Apple on Wednesday unveiled a foldable iPhone, the most significant change to the company's most important product in 19 years.
At a pre-recorded 75-minute event at its headquarters in Cupertino, California, Apple unveiled the iPhone Duo, a foldable smartphone with a bendable display that can be opened and closed like a book. In the folded state, there is a smaller screen on the front of the phone, which is about the size of a passport; when unfolded, users can use two applications at the same time on the larger screen. The phone starts at $1,999 and will be released on October 23.
"Other companies have made foldable phones, but they feel like two phones thrust together," said John Turners, Apple's new chief executive. He added that the new iPhone "will redefine the experience of using a foldable phone."
Folding screen smartphones have been on the market since 2018, but this category of phones has yet to really impress consumers. According to statistics from Counterpoint Research, which tracks the smartphone market, consumer electronics companies shipped nearly 20 million foldable screen mobile phones last year, accounting for less than 2% of total smartphone shipments.
Wednesday's product launch was Turners' first since taking over the company's leadership. He previously served as Apple's head of hardware engineering and last week succeeded Tim Cook as CEO. In the recorded presentation, Turners emphasized Apple's work in artificial intelligence and called the iPhone an ideal device to serve as a "personal intelligence hub."
In the nearly two decades since its debut in 2007, the iPhone has become Apple's largest business, now accounting for half of the company's annual revenue -- more than $200 billion. Although the iPhone has been criticized for limited upgrades, the business continues to grow.
Gene Munster, managing partner of investment firm Deepwater Asset Management, said the foldable iPhone is part of Apple's "exploration of how to continue to expand its iPhone business."
With the iPhone Duo, Apple is establishing a new high-end price point for its phone lineup while also trying to prove that it can still create innovative products. The exterior of the phone is made of glass, while the inner screen is made of a custom polymer that feels like plastic. The phone's software automatically adapts to the folded state - shrinking to the small screen on the front when folded, and expanding to the large screen inside when unfolded. The control buttons are on the side of the phone, not the bottom.
Apple marketing chief Greg Joswiak said the iPhone Duo has "the most transformative iPhone experience since the original iPhone."
The iPhone Duo launches amid a gloomy consumer electronics market environment, even though its pricing is slightly lower than analysts had expected. The artificial intelligence boom has triggered a global shortage of memory chips, raising the cost of such chips used in devices such as mobile phones, computers and game consoles.
In June of this year, Apple increased the prices of Mac and iPad. In July, the company said it expected to pay higher costs for memory this quarter. On Wednesday, Apple also quietly raised the prices of older iPhone models. iPhone 17 now starts at $899, which is $100 more than when it was released in September last year. The base models of iPhone 16, iPhone 17e and iPhone Air all increase in price by $100.
Liz Lee, associate director at Counterpoint, said in a statement that the $1,999 price tag for the iPhone Duo "seems like a bold move by Apple, even if it means sacrificing some profit margins. This will leave consumers looking forward to it initially and having to wait, especially if supply is much tighter than expected."
The iPhone Duo may significantly expand the foldable smartphone market, but the category will still only account for a small portion of the overall smartphone market. Counterpoint predicts that Apple’s foldable screen mobile phone shipments will exceed 12 million units next year, accounting for 5% of all iPhone shipments.
On Wednesday, Apple also launched a new traditional iPhone. The iPhone 18 Pro will be equipped with the new A20 Pro chip, allowing it to run Apple's most advanced AI models. Apple has extended the battery life of its mobile phones. The iPhone 18 Pro can play videos continuously for 36 hours, and the iPhone 18 Pro Max can play videos for up to 48 hours. In addition, the new phone is also equipped with a new camera system, one of which can adjust the amount of light.
Both models are $100 more expensive than their predecessors. The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199, and the iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at $1,299.
Apple has also positioned its smartwatch as an AI device, preparing to compete with devices being developed by artificial intelligence companies such as OpenAI.
Apple has launched a feature that allows the watch and its digital assistant Siri to summarize daily activities and conversations for the wearer. The company emphasized privacy protections when announcing the feature and said the audio will not be recorded, stored or accessed. In addition, it also introduces an AI function that can recognize sounds such as sirens and doorbells, and tell the wearer the content of the conversation 15 seconds ago.
