Foldable screens are "going DUO" now.

The foldable screen, a category that has been a hot topic for years, has finally reached its "full lineup assembled" moment this September.

In the early hours of September 10 Beijing time, Apple officially released its first foldable phone, the iPhone Duo.

Back on September 7, Huawei launched a number of new products in Guangzhou, with the core offering being the new-generation tri-fold phone Mate XT 2 Ultimate Design. At the same time, Xiaomi unveiled the "mid-sized foldable" Xiaomi 18 Fold in Beijing.

Three launch events, three different paths taken by three players, all point to one signal: foldable screens have finally evolved from a "novelty product" to the "main battlefield".

In particular, Apple's entry into the market also raises a more direct question: when the world's most influential tech company joins in, will this phone category that has been popular but non-mainstream in the past see a real boom, or a new round of more brutal cutthroat competition?

01

Three Launch Events, One Unified Signal

In the first ten days of September, among the three most high-profile launch events in the smartphone industry, Apple was the last to appear, but its weight was the heaviest.

This is the first fall launch event hosted by Ternus in his capacity as the new head of Apple after Cook stepped down as CEO.

Ternus wanted to do something different. Over the past decade or more, Apple has been used to rolling out a complete new generation of iPhone lineup in fall at one go, covering consumer groups from mass market to high-end segments. But this year, he broke the norm, and the keyword of Apple's launch event became high-end foldable screens.

Li Ge, a veteran tech enthusiast known as "Electronics Fan", admitted that he had little expectation for the "stereotyped" Apple fall events in the past few years. But this year, his interest was rekindled, and he even stayed up late to watch the launch event after years of absence, saying "Apple has finally entered the foldable screen market. I want to see if the iPhone product can deliver stunning performance."

Of course, Li Ge believes that Apple's foldable phone, which consumers have waited for years, did not let him down.

This product, playfully nicknamed "Apple Duo" by netizens, adopts a book-style horizontal inward folding design, equipped with a 5.4-inch outer screen and a 7.6-inch inner screen, both of which support 120Hz ProMotion adaptive refresh rate.

In terms of hardware specifications, the iPhone Duo is almost packed with all the flagship technologies Apple currently has to offer. It is the first device to carry the A20 Pro chip based on 2-nanometer process, equipped with 12GB RAM and up to 2TB storage, adopts a titanium metal frame and hinge protective shell, and for the first time introduces an under-screen FaceTime camera on the inner screen, realizing a true full-screen design with no cutouts.

From Li Ge's perspective, "it seems to deliver solid performance across all aspects."

Figure: iPhone Duo Source: Apple Launch Event

What is also thought-provoking is Apple's software interaction design.

For example, iOS 27 brings standby display, tent mode, vertical FaceTime and other interaction modes specially designed for the foldable form factor to the iPhone Duo, and announces that Apple Pencil support will be added later this year.

These features show that Apple is not satisfied with simply "making the phone screen bigger", but is trying to redefine the usage scenarios of foldable devices.

However, the cost is also obvious. "The starting price of the iPhone Duo for the Chinese mainland market is as high as 15,999 yuan, and the top-tier version even reaches 26,499 yuan. This shows that Apple has no intention of making foldable screens a mass consumer product. As for subsequent performance evaluations, hands-on experience is still needed." Li Ge said frankly.

Of course, the market also has different voices about the iPhone Duo. For example, many point out that the iPhone Duo is suspected of "plagiarism"; some netizens even commented directly, "It looks the same as Huawei and Xiaomi's products."

Huawei's launch event was held earlier on September 7. At this event, Richard Yu Chengdong brought the core product, the new member of the tri-fold family, the Mate XT 2 Ultimate Design.

According to the introduction, the Mate XT 2 Ultimate Design has made great improvements in performance. For example, the new phone adopts an ultra-reliable tri-fold basalt architecture, and for the first time supports IP58/59 level dust and water resistance.

In terms of core configurations, it is the first to carry the Kirin 9050 Pro chip, with the overall performance improved by 42% compared with the previous generation. At the same time, it is the industry's first foldable Spirit Shield privacy-protecting screen.

