“Hold us accountable to that” – that’s what Apple’s hardware Vice President, Tom Marieb, told me when asked whether the iPhone Duo’s crease will look more obvious after extended use.
The iPhone Duo is not only probably the most anticipated phone launch this year, but arguably the most exciting Apple smartphone product release since the iPhone X. Like the X, the Duo gives us a hint at what the next decade of iPhone will look like.
I’ve been waiting for Apple to launch a foldable phone since I first held the very first Samsung Galaxy Fold. A few days after my hands-on with that particular phone, Samsung delayed it due to durability issues, and it would be a few months before it ended up seeing the light of day.
In the years since, we’ve seen all manner of foldable phones. Folds and flips, different screen sizes and shapes – but the question of durability has always been at the forefront. By their nature, foldable phones can be more delicate than their traditional slab-style sibling. There are more parts, a vital hinge and a screen that has to withstand being folded and unfolded multiple times a day.
Over the years, foldable phones have got more durable. Now, I’d say most of the best foldable phones we’ve reviewed can hold up fine to heavy use, although there is one particular thing that still gets me. I’ve often noticed that even when a foldable’s crease – that divot that runs down the screen – is hard to spot at the start, it gets more and more obvious over time.
Hold us accountable
Ahead of the iPhone Duo’s launch in October, I got the chance to sit down with Apple’s new Vice President of Product Integrity, Tom Marieb, and one of the key things I wanted to know about was whether the Duo would suffer the same fate down the line.
“Hold us accountable to that, please,” was his response. He went on to say, “When you look at glossy displays, the specularity of them makes it very easy to pick up any sort of topology differences as you go across…that’s part of the reason we picked the matte [coating on the screen]. It’s not only beautiful in terms of preventing glare, but it also makes it more forgiving in terms of any of those changes over time as well, and that really helps.”
Instead of going with a traditional glossy display – the kind you’ll see on every other foldable – Apple has used a matte display on the iPhone Duo, not too dissimilar to its nano-texture coating available on Macs and iPads.
The finish looks lovely – almost like paper, and it does an incredible job of hiding the fold of the display when you’re looking directly at the phone.
Throughout our chat, it was made clear the Duo is a phone that should last, and not just look good out of the box. “The intent there was not for Day One – the intent for that is Day One and after.”
Of course, the screen is just one part of what makes a foldable phone great. There are lots of other parts that need to be near-perfect, especially with a starting price of around £2000/$2000. But it really does seem that Apple is intent on making the iPhone Duo as durable and long-lasting as possible.
