Samsung made a snarky remark online after Apple’s announcement of its first foldable iPhone Duo. Within minutes of the launch, Samsung Mobile US began posting pointed comments on X about Apple’s entry into a foldable market that Samsung has occupied for years.
Samsung initially mocked Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro with posts suggesting the new device looked familiar. However, the quirky comments arrived when Apple finally revealed the iPhone Duo. “Let us know when you’re done reheating our leftovers,” Samsung posted, a clear reference to Apple arriving late to the foldable smartphone category. Samsung has been selling foldable phones since the original Galaxy Fold launched in 2019.
Samsung’s social-media campaign continued throughout Apple’s launch event. Before the Duo was announced, the company posted that while Apple was making customers wait, Samsung was ‘folding 3 ways,’ referring to its Galaxy Z TriFold.
The company also described Apple’s latest developments as ‘So far, so same,’ while another post compared the iPhone 18 Pro’s changes to a possible ‘Sims sequel.’ The posts were part of Samsung’s familiar strategy of using Apple launches to highlight differences between the two brands.
The timing is particularly notable because the iPhone Duo will compete directly with Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8, which has already established itself in the book-style foldable segment.
Samsung was not the only brand looking for an opportunity to joke about Apple’s new phone. Language-learning platform Duolingo jumped into the conversation because of the device’s name. Its mascot is also called Duo.
After Apple announced the iPhone Duo, Duolingo posted a cheeky message saying the company had named a phone after its mascot and made it ‘bend.’ The post quickly became part of the wider social-media exchange surrounding Apple’s launch.
Samsung then responded to Duolingo in ‘solidarity,’ joking that Apple had copied them too. The exchange turned what was already a major product launch into a broader piece of social-media entertainment.
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Apple’s entry represents a major shift in the smartphone market. The iPhone Duo starts at USD 1,999 in the US, with a 7.6-inch internal display and a 5.4-inch outer screen. It uses a custom hinge and is designed to support multitasking across its larger display.
Apple may be entering the foldable market years after Samsung, but the launch has already given the two rivals another reason to trade public jabs. Now the bigger question is whether consumers will see the Duo as a late arrival or as Apple's version of a product category it could potentially take mainstream.