Apple’s new iPhone Duo, the company’s first foldable, weighs 254 grams — 53 grams more than the Galaxy Z Fold 8, which weighs 201 grams and is described as a 7.6-inch tablet. Both devices use a passport-style aspect ratio and belong to the same device class.
That 53-gram difference means the iPhone Duo probably won’t be as comfortable to use in tablet mode for long sessions as the Fold 8, particularly if you hold the device with one hand and tap the screen with the other. The Fold 8 helped demonstrate how much of a difference lower weight can make for a tablet-style device that will eventually rest on your pinky finger.
iPhone Duo weight and possible causes
The iPhone Duo supports the Apple Pencil on both displays, a capability that requires extra hardware and could add some weight. Even so, that addition likely doesn’t explain the entire weight gap.
For context, Samsung’s last foldable with S Pen support, the Galaxy Z Fold 6, weighed 239 grams. The Galaxy Z Fold 7, which lacked S Pen support despite larger screens, weighed 215 grams. Those figures suggest stylus support alone cannot account for the iPhone Duo’s greater mass.
Apple does not publish battery capacity in milliampere-hours, but the iPhone Duo claims up to 31 hours of video playback on the inner screen versus Samsung’s 26-hour claim for the Fold 8. This could indicate a larger dual battery in the iPhone Duo, which in theory might explain some of the extra weight, but Apple has not revealed the detailed specifications.
Manufacturers’ video playback measurements and methodologies differ, so those numbers should not be taken as a direct one-to-one comparison. All in all, the iPhone Duo’s extra weight could be justifiable, but given how transformative a lightweight tablet experience can be, it remains to be seen whether the trade-off was worth it. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 still feels as good as it ever did.
