The iPhone Duo 3 might finally get the pro-level features it was missing
Earlier last week, I listed the five flagship features missing from the iPhone Duo. Now, after the latest insight from Mark Gurman, it seems that Apple will be addressing two of them.
Late last week, I listed five flagship features missing from the iPhone Duo. Now, after the latest insight from Mark Gurman, it seems that Apple will be addressing two of them. We'll have to wait a bit, though, because these upgrades are allegedly coming to the iPhone Duo 3.
Face ID and a telephoto camera are coming to the iPhone Duo 3
Face ID is one of the greatest biometric systems ever made but it requires certain depth for the sensors to work properly. | Image by Digital Trends
According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple is keen to bring these two upgrades to future iterations of the iPhone Duo. Gurman shared his personal predictions about the next iPhone Duo models in the Q&A section of his Power On newsletter.
These predictions are not based on a leaked Apple roadmap or any factual information, at least at the moment, and represent Gurman's experience in the industry more than anything else.
That being said, most of his predictions, leaks, and rumors have been solid in the past couple of years, so we should listen to the man when he speaks.
Can't cheat physics
Periscope telephoto systems take up a lot of space. | Image by Digit
Gurman thinks that the problem comes down to fundamental physics. Telephoto cameras, especially periscope ones, require a lot of space, and the iPhone Duo doesn't have much available.
Both are difficult to squeeze into such a thin device because the necessary components require significant depth — it’s fundamentally a physics problem
- Mark Gurman, Power On newsletter
Furthermore, the phone already weighs 254 grams, and adding a heavy periscope lens system would bump that weight even further. And weight is the worst enemy of every foldable phone out there. Samsung already brags about the Galaxy Z Fold 8 being the lightest foldable out there, so Apple needs to keep the weight down on future iPhone Duo models.
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The Face ID module requires even more space, and specifically depth, to read the infrared dot pattern. The iPhone Duo is just 5.2 mm thick when unfolded—actually thinner than the iPhone Air. There's simply no physical space to fit Face ID and a telephoto camera. Yet.
Do you think the iPhone Duo needs a telephoto camera and Face ID?
6 Votes
AI to the rescue
Gurman thinks Apple will go the AI route to solve these problems. Rather than miniaturizing telephoto cameras and Face ID sensors, Apple will most likely incorporate AI to allow thinner and less complicated sensors to be as accurate as current iterations found on a regular iPhone.
We could see a glimpse of these scaled-down sensors in Apple’s upcoming smart-home hub, according to Gurman. Whether or not AI and computational photography could bridge the gap to a full-blown periscope zoom camera or make Face ID thinner, we have to wait and see. The thing is, some of Apple's competitors are already there, even without AI gimmicks.
Timeline and competitors
The Xiaomi 18 Fold features a periscope zoom camera and a bigger battery than the iPhone Duo. | Image by XimiTime
Mark Gurman thinks Apple will need a couple of years to solve these problems. Face ID and a telephoto camera could debut on the third-generation iPhone Duo.
Meanwhile, I think Apple is playing it safe again. If you take a look at other passport foldables such as the Huawei Pura X Max and Xiaomi 18 Fold, these competitors have periscope telephoto cameras, and they're not much thicker than the iPhone Duo.
These Chinese passport foldables also pack larger batteries, thanks to the silicon-carbon tech inside, and they're lighter, too.
Nevertheless, the iPhone Duo is shaping up to be a success, and it might all come down to a simple transition animation. People are loving the opening and closing UI animation of the iPhone Duo so much that they're recreating it on a wide variety of devices—including the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and even MacBooks.
Mariyan, a tech enthusiast with a background in Nuclear Physics and Journalism, brings a unique perspective to PhoneArena. His childhood curiosity for gadgets evolved into a professional passion for technology, leading him to the role of Editor-in-Chief at PCWorld Bulgaria before joining PhoneArena. Mariyan's interests range from mainstream Android and iPhone debates to fringe technologies like graphene batteries and nanotechnology. Off-duty, he enjoys playing his electric guitar, practicing Japanese, and revisiting his love for video games and Haruki Murakami's works.
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