What to know
- Apple finally released its folding iPhone after years of speculation, called the iPhone Duo.
- According to Apple, iPhone Duo is Apple’s thinnest phone ever and is ideal for watching video, gaming, and multitasking with a new iOS 27 operating system and better battery life.
- However, Apple’s new foldable phone starts at $2,999 in the Canadian market.
- Technology analyst Carmi Levy says the hefty price tag is mostly due to a custom engineered hinge and dual screens. But the phone is still $300 more expensive on the Canadian market than in the United States.
After years of speculation, Apple has finally released a folding phone, marking the biggest change to its lineup of smartphones in history.
The iPhone Duo, slated for release on Oct. 23, is Apple’s thinnest iPhone ever with the largest screen. In a news release, the company says it’s “comfortable to use one-handed” and “perfect for viewing anything.” The new phone is supposedly also ideal for gaming and multitasking with a reimagined iOS 27 operating system, all-day battery life, an advanced camera system, and powerful Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities.
But the iPhone Duo with all its flashy features comes with a steep price tag of $2,999 — and that’s just for the base model.
Carmi Levy, a technology analyst and journalist who attended Apple’s launch event at Apple Park, says the hefty price tag is partly due to the advanced design and engineering that goes into making a foldable phone.
The iPhone Duo has two screens, a 5.4 inch outer screen that can be used while the phone is folded up, and a 7.6 inch inner screen that folds out.
“The foldable display is the largest display ever included in an iPhone.”
Additionally, Levy says the hinge on the Duo — the most fragile part of a foldable phone — has been custom engineered to “hide the crease more effectively than older designs from competing manufacturers.”
Although the price tag seems stomach-churningly expensive, Levy points to existing foldable phones from competitors Samsung and Google, of which the earlier models were about as equally expensive.
When the Samsung Galaxy Fold first entered the market in late 2019, it cost $2,600. In 2023, when Google released its first foldable phone, it cost $1,900 USD (roughly $2,560 CAD) as it wasn’t available in the Canadian market.
In the current political climate where Canada and the United States are embroiled in a volatile trade war, the biggest question by consumers is whether the iPhone Duo’s high price tag has anything to do with the 50 per cent tariffs U.S. President Trump levied on imported electronics.
While Apple never publicly comments on why products are priced, Levy says the pricing of the iPhone Duo, along with the new iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max are higher in Canada compared to the U.S, even after the exchange rate is taken into consideration.
“Insofar as tariffs are concerned, there’s a bit of a hint buried in the U.S. and Canadian prices for the new iPhones,” Levy explains.
“Apple’s iPhone 18 Max and Pro Max were bumped up by $300 CAD compared to last year’s equivalent models. In the U.S., these phones were only subject to a $100 USD price increase. Similarly, the net-new iPhone Duo costs $2,999 CAD vs. $1,999 USD.”
He says the cross-border pricing differences suggest Apple is accounting for tariff-related uncertainty in its Canadian pricing — building in margins accordingly.
For Apple ecosystem consumers who aren’t ready to drop $3,000 on the iPhone Duo or $1,750 on the new iPhone 18 Pro, Levy says the new software advancements will make their way to previous models..
“The consolation for iPhone buyers who aren’t yet ready to make the jump to the Duo is that new technologies incorporated into the new flagship model could eventually be migrated to lower-end iPhones,” Levy says.
“If the foldable form factor sells well enough, it’s entirely possible that the technology will eventually be offered on less expensive devices, as well.”
