Add GIZMOCHINA as Preferred Source on Google
Early units of Apple’s first foldable phone are already out in the wild, and they’re revealing a bit more about how the display actually feels, just days before official shipping starts.
The iPhone Duo is due to begin shipping on Friday, October 23. A few customers have already received their units early, and hands-on videos making the rounds online are highlighting something a little unexpected about the crease. At Apple’s launch event the crease looked barely noticeable, but these newer clips suggest the company hasn’t completely solved the classic foldable-screen issue.
Apple went a different route from competitors like Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8. Instead of relying mainly on ultra-thin glass for a harder surface, the iPhone Duo uses a softer cover layer that can be replaced relatively cheaply if it gets scratched. That choice, combined with the hinge design, makes the screen feel especially soft right above the hinge.
When you drag a finger across that central area, the crease becomes clearly visible and you can even feel it as a slight dip. Leave the display alone, though, and the crease is barely noticeable under normal viewing conditions, at least on brand-new units. This soft-touch feel seems consistent across the early units that have shown up so far.
How well this design will hold up long-term is still an open question. On a lot of foldables the crease tends to get more pronounced the more you fold and unfold the phone over time. Once wider shipping kicks off on Friday we should start seeing more detailed videos and longer-term user feedback. Until then it’s still too early to say how the display will look and feel after months or years of daily use.
Apple is using a nano-texture finish and specialized adhesives to try to keep visual disruption and stress on the display layers to a minimum. Early hands-ons at the event generally called the crease less intrusive than on rival devices. The newer customer videos just add a bit of nuance: the crease is subtle when the screen is sitting still, but that soft feel over the hinge is a distinctive trait of Apple’s first foldable.
Don’t miss a thing! Join our Telegram community for instant updates and grab our free daily newsletter for the best tech stories!
For more daily updates, please visit our News Section.
(Source: Ice Universe)
Discussion about this post