Apple finally unveils its first foldable, the iPhone Duo

Apple has finally unveiled its first foldable phone, the iPhone Duo.

The device uses a passport-style ratio, resembling the structure of Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold8, which the Korean tech giant introduced in July. Apple has now followed Samsung into the foldable phone market in earnest, seven years after Samsung's own foldable debut. The foldable phone war between the two tech giants has begun in full swing.

Apple's new CEO John Ternus unveiled the iPhone Duo at Apple Park, the company's headquarters in Cupertino, California, on Wednesday (local time).

The device marks Apple's first foldable design since the company launched the original iPhone in 2007.

The iPhone Duo measures 5.4 inches when folded and 7.6 inches when unfolded. When opened, it also supports multitasking, letting users run different apps simultaneously on each of its two screens.

The device also supports Apple Pencil input, a feature previously available only on iPads.

The new phone does not include Face ID, Apple's facial recognition unlock feature. Instead, it uses Touch ID, the fingerprint recognition function.

The 256GB model is priced at $1,999, or 3.29 million won ($2,450) in South Korea.

Preorders open Oct. 16, with in-store sales starting Oct. 23. However, Apple did not announce which countries will get the iPhone Duo at Wednesday's event.

Apple CEO John Ternus introduces the iPhone Duo. (AFP)

Apple also unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro series, its AirPods 5 wireless earbuds, and its Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra4 smartwatches the same day. The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199, while the Pro Max starts at $1,299. Preorders begin Friday, with in-store sales starting Sept. 18.

The event marked Ternus's first official appearance as CEO since he took the helm this month.

"I want to start by saying what a special honor it is to represent Apple's incredible team," he said. He went on to say, "What I really love is that the products we make help people work more creatively and productively, and let them achieve things once thought impossible."

Meanwhile, Apple's foldable phone launch sets up head-to-head competition with Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold8. Samsung's Fold8, the company's first product to adopt a passport-style ratio, broke Galaxy smartphone preorder records and has been selling well worldwide.

sjpark@heraldcorp.com