At Apple's "Surprise and Shine" event, John Ternus introduced Apple's first foldable device, the iPhone Duo. It is a new wide-book-style foldable with a square-shaped cover screen and a larger panel underneath. But Apple's Korean competitor, Samsung, beat it by months with its own compact foldable, the Galaxy Z Fold 8. So, let's see how they both compare and which is the better foldable for you.
iPhone Duo vs Galaxy Z Fold 8: Design and Build
- Both the iPhone Duo and the Galaxy Z Fold 8 feature a wide and compact style design
- The iPhone Duo uses a titanium frame, while the Galaxy Z Fold 8 has an Armour Aluminium frame
- Both phones feature side-mounted fingerprint scanners and dual stereo speakers
Apple has taken a completely unconventional route for the iPhone Duo design, going with a passport-sized short form factor. This is unlike anything Samsung had made previously until the Galaxy Z Fold 8, which also boasts a wide format but with sharper corners on each end.
As for the build quality, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 uses an Armour Aluminium frame. Meanwhile, the iPhone Duo has a Grade 5 Titanium chassis. This makes the iPhone more durable, and it also has an IP68 rating, protecting against dust and water damage. In comparison, the Z Fold 8 has an IP48 rating, leaving it susceptible to dust damage.
Both the iPhone and Samsung's foldables are the thinnest devices either company has ever made. The iPhone Duo measures only 5.2 mm when opened, but the Z Fold is only 4.5 mm thick. The iPhone also weighs more at 254 grams due to the heavier titanium frame. So, if you want a thinner and lighter foldable, Samsung should be your pick.
Coming to the hinge, Apple is using a titanium hinge with a custom variable-torque mechanism and carbon fibre support plates. This allows the iPhone Duo to open completely flat. Meanwhile, Samsung is using Flex Titanium tech, which absorbs folding strain so the crease stays far less visible.
The iPhone Duo also marks the return of Touch ID built into the Side key. That's because there isn't room for Apple's TrueDepth Face ID cameras on a foldable this thin. Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 8 also has a side-mounted fingerprint scanner.
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iPhone Duo vs Galaxy Z Fold 8: Display
- The Galaxy Z Fold 8 has a 7.6-inch main display and a 5.5-inch cover display
- The iPhone Duo features a 7.6-inch inner display and a 5.4-inch cover display
- Both phones come with an OLED screen with a 120 Hz refresh rate on both screens
Both the Fold 8 and the iPhone Duo share nearly identical screen sizes, with a 5.5-inch cover screen and a 7.6-inch main folding display. The difference comes in resolution, screen type, and protection.
The iPhone Duo features a Super Retina XDR OLED display with 120 Hz ProMotion technology for both screens. The cover display has a resolution of 1398 x 2034 pixels, while the main display has a resolution of 1878 x 2670 pixels.
On the other hand, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 features Dynamic 2x AMOLED technology with 120 HZ LTPO panels, both inside and outside. The resolution for the cover screen is 1248 x 1972, and the main display is 2448 x 1848.
You can't tell the difference in quality on either device unless you look at them side by side. Then you can spot that the iPhone Duo has a sharper display compared to Samsung's Z Fold 8. Both phones have an anti-reflective coating and match at 3,000 nits of brightness.
For display protection, Apple uses its own custom coating to prevent scratches on the main display and uses Ceramic Shield 2 glass for the cover screen. The Z Fold 8 uses Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3, but only on the cover screen.
iPhone Duo also supports the Apple Pencil stylus, so you can use it to doodle or interact with the larger foldable screen. However, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 does not support any Samsung stylus.
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iPhone Duo vs Galaxy Z Fold 8: Processor
- The Galaxy Z Fold 8 runs the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy
- The iPhone Duo is powered by Apple's A20 Pro chip, built on a 2 nm process
- Both phones are paired with 12 GB RAM and 256 GB starting storage
Neither phone is short on power. The iPhone Duo is powered by Apple's new A20 Pro chipset, the same one also used in the new iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models. It is based on a 2nm node, bringing upgrades in both speed and efficiency over last year's A19 Pro.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor for Galaxy is a proven, benchmark-topping chip that handles everything from heavy multitasking to graphically demanding games without issue.
Both phones come with a starting memory configuration of 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage on board. Apple is also using its own second-generation C2 modem, the successor to the C1X chip it debuted in the iPhone Air.
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iPhone Duo vs Galaxy Z Fold 8: Software
- The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 ships with One UI 9 on the latest Android 17 update
- The iPhone Duo ships with iOS 27 out of the box with the new Siri AI
- Both devices have foldable-specific multitasking features tailored for their own OS
Software is where years of platform maturity start to show. The iPhone Duo runs iOS 27 out of the box, bringing the new Apple Intelligence features. But the rebuilt Siri AI is the highlight of this experience, as Siri becomes more conversational, can understand context, images and screenshots, and also gets its own dedicated Siri app.
