Apple's first foldable 'iPhone Duo'... Functional differentiation is limited

Apple's first foldable 'iPhone Duo'... Functional differentiation is limited

Pay attention to whether the iOS ecosystem and brand loyalty will overcome the ultra-high price barrier.

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Park Hyeong-bin = Apple launched its first foldable phone, the iPhone Duo, belatedly entering the foldable phone market that Samsung Electronics and others had been pioneering for over seven years.

However, as foldable phones have already reached maturity, some say that it is not easy to differentiate them from existing products based on hardware completeness alone.

With the domestic shipping price starting at 3.29 million won, the key to success is whether Apple can overcome the ultra-high price barrier with its strong iOS ecosystem and brand loyalty.

◇ Starting at 3.29 million won for familiar features… Persuading on price is the biggest challenge

Splitting the screen and improving camera usability to take advantage of the large screen are features that Android smartphones have already implemented for several generations.

The perfection of the hardware is noticeable, such as a 7.6-inch screen that opens from side to side like a passport, invisible wrinkles, and heat management using a vapor chamber, but it is difficult to view this as a completely differentiated user experience.

Rather, the most obvious difference is the price. The domestic factory price starts at 3.29 million won for 256GB, and the 2TB model costs 5.09 million won.

If you are an existing iPhone user, you will have to pay a much higher cost than choosing a high-end iPhone, and the price burden is high compared to the Galaxy Z Fold series that has already established itself in the market. You have to pay a considerable amount of money, but some specifications, such as the camera, are not as good as the Pro series.

In the end, Apple's homework is how to explain the price difference of hundreds of thousands of won to more than a million won that consumers pay extra.

The value of using a large screen varies from consumer to consumer. For users who frequently watch videos, read, or multitask, the boundary between smartphones and tablets can be narrowed, but if messengers, web surfing, and taking photos are the main uses, there is not much incentive to accept a much higher price than the existing iPhone.

Even for Apple, price is a double-edged sword.

The high price is advantageous in differentiating the iPhone Duo as a top product in the Apple ecosystem and securing high profitability. On the other hand, it may be an obstacle to expanding the foldable phone market itself.

◇ What to trust is the Apple ecosystem... Will loyal customers change the foldable version?

However, Apple's exclusive operating system called iOS and high brand loyalty cannot be ignored.

Unlike existing foldable phone manufacturers who had to convince consumers of the usefulness of the form factor from the beginning, this means that they can attract device replacement demand from existing customers based on the already established iPhone user base.

Some analyzes say that rather than differentiating only with a new smartphone, it should be read as a strategy to add a new product line between the iPhone and iPad.

In the end, the success or failure of the iPhone Duo depends more on whether it can give consumers a reason to pay a price well over $2,000 in a market where hardware technology has been standardized rather than whether it is folded well.

An industry insider said, "Apple has been justifying the high price of the iPhone by combining not only performance but also ecosystem, brand, and user experience. It is still unclear whether the same formula will work for Duo, but it will not be easy to significantly expand the market through loyalty alone."