Big news in the iPhone world this week - Apple's first-ever foldable phone will soon be available. Yep, Apple iPhone Duo preorders are officially set to start next month, with the device retailing for a rather eye-watering sum of $1,999 / £1,999 at launch.
If you're looking to upgrade, you'll find everything you need to know laid out in a no-nonsense guide right here. As of writing, we have a full a full picture of specs and features, and a suggestion of what the opening deals will be from Apple and major US carriers. We've also got details for Apple's promotion in the UK, but details are more limited in regard to network options and contracts.
If you're interested in the iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max, note that those devices are available to preorder now, and you can see our standalone page on those here.
As an overview, the iPhone Duo is a 7.6-inch foldable phone with an intriguing passport-like design. It features many of the baseline specs as the new iPhone 18 Pro, but the design itself is unlike anything Apple has attempted before. It's more reminiscent of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8, but even then, it's classically 'Apple' in regard to its design. If you're interested, you can check out our iPhone Duo hands-on preview for more details on the device.
iPhone 18 Duo preorders: what you need to know
- Live Friday, 16th October
- 5AM PT, 8AM ET, 1PM BST
- 256GB device starts at $1,999 / £1,999
- Trade-in rebates of up to $1,144 / £855
- Apple leasing from $57.99/mo
If you've got your eye on the shiny new Apple Duo, you'll have to wait a little bit longer to place your preorder. Apple's first-ever foldable phone will be available to preorder just over a month from now - Friday, 16th of October, to be exact.
As with the iPhone 18 Pro devices, you can already navigate to the official Apple Store page to see all the same details. The device will start at a rather eye-watering $1,999, but you'll have options to trade in or lease if you're looking to cut that price tag down to size.
Apple's own trade-in rebate is capped at $885 for unlocked devices, whereas major carriers are listing their rebates as $1,144, which is curiously lower than those that are available on the 18 Pro Max.
These could be provisional rebates to be confirmed at a later date, or the major carriers could be expecting higher demand for the iPhone Duo. They might be thinking that people will bite the bullet and accept a lower rebate for Apple's first-ever foldable.
As with other devices, you can take advantage of Apple's new leasing system with the iPhone Duo if you're inclined. Prices start at $57.99/mo for a 24-month lease, which adds up to just under $1,400 in total. Again, this is an option that could be worth exploring, but it does incentivize you to really lock in long-term so you can get those included upgrades.
What's new with these 2026 iPhones?
The biggest news, of course, is the iPhone Duo. Apple's first-ever foldable iPhone combines a 5.4-inch outer display with a 7.6-inch Super Retina XDR inner screen for an intriguing 'passport-like' design. We can't wait to get our hands on it here at TechRadar, as it looks like Apple has added a ton of software features designed to take advantage of the larger folding display
For the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, the biggest camera upgrade is a variable aperture on the 48MP main camera. This allows users to open the aperture wider for more light in low-light photography, or close it down to increase depth of field and capture more detail. Both models are powered by the A20 Pro, which delivers a claimed 20% faster CPU and 40% faster GPU than its predecessor. Battery life has also improved, with the iPhone 18 Pro offering up to 36 hours of video playback, matching last year's 17 Pro Max, while the 18 Pro Max reaches up to 45 hours.
The Duo also features the same A20 Pro chipset and camera array (minus the telephoto) as the Pro-level devices here, so it should be a very, very quick device indeed. Over the next few weeks, we'll post our full review of all these devices, so stay tuned.