Apple is also introducing a UI overhaul for the large foldable screen, bringing a unique experience with most UI elements, like buttons, the dock, and menus on the side instead of the bottom.
Users will be able to see more information in apps and Settings without opening a specific menu. And also be able to use split screens for multitasking.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 runs One UI 9, built on Android 17, with Samsung's own multi-generation refinement of split-screen, drag-and-drop, and app pairing specifically tuned for a folding display. Plus, Samsung has its own unique list of Galaxy AI features in One UI 9, along with Google's Gemini Intelligence.
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iPhone Duo vs Galaxy Z Fold 8: Camera
- Both phones have a dual rear camera, with no telephoto on either device
- The Galaxy Z Fold 8 uses a 50 MP main and a 50 MP ultrawide camera setup
- The iPhone Duo is equipped with a 48 MP main and a 48 MP ultrawide lens
This is genuinely one of the closest categories in the entire comparison. The iPhone Duo comes with a 48 MP main camera with a 2x in-sensor crop and a 48 MP ultrawide camera setup. If it sounds familiar, it is the same setup seen on the iPhone 17e.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 uses a dual 50 MP wide and 50 MP ultrawide setup. As you can see, neither phone has a dedicated telephoto camera because of the limited space in the body. But if you want a telephoto camera on a foldable, then you should consider Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra instead.
For selfies, the Z Fold 8 has dual 10 MP cameras, one on the cover screen and another on the main display. The iPhone Duo has a similar setup with a 12 MP Centre Stage selfie camera on the outer display and an under-display camera on the inside.
On the video front, the iPhone Duo and the Z Fold 8 can record 4K videos @ 60 FPS from both the main cameras. The iPhone Duo can capture 4K Dolby Vision HDR videos at 120 FPS with its main camera. If camera hardware is your deciding factor between these two, then the iPhone Duo pulls ahead, especially in the video department.
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iPhone Duo vs Galaxy Z Fold 8: Battery and Charging
- The iPhone Duo's battery capacity is rated for up to 44 hours of video playback
- The Galaxy Z Fold 8 has a 4,800mAh battery, which Samsung rates for up to 26 hours of streaming
- The iPhone supports 60W fast wired charging, over Samsung's 45W
Since Apple does not share the exact battery capacity on their devices, we will compare this section based on its claim of video playback hours. On paper, the iPhone Duo is rated for up to 31 hours of video playback on the main foldable screen and 44 hours with the cover screen.
Meanwhile, Samsung claims that the Z Fold 8 can deliver 26 hours of streaming time. This means that the Z Fold 8 has a slightly higher battery capacity. Samsung is also using a silicon-carbon battery for the first time, allowing it to fit a 4,800mAh capacity in such a thin phone. In comparison, Apple is using a dual-cell structure to fit in such a large capacity.
But Apple takes a clear lead with 60W wired charging, topping the device up to 50% in 20 minutes. The Z Fold 8 takes considerably longer with its 45W charging speed.
iPhone Duo vs Galaxy Z Fold 8 Verdict: Which One Should You Buy?
Before moving ahead with the verdict of this iPhone Duo vs Galaxy Z Fold 8 comparison, here's a breakdown of the key specifications of both devices.
| Specification | Galaxy Z Fold 8 | iPhone Duo |
|---|---|---|
| Main Display | 7.6-inch | 7.6-inch |
| Cover Display | 5.5-inch | 5.4-inch |
| Processor | Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy | Apple A20 Pro (2 nm) |
| Rear Cameras | 50 MP Main + 50 MP ultrawide | 48 MP Main + 48 MP ultrawide |
| Selfie Camera | 10 MP cover screen + 10 MP main display | 12 MP cover screen + under-display camera |
| Battery | 4,800mAh, up to 26 hours streaming | up to 31 hours of video playback on main screen, 44 hours on cover screen |
| Build | Armor Aluminium, Flex Titanium display | Titanium frame and hinge |
| Biometrics | Fingerprint scanner | Touch ID |
| Software | One UI 9, Android 17 | iOS 27 |
| Thickness | 4.5 mm unfolded, 9.7 mm folded | 5.6 mm unfolded, 11.2 mm folded |
| India Price (Starting) | Rs 1,79,999 | Rs 2,99,900 |
Samsung had a genuine head start here, seven generations of foldable experience distilled into a phone that already nails the wide format Apple is only just stepping into. But the iPhone Duo isn't trying to win by matching Samsung spec for spec; it's trying to bring the iPhone experience, iOS 27's new Apple Intelligence overhaul, and Apple's ecosystem to a form factor Apple has never shipped before.
If you're already inside Apple's ecosystem and have been waiting years for a foldable iPhone, that alone will likely outweigh Samsung's advantages. But if you want the more refined wide foldable, backed by years of software polish, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is the safer, more complete choice.
