camera system that does not include the dedicated telephoto lens found on Apple’s Pro iPhones. It also uses side-mounted Touch ID instead of Face ID.
Meanwhile, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra, which starts at $2,099, is thinner and features a larger 8-inch internal display, a three-camera system with a 3x telephoto lens, and configurations offering up to 16GB of RAM.
Mitchell also highlighted the scale of the Duo’s top-end price.
“At $3,199 before tax, the top-end Duo costs roughly a year’s worth of weekly gas fill-ups for a 15-gallon vehicle at current US prices ($4+ per gallon nationwide)—a jarring comparison when household expenses are top of mind,” she said.
Higher Prices Extend Across Apple’s Pro Lineup
The pricing discussion also extends beyond the foldable Duo.
Mitchell noted that the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max start at $1,199 and $1,299, respectively—$100 more than their predecessors.
The new Pro models introduce several upgrades, including the A20 Pro chip with a six-core CPU and 16-core Neural Engine, designed to support more on-device AI processing. They also add variable-aperture cameras and longer battery life.
However, the higher starting prices do not come with an increase in RAM, which remains at 12GB.
AI Takes Center Stage Alongside the Foldable
Beyond the iPhone Duo, AI emerged as another major storyline from Apple’s event.
Mitchell noted that Apple enters an AI market where Google and Samsung have an early lead, but said the company’s approach is focused less on out-inventing its rivals and more on leveraging the enormous reach of its installed base.
“AI was the event’s other major story, and in a market where Google and Samsung have an early lead. Apple’s play is less to out-invent Google and Samsung than to bring personalized Apple Intelligence and a context-aware Siri to its vast installed base,” Mitchell said.
That strategy also extends into Apple’s wearable ecosystem.
The Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 build on the company’s AI-driven approach by turning activity and health data into personalized guidance.
Mitchell said Apple’s massive installed base could allow the company to narrow the competitive gap quickly. However, she also noted that expanding the role of AI in people’s everyday lives could raise new challenges around privacy.
“That reach could close the competitive gap quickly, although asking devices to listen, remember, and assist with more of users’ lives will put Apple’s privacy promise under pressure,” she said.
