iPhone Duo: 7 Ways to Fold It, Hold It and Use It

Quick summary: If you’ve never used a foldable, here’s how many ways you can hold one. Apple made a video for app developers showing seven iPhone Duo poses. Here’s each one, and which I think people will actually use.

Key takeaways

• Apple shows seven poses, from closed to tent and tabletop.
• I think the big ones will be closed in hand, fully open, and open and rotated.
• Partially folded poses will matter for specific apps, like camera previews, clocks, weather and games.
• This will push foldable app development forward for Apple and Android.

The seven poses

1. Closed compact: comfortable in the hand. I don’t use my foldables like this as much as you’d think.
2. Partially folded: handy for some apps and photos.
3. Fully open flat: you’ll use this a lot, for everything.
4. Open portrait: rotated for certain apps. App compatibility won’t be 100% at first, but it should be pretty good.
5. Handheld, open toward the viewer: fun for showing something off, but I don’t see it being common.
6. Tent: I can see people using this for the clock, weather and similar glanceable info.
7. Tabletop: cool, but probably not used much.

What you’ll really use

I think it’ll be mostly closed in hand, fully open, and open and rotated. If you’re coming from a regular iPhone, you’ll quickly notice you use the inside display way more than the outside.

There are inventive uses too. For example, when taking a photo, the person you’re shooting can see the rear camera’s view on the other display. Developers will also build apps that need tent mode or a partially open pose, like games that use tent mode instead of just showing a clock.

Why it matters

Apple pushing these poses will take foldable development to another level for everybody, not just Apple. The pre-pre-order is next week, with release after that.

Get a case and a grip

You’ll thank me later, especially for the grip. It’s a no-brainer.

• OhSnap Snap Grip stand
• PopSockets Low-Pro grip and Kick-Out