The iPhone Duo will be released tomorrow but, given the strong demand for pre-orders, it is already shaping up to be a great success. And we all expect Apple to follow up with a second-generation model next fall, which means the company already has to work on next-generation hardware.
In his Power On podcast, Mark Gurman reports that iPhone Duo 2 prototypes within Apple include Face ID, with the Face ID sensor integrated below the display on the external screen.
The switch from Face ID to Touch ID on this phone was one of the biggest complaints raised by early iPhone Duo reviewers. Chance Miller of 9to5Mac called it “the hardest thing to get used to” with the new foldable.
For the first-generation iPhone Duo, fitting Face ID inside the super-thin case seemed to be the problem. But Apple has worked to make Face ID smaller and less intrusive, as seen with the iPhone 18 Pro’s under-display IR camera.
With the iPhone Duo 2 and the 20th anniversary iPhone Pro, we may see another evolution where both the IR camera and illuminator are located behind the screen, allowing the bezel or Dynamic Island cutout to be even smaller.
Of course, just because they’re testing the technology on iPhone Duo prototypes right now, there’s no guarantee that it will be released in next year’s review. But that seems to be Apple’s goal, so customers can probably expect it next year or as part of the iPhone Duo 3, if development slips.
In the same episode, Gurman also says that employees are exploring ways to bring the Action button to a next-generation iPhone Duo model as well, though he seems less confident about that.
It’s also unclear whether Apple will remove the Touch ID sensor from the power button if it adds Face ID to the device or whether it will retain both biometric methods while allowing users to authenticate whether they are looking at the internal or external display.
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