Apple unveiled its first foldable iPhone this week, priced at €2,299. The Pro models will be available in stores starting Friday, while buyers will have to wait another five weeks for the iPhone Duo. In between, there's an Emmy Award record, an exclusive launch with Deutsche Telekom, and a price round that also affects older devices.
The week of September 7th to 13th culminated in a single evening. On Wednesday at 7:00 PM CEST, Apple unveiled five new devices under the motto "Surprise and Shine," including the first foldable iPhone in the company's history. It was also the first product launch since the change at the top of the company – John Ternus was featured in the evening's announcements as CEO.
On stage were the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, the iPhone Duo, the Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4, and the AirPods 5. This had been foreshadowed in the days leading up to the event: Apple released 37 new device identifiers, more than on any previous keynote night. The rest of the week revolved around prices, release dates, and the question of what the foldable display would actually cost.
🔥 Story of the week: Apple's first foldable iPhone costs €2,299
The device is called iPhone Duo, and Apple officially unveiled it on Wednesday. When unfolded, it measures 164.6 × 117.8 × 5.2 millimeters, making it thinner than any other iPhone; when folded, it measures 11.3 millimeters and weighs 254 grams. Apple claims up to 31 hours of video playback on the inner display, up to 44 hours on the outer display, and up to 24 hours when both screens are used equally.
The most expensive iPhone stands out in terms of features. Instead of Face ID, Touch ID is integrated into the side button, and there's no dedicated action button. Like the iPhone Air, the Duo operates exclusively with eSIM. The external front camera has a 12-megapixel resolution, while the internal camera below the display offers 1080p resolution. The specifications also reveal that the device will ship with iOS 27.1, not iOS 27.
The timing is the real break with the usual procedure. Pre-orders only start on October 16th, deliveries begin on October 23rd, and 28 more countries follow on October 30th. This leaves 44 days between the unveiling and the start of sales, and exactly five weeks between this and the Pro models, which have been available for pre-order since Friday.
The other new products of the evening blend in more subtly. The iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max get the variable aperture and the A20 Pro chip, the Apple Watch Series 12 measures heart rate every five seconds, the Ultra 4 lasts 50 hours in everyday use, and the AirPods 5 come with active noise cancellation starting at €149 – the previous version with noise cancellation cost €199.
| Device | Price from | Predecessor |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone Duo | 2,299 euros | no predecessor |
| iPhone 18 Pro Max | 1,599 euros | 1,449 euros |
| iPhone 18 Pro | 1,449 euros | 1,299 euros |
| Apple Watch Ultra 4 | 899 euros | unchanged |
| Apple Watch Series 12 | 449 euros | unchanged |
| AirPods 5 | 149 euros | 199 euros with ANC |
📰 What Else Mattered
Handoff is coming to Germany, but only with one provider. With iOS 27, iPhone Handoff will launch exclusively with Telekom in Germany. A MultiSIM is required, which costs €6.95 per month there.
Satellite services will remain free for another year. Apple is extending free use for iPhone 14 through iPhone 16. However, of the four services, only Emergency SOS is activated in German-speaking countries – so the extension only has a partial effect there.
Apple is acquiring sensor technology for nerve signals. With the acquisition of Sonera, the company is bringing in technology that captures signals from the nervous system.
Face ID is the subject of a court case in Texas. A BASF subsidiary has sued Apple, accusing the company of infringing its own patents related to facial recognition.
The Health app is being rebuilt from the ground up. Apple is switching it to longevity and a Health Age feature – the biggest overhaul the app has ever undergone.
iOS 27 is about to be released. The release candidate appeared on the evening of the keynote, but two announced features are still missing at launch.
💡 Rumor of the week: $250 for the display
A report puts the cost of the foldable panel in the iPhone Duo at around $250 per unit. That would be roughly one-eighth of the US retail price – a remarkable proportion for a single component.
The figure is not reliable. The report provides neither a breakdown nor a verifiable basis for the number, and supplier information is also missing. It therefore remains an estimate that fits the pricing strategy without any explanation.
📊 Number of the week: 20 Emmys for Apple TV
Apple TV won 20 Emmys at the Creative Arts Awards, eight of them for Widow's Bay alone. This is the service's most successful Creative Arts round to date. The main awards ceremony will take place on Monday night.
👎 Flop of the week: The price round also affects existing stock
That new devices cost more is no surprise: a €150 increase for the iPhone 18 Pro, €150 for the Pro Max. What is remarkable is the second trend. Even models that remain unchanged in the product line have become more expensive, including the iPhone Air.
This shifts the entire price range upwards, while the prices for the two watches remain exactly the same as last year. The price range across all seven currently sold iPhone models now starts at €849 and ends at €2,299.
🔭 What's Coming Next Week
We expect the final iOS 27 on Monday – the release candidate has been available since Wednesday evening. The release date for iOS 27.1 can also be narrowed down, as the iPhone Duo will ship with this version on October 23rd.
The Emmy Awards ceremony airs at 2:00 AM CEST on Tuesday morning. The iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max will be available in stores on Friday. And the fall season isn't over yet: more devices are slated for release in October, the foldable iPhone being just the first.
💬 My Take
Our assessment after this evening: Apple is selling the iPhone Duo as a top-of-the-line model, but omitting features that are standard in significantly cheaper devices. No action button, Touch ID instead of Face ID, an internal camera with 1080p resolution – this cannot be explained solely by the new design.
This becomes clear when comparing them directly. The iPhone Air, priced at €1,299, has a better front camera and an action button, which the €1,000 more expensive Duo lacks. The foldable display justifies the price; the rest of the device doesn't. Whether the investment pays off won't be decided on stage, but on October 23rd.
📚 From Our Archive
There are several ways to transfer data to a new iPhone – relevant for everyone unboxing a Pro model on Friday. And because iOS 27 further expands AI capabilities, setting up Apple Intelligence on iPhone, iPad, and Mac is a prerequisite for using it at all.
A week in which Apple unveiled a device it's been working on for years – and yet no one will actually be able to hold it for another six weeks. Are you waiting until October 23rd for the iPhone Duo, or is €2,299 too much for an iPhone that lacks the action button and Face ID? Let us know in the comments where your limit is.
Until next Sunday, Apfelpatient wishes you a relaxing read and a good start to the week.
