iPhone Duo was voted "Invention of the Year 2026" by TIME magazine

(Dan Tri) - TIME magazine voted Apple's first folding phone as the "Invention of 2026", even though the product has only just been introduced and has not yet been officially marketed.

Why was iPhone Duo voted "Invention of the Year 2026" by TIME?

TIME magazine has just released its annual publication called "The Best Inventions of 2026". Appearing on the cover of this publication is Apple CEO John Ternus, with the iPhone Duo folding screen phone.

TIME magazine's Best Inventions list is an annual ranking by TIME of the most outstanding new products, technologies and ideas, evaluated based on originality, effectiveness, ambition and real-world impact.

Apple CEO John Ternus and the iPhone Duo folding phone appear on the cover of TIME magazine's special issue (Photo: TIME).

TIME's list this year includes 300 breakthrough inventions, from hardware products to AI software that allows people who don't know how to program to still build complete websites, or a breakthrough treatment method for pancreatic cancer...

This list includes innovations that are changing the way we live, work, play, and even define what's possible.

TIME magazine said the iPhone Duo was chosen as "Invention of 2026" because it is Apple's first folding phone, a product with a groundbreaking design and the biggest change since the first iPhone launched in 2007.

According to TIME, Apple has solved the classic weakness of folding phones by using hinges with more than 100 precision components, nanotexture technology screens that help increase durability and almost completely eliminate folds on the screen.

TIME emphasized that iPhone Duo is a product that truly demonstrates Apple's philosophy, combining beautiful design, complete hardware engineering and a smooth usage experience.

TIME has called the iPhone Duo "a symbol of the Ternus era" and the success or failure of this phone will likely greatly affect John Ternus's future strategies as the driver of Apple.

Before the iPhone Duo, the first iPhone launched in 2007 was also voted "Invention of the Year 2007" by TIME magazine. This product was later included in TIME's "list of the 25 most iconic inventions since 2000".

John Ternus has been researching folding phones since 2011, criticizing other phones as "cheap and poor quality".

Apple is considered to be slow in the race to develop folding screen phones, as it will take until 2026 for the company to launch the first folding screen phone, while its competitors did this nearly 10 years ago.

However, John Ternus said he and his colleagues at Apple have been researching folding screen technology since 2011. At that time, when many users were still using basic folding phones, John Ternus and five engineers at Apple filed a patent application for a foldable electronic device, which researched the type of battery and circuit board needed for such a device.

“At that time, we clearly saw that there would come a time when OLED screen technology would become flexible and bendable,” John Ternus told TIME magazine.

John Ternus also said he was unimpressed with the first attempts at foldable phones from other companies in the 2010s.

“Other products on the market at that time felt cheap and of poor quality,” John Ternus commented bluntly.

Apple CEO John Ternus has high hopes for the iPhone Duo (Photo: Japan Times).

John Ternus, in his role as Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering before becoming CEO of Apple, was determined to create a folding phone that was completely different from its competitors. This is also one of the reasons why the iPhone Duo was delayed and launched slower than its competitors.

"During the development process, even though competitors had launched folding screen products first, Ternus still pushed the team to spend more time and effort on the project," said Richard Dinh, Vice President of Product Design at Apple.

Richard Dinh said that at one point he asked Ternus whether Apple should use the same screen material as its competitors for the folding iPhone, a solution that according to Dinh is still flawed but "usable", but Dinh received the answer from Ternus: "When you find the right solution, you will know it yourself."

John Ternus's answer gave the development team more confidence to continue research. The development team flew around the world to connect with suppliers, thereby developing the iPhone Duo's nanotexture screen technology, which according to John Ternus has outstanding advantages over competitors, especially making the folds on the screen almost completely disappear.

Sharing with TIME magazine, John Ternus said that even after becoming Apple's CEO, he still paid special attention to the design aspect, spending many days every week at the studio with the industrial and user interface design team. This shows that John Ternus has put a lot of effort into iPhone Duo and sees this as an important product to affirm his position at Apple.

Tim Cook, John Ternus's predecessor, has affirmed his position in the international arena as a powerful figure, skillfully navigating political, market, and global supply chain issues. Before that, Steve Jobs showed a brilliant view, convincing the world about the products and technology created by Apple.

However, both Tim Cook and Steve Jobs are economically oriented CEOs, always looking for solutions to optimize profits for Apple. Meanwhile, John Ternus is a hardware engineer, a secretive and little-known leader until becoming Apple's CEO.

Surely John Ternus will not copy the style of Tim Cook or Steve Jobs in the past, but will promote his own strengths, helping to create products that appreciate design and hardware perfection. It won't be too surprising that Apple launches more and more products under the leadership of John Ternus.

TIME magazine's “Best Inventions” list is TIME's annual ranking of the most outstanding new products, technologies and ideas, judged on originality, effectiveness, ambition and real-world impact.

TIME's global editors and reporters will nominate online, prioritizing products in the fields of technology, health, AI, green energy... Products appearing on the cover of TIME's special issue will be considered the outstanding invention of that year as voted by this magazine's editorial team.