iFixit has published its teardown of the iPhone Duo, revealing details about the hinge design that may help explain screen cracks reported by some users. The DIY repair group also called the Duo the most repairable foldable device yet, although opening it up would not be easy.
The teardown comes after multiple users reported on social media that cracks were developing along the middle of the screen, where the crease runs.
To help the screen fold smoothly while minimizing the appearance of a crease, Apple designed a smooth curve inside the hinge using multiple curved guides. These guides extend when the display is folded and retract when it is open. A center support bar running along the hinge also drops to accommodate the fold. Apple further minimizes the crease’s visibility by aligning oval-shaped pixels in a specific pattern and using a nano-texture coating to effectively “blur” the fold point. iFixit demonstrated this effect by examining the screen under a powerful microscope.
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The retractable curved guides and support bar could point to a potential cause of the screen cracks. iFixit built a 3D model of the hinge using “teardown footage, patents and CT scans, then compared it with the reported damage locations” to investigate the issue. One of its simulations suggested that the center bar might not drop far enough, creating a stress point where the screen folds against it.
iFixit also found that despite the iPhone Duo’s IP68 dust-resistance rating, fine particles could enter the hinge mechanism, as they can in other foldable phones. This could cause the hinge to “crunch” and damage the screen, potentially producing the “green line” pattern reported by some users. According to iFixit, the device’s internal mechanism is dust-resistant, but the hinge itself may not be adequately protected.
Other components of the Duo are sturdy and relatively easy to repair, iFixit said. The group was able to remove the outer screen and batteries, and found that smaller components were “fairly accessible.”
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The inner display and hinge, however, accounted for the biggest deductions in its assessment. iFixit noted that “many are opting for AppleCare+ coverage for this reason,” adding that “the early reports of screen failures make clear that display replacement is more than a distant possibility.”
iFixit gave the iPhone Duo a provisional repairability score of 5 out of 10, pending the availability of replacement parts.