Also at 7 p.m. on September 7, Xiaomi quickly launched the Xiaomi 18 Fold.

At the launch event, Lei Jun emphasized that the Xiaomi 18 Fold is a "mid-sized foldable", positioned between large and small foldables. This is also the first time Xiaomi has included a foldable screen product in its digital series, and both its inner and outer screens adopt a √2:1 aspect ratio.

In terms of core configurations, the Xiaomi 18 Fold is the first to carry three self-developed Xiaomi technologies at the same time: the Xuanjie O3 AI flagship processor, the HyperOS 4 operating system and the MiMo on-device large model. In terms of pricing, the Xiaomi 18 Fold still focuses on cost-effectiveness, with a starting price of 10,999 yuan.

"But the problem is also obvious," Li Ge admitted, "Whether the Xuanjie O3 can beat Apple's A20 Pro in performance and power consumption needs to be verified on real devices. In addition, no matter it is Apple, Huawei or Xiaomi, the hardware competition has reached a white-hot stage, but the large-screen adaptation remains an unknown variable."

02

Apple's Late Arrival, the Anxiety of Domestic Manufacturers

It can be said that the three players have taken three different paths.

Apple leverages its ecosystem to solve the "app scarcity" problem of foldable screens through seamless migration of iPad apps; Huawei focuses on form factors, building technical barriers with tri-fold design and hardware-level privacy protection; Xiaomi adopts the "mid-sized foldable" form factor and self-developed chips to create differentiated advantages.

Li Ge's comment on the three brands is very straightforward, "This is easy to understand. Apple's strengths lie in its ecosystem and brand; Huawei's advantages are technical accumulation and the local market; while Xiaomi's advantage is cost-effectiveness."

Despite different strategies, they all point to the same judgment: foldable screens are no longer a future trend, but a present reality.

In the past few years, the foldable screen category has been stuck at the ceiling of the niche market.

IDC data shows that in 2025, the global shipment of foldable screens was about 20 million units, accounting for around 1.5% of the total smartphone shipment. Manufacturers are highly enthusiastic, while consumers remain on the fence. Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO and vivo have entered the market one after another, but none of them has truly expanded the market scale.

Figure: Richard Yu shows the Mate XT 2 Ultimate Design Source: Online

Apple's entry directly changed the rules of the game.

Many analyses point out that it is not that the iPhone Duo is stunningly outstanding, but Apple's participation itself is a signal that this category has passed the mainstream certification.

When the world's most influential tech company is willing to include foldable screens in its flagship product line, it is no longer a toy for tech enthusiasts.

In fact, Apple is seven years late in the foldable screen market, but this is in line with its consistent rhythm.

For example, the iPod was not the first MP3 player, the iPhone was not the first smartphone, and the Apple Watch was not the first smartwatch. Apple's habit is to wait for the technology to mature, the supply chain to be ready, and find the "right way to use" the product, then enter the market as a definer.

At least for now, the iPhone Duo is the product of this logic.

While the hardware parameters are competitive, the real barrier lies in the software ecosystem. According to the information from the launch event, iOS 27 has made interaction designs such as standby display, tent mode and vertical FaceTime for the foldable form factor, and announced that Apple Pencil support will be added later this year.

More crucially, the "app scarcity" problem of foldable screens hardly exists for Apple, as millions of iPad apps can be seamlessly migrated to the inner screen.

In particular, the synchronized animation on both inner and outer screens during unlocking has been widely praised by the market.

Li Ge said he will buy an iPhone Duo, "I am full of expectations for this Apple product." Wan Xiao, an Apple fan, also said, "I am very attracted to Apple's foldable phone. I haven't felt this urge to buy a new product for many years, and I really want to get one."

This is exactly what makes domestic manufacturers truly nervous.

Huawei holds more than 50% of China's foldable screen market share, and the Mate X series is a standard choice for high-end business users. Xiaomi has established its position among young users with a cost-effective strategy. But after Apple enters the market, the competition logic has changed.

