Credit: Aamir Siddiqui / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Automated stress tests by YouTuber Tim Pan (10,500 folds plus sub-zero testing) and Joanna Stern (over 32,000 folds) show that the iPhone Duo’s 3D-printed titanium hinge remains sturdy and smooth all throughout.
- However, continuous folding significantly deepens the inner display crease, both visually and to the touch.
- Other iPhone Duo quirks include single-sided NFC positioning, lack of an internal earpiece (forcing speakerphone when open), minor thermal throttling, and UI misfires when opened slowly.
Apple spent years watching Android OEMs pioneer the foldable landscape, and then made deliberate design choices to ensure its first folding iPhone wouldn’t suffer from the same teething issues as early Galaxy Fold generations. Much of that engineering effort centers on the iPhone Duo’s inner display, which uses a custom nano-texture finish to diffuse reflections and minimize the visible groove down the center. However, physics remains undefeated: a new extreme durability test shows that after 10,000 folds, that subtle crease deepens considerably.
In an exhaustive video review by Tim Pan on YouTube, the creator rigged the iPhone Duo to an automated folding machine to simulate long-term wear and tear.