Apple’s first foldable has been on shelves for about two weeks, and the internet has already moved on to the sequel. A purported prototype of the iPhone Duo 2 surfaced on X this week, posted by leaker Majin Bu, with three cameras on the back instead of two. That could mean a telephoto lens, the most obvious omission on the $1,999 original. I have one pressing question, though. What do we even call this thing? The Duo Duo? The Duo Trio, in honor of all three lenses?
Naming crisis aside, the image shows the same pill-shaped camera module as the current Duo, stretched a little longer to fit the extra lens. Apple’s foldable measures 0.2 inches (5.2mm) unfolded, so expanding the bump sideways seems a sensible choice, though the photo doesn’t establish its thickness. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has separately reported that Duo 2 prototypes are testing Face ID tucked under the outer display, which would address another conspicuous omission. The photo remains unverified, and the phone isn’t expected until the second half of 2027. If the reports hold up, Apple appears to be tackling two of the first Duo’s biggest gaps.
Image Credits: Majin Bu (X)
Stretching the Pill to Fit a Telephoto
A telephoto camera needs room for its optics and sensor. That’s a tough ask on a phone measuring 0.2 inches (5.2mm) unfolded and 0.44 inches (11.3mm) when folded. The purported prototype shows a longer camera module, but it tells us little about how the hardware might fit inside. The iPhone Duo already shares its A20 Pro chip with the triple-camera iPhone 18 Pro. Squeezing in a third camera without turning a slim foldable into a brick with a hinge is a separate challenge.
The iPhone 7 Plus introduced Apple’s first telephoto lens in 2016, and the iPhone 11 Pro made the triple-camera bump the Pro standard three years later. A third camera on the Duo would follow that playbook, with the foldable catching up to the Pro line one generation in. Samsung, meanwhile, is heading the other way. The $1,899.99 Galaxy Z Fold8 dropped its telephoto entirely, leaving 3x optical zoom to the $2,099.99 Z Fold8 Ultra, which pairs it with a 200MP main sensor and a 50MP ultra-wide. If the extra camera is a telephoto, the Duo 2 would offer the same main, ultra-wide, and telephoto arrangement as Samsung’s pricier foldable while undercutting it on price, assuming that $1,999 tag survives.
Face ID, an Action Button, and Apple’s Favorite Sequel Trick
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported in October that Duo 2 prototypes are testing Face ID hidden beneath the outer display. That would mean tucking facial-recognition hardware, including an infrared camera and flood illuminator, under the screen itself. The current Duo relies on Touch ID in the power button, a familiar solution that still feels like a step back on a $1,999 iPhone. Gurman also says Apple is weighing an Action button, which the first Duo skipped. He cautions that neither feature is locked in, and Face ID could slip to the third-generation model if development runs late.
Fixing the first version’s biggest gaps is a familiar Apple sequel move. The iPhone 3G added the 3G connectivity and GPS the 2007 original lacked, and the Apple Watch Series 2 followed the first watch with built-in GPS and swim-proofing. A Duo 2 with a telephoto and Face ID would fit that pattern, giving buyers two familiar iPhone features missing from the first foldable. The rumored launch is still roughly a year out, so expect plenty more leaks before Apple says a word. My vote for the name stays the same, though, because the Duo Trio has a nice ring to it.
