iPhone Duo: Four Years of Waiting, Five Days in NYC, and One Big Disappointment

By Jim | October 31, 2026

I've been waiting four years for Apple's foldable iPhone. After one week, I'm seriously considering returning it.

Let me start by saying that I'm not an Apple critic. Quite the opposite.

I've been a heavy iPhone user since the original launched in 2007, and I'm deeply invested in the entire Apple ecosystem. From my iPhone and Apple Watch to my other Apple devices, I've always appreciated how seamlessly everything works together.

For the past four years, I've held on to my trusty iPhone 14 Pro Max, eagerly anticipating Apple's entry into the foldable phone market. I resisted the temptation to upgrade because I wanted my next iPhone to be something genuinely different.

When the iPhone Duo finally arrived, I was excited. I genuinely expected this to be the biggest leap forward in my iPhone experience in years. I was lucky enough to order for pickup at the Oculus store on 10/25.

Unfortunately, after one week, I'm left wondering whether Apple has sacrificed the everyday usability that made the iPhone so successful in the first place.

The Ultimate Real-World Test: Five Days in New York City

For the first five days, I put it through what I consider an ideal real-world test: navigating Manhattan, commuting on the subway, moving between meetings, attending work dinners, checking messages, responding to emails, and generally living the fast-paced lifestyle of someone constantly on the move.

Interestingly, I carried three iPhones with me throughout this experience:

• My brand-new iPhone Duo

• My four-year-old iPhone 14 Pro Max

• My company-issued iPhone 16

This gave me an unusually good opportunity to compare the devices throughout the day.

And the results surprised me.

I found myself repeatedly reaching for my four-year-old iPhone 14 Pro Max instead of my brand-new Duo.

That wasn't supposed to happen.

The Outer Screen: A Teaser, Not a Useful Phone

Here's my biggest criticism of the Duo's overall design: the outer screen simply isn't practical enough for everyday use.

In my experience, it's barely usable for the kinds of quick interactions that make a smartphone indispensable.

Checking messages, navigating apps, responding to notifications, and performing ordinary tasks all feel unnecessarily constrained.

Instead of functioning as a complete smartphone, the outer display feels more like a preview of what you could accomplish if you stopped what you were doing and unfolded the device.

And that's the problem.

When you're standing on a subway platform, walking through Manhattan, juggling a coffee, or moving between meetings, you don't necessarily want to unfold your phone every time you need to accomplish something.

You want to pull it out, glance at it, do what you need to do, and put it away.

That's something my 14 Pro Max still does beautifully.

With the Duo, even simple interactions can become a two-step process.

The irony is that a device designed to offer more screen real estate has made many of my everyday smartphone interactions feel less convenient.

Touch ID: The Deal Killer

If there's one feature that could ultimately convince me to return the Duo, it's Face ID.

I simply cannot understand how moving away from Face ID represents progress.

After years of using Face ID, I've become accustomed to picking up my phone, looking at it, and having it unlock almost instantly.

It's effortless. It's intuitive. And, most importantly, it works beautifully with the way I use my phone.

My experience with Touch ID on the Duo has been anything but effortless.

I'm constantly being asked to enter my PIN code, and the integration with my Apple Watch Ultra seems frustratingly slow to respond.

When the phone is unfolded, locating the Touch ID sensor becomes another small but irritating exercise. The same goes for finding the volume controls, which never seem to be exactly where my fingers expect them.

Perhaps some of this improves with muscle memory.

But after a full week, I still find myself fumbling with the device far more than I ever did with my older iPhone.

For a company that built its reputation on intuitive design and effortless user experiences, this feels like a meaningful step backward.

Face ID has become one of those Apple features you don't fully appreciate until it's gone.

And I miss it every single day.

When the Duo Actually Shines

To be fair, there are moments when I genuinely enjoy the Duo.

Almost all of them occur when I'm sitting still.

In the evening, relaxing in bed, or enjoying a quiet morning, opening the phone and having that beautiful, expansive display available is a pleasure.

This is when the device starts to make sense.

The larger screen creates a more immersive experience, and I can absolutely appreciate the appeal of having something approaching a small tablet that folds into a pocketable device.

But here's the catch: those aren't the moments when I need my phone the most.

During the busiest parts of my day, when speed, convenience, and one-handed usability matter, the Duo frequently gets in my way.

It's almost as though Apple has designed a terrific miniature tablet that happens to function as a somewhat inconvenient smartphone.

And for me, that's a difficult trade-off.

The Unexpected Winner: My Four-Year-Old iPhone

Perhaps the most revealing part of this entire experience has been how relieved I feel whenever I switch back to my iPhone 14 Pro Max.

There's something refreshing about that familiar, full-size screen.

Everything is immediately accessible.

Face ID works almost instantaneously.

I don't have to think about how I'm holding the phone, where the fingerprint sensor is located, or whether I need to unfold it to complete a simple task.

I just use it.

And isn't that what Apple's design philosophy has traditionally been about?

Technology should fade into the background, allowing you to focus on what you're trying to accomplish.

With the Duo, I'm frequently aware of the device itself.

With my 14 Pro Max, I'm simply getting things done.

That's a remarkable observation considering the age difference between these phones.

The Verdict After One Week

I wanted to love the iPhone Duo.

I waited years for it. I was excited to finally get my hands on it. And I gave it what I believe was a fair, demanding real-world test.

But after a week, my enthusiasm has faded considerably.

The larger interior display is wonderful when I'm relaxing. Unfortunately, that benefit doesn't outweigh the friction I experience throughout the rest of the day.

The restrictive outer screen, the loss of Face ID, the repeated PIN requests, and the awkward positioning of physical controls have combined to make the phone feel surprisingly tedious.

That's not something I ever expected to say about a brand-new flagship Apple product.

I'm not suggesting that the Duo won't appeal to other users. Someone who spends more time seated, reading, watching videos, or working on a larger screen may absolutely love it.

But for someone like me—constantly moving, traveling, commuting, and relying on quick interactions throughout the day—the compromises are difficult to ignore.

After one week, I'm heavily leaning toward returning it.

And perhaps the biggest disappointment is this:

I spent four years waiting for Apple's next great iPhone, only to discover that the iPhone I already owned might still be the better phone for me.

Sometimes the most impressive technology isn't the technology that makes your life easier.