Engadget
How Apple's entry into the foldable market could boost its biggest rival.
Apple recently unveiled the iPhone Duo, its first foldable phone. Although it won't hit stores until next month, the announcement alone was enough to get the smartphone world talking. And while Apple is making its first attempt at the format, others, like Samsung, have been doing this for some time — the original 2019 Galaxy Fold was one of the first foldable devices.
As it turns out, the iPhone Duo announcement might also end up being a positive for competing devices like the Galaxy Z Fold 8. It's not as if Samsung is celebrating the Duo, but the hype surrounding it ends up drawing more attention to the foldable category overall.
Samsung currently leads the foldable device segment, but that market slice doesn't even come close to conventional smartphones. IDC estimates that about 20.6 million foldable phones were shipped last year, but that's only a fraction of the overall smartphone market. Global smartphone shipments reached 1.25 billion last year, giving an idea of just how niche the foldable phone market still is. But the iPhone Duo has the potential to change that, and we're already seeing the first effects.
Recent reports suggest that more people are buying the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 following the announcement of the iPhone Duo. It's possible that people are starting to pay attention to foldables, or maybe enthusiasts want to give the form factor a try before the iPhone Duo goes on sale. Either way, Samsung is well aware of this, and has already dropped the price of its foldable phones in some markets. This is just one of many examples of how competition benefits consumers.
With Apple now in the race, other players will have to step up their game to compete. The result will be more available options and likely broader price ranges, too. There's only one iPhone Duo for now, but Samsung, for example, already has a variety of foldables available. These range from the relatively affordable Galaxy Z Flip7 FE to the chic and expensive Z Fold 8 Ultra. Eventually, the competition might even push Apple to make a cheaper iPhone Duo model.
There's a benefit on the hardware and software side, too. Although foldable phones aren't breaking news anymore, Apple has shown how it always finds a way to catch up. For instance, the company hasn't solved the screen crease issue, but it looks less noticeable on the iPhone Duo thanks to a matte nano-textured layer. There's little doubt that other folding phone makers will follow suit soon.
The same goes for the new user interface designed specifically for the iPhone Duo. It's still iOS, but designed for a device that can be used in multiple layouts — folded, unfolded or half-open. Many current foldable devices stretch or shrink the same interface across all screens, which ends up looking unfinished. Also, there are already developers porting the iPhone Duo's opening and closing animation to Android. It's not hard to imagine this becoming an industry standard before long.
So yes, Apple wasn't the first to make a foldable phone, and you may not even want to buy one. But this entry will likely end up shaping the entire foldable market anyway.