"When the iPhone Duo becomes a 'social currency' and the iOS ecosystem locks in users, can Huawei and Xiaomi's technical advantages be converted into purchase motivations?" Li Ge said frankly.

At present, Huawei's response is to upgrade its technology, and use the unique tri-fold form factor to hold its high-end position. Xiaomi's response is price positioning, building its stronghold in the price segment that Apple cannot cover.

Both strategies make sense, but they both face the same question: what exactly is the "incremental value" of foldable screens?

Of course, Apple also spent a lot of time demonstrating video calls in tent mode and hands-free shooting in vertical mode at the launch event. But no one can give a definite answer right now whether these scenarios can convince consumers to spend an extra 5,000 yuan.

03

Inflection Point or Cutthroat Competition?

As the market has seen, the entry of Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO and Apple is enough to show that the foldable screen market has indeed become "Duo" (prosperous).

But what comes after the market becomes prosperous?

Some analyses believe that foldable screens may truly get rid of the niche positioning.

Wan Xiao is an optimist, "Take Apple Watch and AirPods as examples: before Apple entered the market, smartwatches and true wireless earbuds were niche categories; after Apple joined in, the market was activated."

According to Counterpoint's forecast, the cumulative global shipment of foldable screen phones will exceed 100 million units by the end of 2026, and Apple is expected to take up more than 25% of the market share.

However, after the launch event, some market evaluations still point out that the problems that have plagued the industry for many years, including durability, creases, software adaptation and high prices, will not disappear automatically just because of the Apple logo.

In addition, the starting price of the iPhone Duo is 15,999 yuan, and the Huawei Mate XT 2 Ultimate Design even has a starting price as high as 19,999 yuan. As long as foldable screens remain synonymous with "high prices", they are still far from being mass consumer products.

What is more worthy of vigilance is the cutthroat competition over form factors.

Many analyses believe that manufacturers keep launching new form factors, from single-fold to double-fold then to triple-fold, from outer-fold to inner-fold then to clamshell. But what users need is real scenario innovation. When the screen of the bar phone is already large and good enough, the irreplaceability of foldable screens is no longer the only standard.

In fact, previous evaluations from netizens on foldable screens are more straightforward.

For example, a consumer posted on social platforms, "After using it for half a year, my biggest feeling is that I unfold it less and less. I mostly use the outer screen in daily life, except when I need to watch videos or process documents."

Some consumers even complained, "I spent more than 10,000 yuan on a foldable phone, only to find that the most frequently used function is 'fold it up and use it as a bar phone'."

Of course, there are also users who speak highly of foldable screens.

A Huawei Mate XT 2 Ultimate Design user wrote in his evaluation, "The productivity after unfolding is really strong, and multi-task processing is much more convenient than on a bar phone. When I travel on business, the phone is my mobile office."

The first-sale performance of the Xiaomi 18 Fold is also worth mentioning. According to official data from Xiaomi, the sales volume of this product in the first sale increased by 310% compared with the previous generation foldable phone. Xu Fei, Vice President of Xiaomi Group, posted that "it sold extremely well".

However, on the other hand, Li Ge holds a cautious attitude towards the foldable screen market.

"Foldable screens are indeed making progress, but they are still far from being 'desired by everyone'. People who buy foldable phones now are either those with rigid business demands, or tech enthusiasts who want to try new things. A killer application is still needed to convince ordinary consumers to pay for a foldable phone."

Wan Xiao also believes that if we take a longer time horizon, foldable screens are just a transitional stage in the evolution of smartphone form factors. In fact, after AR/VR devices become mature, foldable screens will still be the most attractive story that mobile phone manufacturers can tell.

Li Ge still believes that the foldable screen market has entered the second half of its development. The first half is about "whether you can make it", while the second half is about "whether it is worth buying".

No matter it is Apple, Huawei or Xiaomi, they all need to answer one question: why should users pay a premium for the "highly priced" foldable screen?

"After all, anyone can tell a good story, but sales volume is the key." Li Ge said frankly.

This article is from the WeChat official account "TingTong Tech", author: Yang Lin, editor: Rao Xiafei, published with authorization from 36Kr.