Apple unveiled its long-awaited foldable phone, Duo, at its Surprise and Shine event on Wednesday. The device, the company’s first product in the foldable phone category, is entering a market where consumer interest is high, but designs do not always meet expectations. Durability is a major issue with foldable phones, which are exposed to twice as much wear and tear as traditional phones. Apple says it has developed various measures to protect Duo from this wear. According to Chief Hardware Officer Johny Srouji, the hinges are matched with suitable frames using AI algorithms; a confocal laser scans the surface of each unit, and a 3D printer eliminates waviness by adding up to 25 micro-layers of a special photopolymer. Srouji said the process ensures flawless alignment. The phone also features a nano-texture coating that reduces reflections and multilayer lamination intended to improve durability. It is not known whether these measures will be sufficient in the long term.
Why it matters
Apple’s entry into the foldable phone market is once again raising the issue that the fundamental challenge in this category is not merely opening and closing the screen, but the product’s durability over time. In this field, where consumer interest is high but designs do not always meet expectations, precision in the manufacturing process has become directly linked to the user experience. The technical measures announced for Duo show that Apple is specifically seeking to reduce hinge and surface defects; however, it is not yet known to what extent this approach will limit wear and tear in everyday use. The key open question, therefore, is not how advanced the methods used are technically, but whether they can provide a practical long-term solution to the durability problem of foldable phones.
Background
Apple is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we have published 40 news articles mentioning this name in the last 90 days; the latest is dated September 12, 2026.