More than 100,000 apps have been updated for Apple’s new iPhone Duo, the company says – even as it remains incredibly hard to actually buy one.
Before launch, some had speculated that many apps may be slow to update to the new form factor, given the unusual demands of the folding phone and the fact that it could be relatively niche given fears over how many of the devices Apple would actually be able to make. Those fears about supply have come true – the iPhone Duo remains out of stock in Apple Stores, and the company says it does not know when the problem will be resolved – but many developers have already updated their apps.
The company had previously struggled to encourage developers to embrace its other new platform, the Vision Pro headset. That had led to fears that the same would happen with the iPhone Duo, but even notable holdouts have already updated their apps for the new form factor.
Netflix, for instance, still does not have a native app for the Vision Pro, but its iPhone Duo app has been a central part of the marketing for the foldable phone. And Instagram – which until late last year did not even have an app for the iPad – has adapted its iPhone app, though its boss Adam Mosseri has admitted that the Duo app needs work and that it is “a bit of a tricky form factor”.
Apps that have not been updated will still run on the iPhone Duo. But they appear with large black bars around the edges – especially so on the phone’s larger, inner display – and cannot take advantage of features specific to the folding device, including the ability to change the content shown as the device is folded into different angles.
Apple has looked to encourage developers to adapt to the new platform as quickly as possible in a variety of technical and practical ways. Those have included adding changes to its developer tools so that apps were ready for different sized screens even before the iPhone Duo was announced, as well as running in-person workshops for developers and adding a “Made for iPhone Duo” section in the App Store.
“It’s been wonderful to see how quickly developers have embraced iPhone Duo, and we’re grateful for their creativity and innovation. Today there are well over 100,000 apps built for iPhone Duo already live on the App Store, and thousands of optimized apps are being added to the store each day,” said Susan Prescott, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations.
“In the last month alone, thousands of developers have joined us for workshops in 19 cities around the world to experience iPhone Duo firsthand and bring updated apps to their users. The enthusiasm has been incredible, and we’re excited to see the pace of updates continue to accelerate as more and more apps optimize for iPhone Duo.”
