Getting started with your new iPhone Duo: the complete setup checklist
New to the fold? Here is the full setup checklist we walk every first-time Duo owner through before they install a single third-party app.
Before you install anything, there are a handful of settings worth checking on a brand-new iPhone Duo. This is the order we go through every time.
1. Understand the two displays
iPhone Duo has a 5.4-inch outer display for quick tasks when the phone is folded shut, and a 7.6-inch inner display that becomes available once you unfold it. These are genuinely different screens, not two halves of one panel — get familiar with which apps you tend to reach for on the outer display versus the inner one.
2. Check Split View on the inner display
The inner display supports Split View, dividing the screen into two fixed panes side by side. Swipe up from the bottom while an app is open to bring up the app switcher, then choose a second app to open it in Split View. Unlike iPad multitasking, you cannot drag the divider to resize either pane — every app gets exactly half the screen.
3. Check your app list for Duo-optimized badges
The App Store is expected to mark apps as optimized for iPhone Duo once Apple opens up screenshot and asset submission for the device later this year. In the meantime, Apple has confirmed Netflix, Zoom, and Slack as apps built to fill the inner display properly at launch. Apps that have not been updated will run boxed in with black bars in Split View — see our explainer on why that happens if you want the full picture.
4. Install at least one genuinely Duo-first app early
Seeing an app that actually uses Split View well early on changes how you think about the device for the rest of your ownership. We would suggest starting with something from our apps directory — DuoSketch and DuoCreator are both good first installs depending on whether you lean creative or productivity-minded.
5. Review your battery settings
iPhone Duo's inner display draws meaningfully more power than the outer display under sustained use. Apple's official claims are up to 44 hours of video playback using the outer display and up to 31 hours using the inner display — worth keeping in mind if you plan to use Split View for extended sessions away from a charger.
6. Get comfortable with the crease
Apple uses a nano-texture finish on the inner display specifically to reduce how visible the fold crease is. It does not remove the crease physically, but it is far less noticeable under normal, straight-on lighting than at sharp angles. See our full breakdown of what the nano-texture finish actually does if you are curious about the details.
Once you have gone through these six steps, you are set up well enough to start exploring the platform on your own terms rather than fighting the defaults.