The iPhone Duo made me even more excited about Huawei’s and Samsung’s future phones

Didn't BlackBerry already do this with the Passport? I could see this being a trend especially for OEMs that aren't crippled by a limited OS.

I wouldn't put the Passport in the same category as every other modern smartphone because of the physical keyboard and the touchpad. On the other hand, it was an example of a device that used its unique form factor to do something completely fresh and different, which I'd love to see again. One can only dream of a BlackBerry Passport 2027.

I think you have misunderstood the basics.

A shorter phone is less top-heavy than a tall one. Moving the menu to the right had nothing to do with being more usable with one hand than having it at the bottom.

It was purely made due to the animation. Nothing else. So that the inside and the outside should look the same. They optimized the look just for an animation that owners will forget within a week.

Cons? Well yes, the change having the bar one the right side clearly does have more cons than benefits. The biggest con being you can't have as many shortcuts. The ones with the bar still in the bottom when opened can have three times as many shortcuts. Also... Have fun using the Duo being left-handed 😂

Happy browsing with the dock on the right and website info on the top and the bottom of the page. That leaves you a very small amount of actual browsing space. So, I truly hope that others won't copy this.

"As fun and fresh as it looks, it makes the phone difficult to use one-handed. That was the reason we moved to tall displays when phones got giant."

I don't understand the logic behind that belief (which, about a decade ago, phone manufacturers gave as one of the reasons for the shift to "tall and skinny" phone designs.)

With a large short/wide phone, the average user would have trouble reaching ACROSS the phone screen without shifting the device in their hand.

With a large tall/skinny phone, the average user would have trouble reaching UP AND DOWN the phone screen without shifting the device in their hand.

With larger phone sizes, tall/skinny phones are no easier to use one handed than short/wide phones.

"Wide phones could be the next big thing if everyone copies the iPhone once again." - Copying Apple by releasing theirs first... got it.

"while others would argue it was all preemptive copies of the foldable iPhone." - I'm not expert but in mid 2024 there was info that Apple's Codename V68 was going to be like a clamshell that folded widthwise instead of vertically. March 2025 Huawei unveils the Pura X. Then later in 2025, reports were Apple intended commercial device changes: it's now a wide, book-style device. Of course, everyone can do their own research, but I find it comical that Huawei beats the iPhone by 18 months but somehow COPIED it. Now they come out with the X Max and now the Pura X View and somehow they are preemptively copying Apple.

I feel like this was supposed to be a rage bait article, but so silly that one can only laugh. I can't wait for when Apple comes out with a tri-fold and Huawei and Samsung Copied them by releasing one YEARS before Apple does. haha

This article gave me the biggest laugh on this site in years. Thanks.