Apple enters the book-style foldable market with high expectations, needing to prove that a larger canvas does not mean sacrificing the responsiveness and speed of traditional slab phones.
Equipped with the A20 Pro chip, the device arrives with immense potential, sharing its architectural foundation with the iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max.
Synthetic benchmark results confirm that this new device ranks among the most powerful mobile hardware available.
CPU and Graphics Performance
Testing the device's single- and multi-core capabilities through Geekbench highlights the raw processing power delivered by the 2-nanometer A20 Pro architecture.
The foldable logs Geekbench 6 single- and multi-core scores of 4,722 and 12,708, respectively. These figures place it mere points behind its traditional Pro stablemates.
While the iPhone 18 Pro Max maintains a performance advantage of less than 1.5% across testing suites, the minimal gap demonstrates that form factor does not hinder core capability.
When stacked against competing foldables like the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Pixel 11 Pro Fold, the device establishes a clear lead, keeping single-core metrics well ahead of Android alternatives.
iPhone Duo graphics performance: 3DMark
While basic tasks feel seamless on most modern flagships, graphically intensive mobile games reveal stark differences in hardware execution and sustained thermal loads.
In 3DMark’s Solar Bay Unlimited test, the hardware records an average of 62.3 frames per second, placing it securely between the standard and Pro Max slab models with a score of 16,496.
This graphic capability translates to roughly a 32% GPU performance advantage over the Galaxy Z Fold 8 series, which hovers below the 50-fps threshold.
The sprawling 7.8-inch main canvas benefits directly from this graphical headroom, rendering complex environments smoothly without noticeable stutter during intense action sequences.
AI Capabilities and Conclusion
On-device machine learning tasks leverage the dual 16-core Neural Engine housed within the A20 Pro chipset to process local artificial intelligence requests rapidly.
An average score of 69,438 in Geekbench AI 1.7 positions the device competitively, though Qualcomm-powered rivals like the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra take a narrow 3% to 4% lead in this specific metric.
iPhone Duo performance: Bottom line
Transitioning to a 2-nanometer manufacturing process yields tangible benefits, allowing the foldable to handle demanding workflows and multi-app multitasking with absolute ease.
These hardware metrics raise the bar for the entire foldable market, signaling that manufacturers can no longer compromise on raw power or thermal execution.
