iFixit Flags iPhone Duo Inner-Screen Risks Despite Top Foldable Repair Score

The teardown found a flatter internal layout, a single-layer mainboard, and an outer screen and frame that can be removed without damage. Both batteries use electrically releasable adhesive and metal casings, reducing removal difficulty and puncture risk. Repairs still require five different screwdriver sizes, and Apple’s official self-service repair parts are not yet listed. iFixit said some users have heard noises when opening and closing the phone, followed by cracks and bright lines at the crease; some failures occurred during first boot. Its 3D modeling and industrial CT scanning pointed to the junction between the display cable cutout and the hinge’s central support. If the central support rod does not sink sufficiently when closed, the fold area is squeezed and stress concentrates. Dust tests showed fine dust still enters the hinge and causes noises. Apple hides the crease with a water-drop hinge, an oval subpixel arrangement with up to 32 displacements, and a replaceable matte nano-texture polymer layer; without that layer, iFixit said the crease is about as visible as on Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8.

Spotify confirmed on its third-quarter earnings call that it will tighten account-sharing verification for its Family plan by requiring members to scan a QR code displayed on the primary account holder’s phone within seven days, TechCrunch reported. Members who fail verification are removed from the plan and cannot join another Family or Duo plan for 12 months; they can only move to an individual paid plan. The Family plan, launched more than 12 years ago, allows up to six members at the same address and accounts for a large share of Spotify’s paid users; it has long been used by adult children or friends living apart to split costs. Co-CEO Alex Norström said Spotify is not cracking down on sharing but making routine improvements to existing verification tools, and that identity verification is continuous work with no deadline.

The Browser Company announced that Arc will be discontinued on Dec. 22, 2026, as it shifts to its AI browser Dia, TechCrunch reported. New registrations stopped immediately. From Nov. 23, AI features in the mobile Arc Search app will go offline, and account login and tab syncing will stop. On Dec. 22, desktop Arc will stop running, and account and personal data will be deleted within 30 days. Dia inherits Arc’s vertical sidebar and tab groups, and passwords, bookmarks and history can be migrated. The company declined calls to open-source Arc, saying its core engine depends on the proprietary ADK architecture and that open-sourcing Arc would expose Dia’s core technology. Atlassian acquired The Browser Company in September 2025 for $610 million.

China Media Group reported that local commerce authorities and the China Household Electrical Appliances Association denied claims that the national trade-in subsidy for home appliances would be fully withdrawn on Oct. 15 or that funds were about to run out. The report said the rumors were promotion tactics used by some appliance dealers to create buying anxiety before Double 11. The National Development and Reform Commission’s fourth batch of 62.5 billion yuan in ultra-long special treasury bonds supporting consumer trade-ins was issued on Sept. 30. The final use deadline is Dec. 31, 2026, under prior arrangements, and the Commerce Ministry and four other departments have required balanced monthly use of funds. Anhui, Chongqing, Jiangxi and industry associations said funds are sufficient and there is no short-term exhaustion or sudden suspension. The subsidy is 15% of the final sales price after discounts, can be stacked with e-commerce promotions, and online platforms are basically not region-limited.

Google announced on Oct. 22 a partnership with Voltus to deploy a 1,070-megawatt virtual power plant to ease electricity pressure from AI data center expansion, The New York Times reported. The capacity is about that of a large nuclear reactor, and the companies did not disclose financial terms. The virtual plant recruits homes and businesses and pays them to cut energy use during peak or grid-stress periods through smart thermostats, electric vehicle charging, pauses in industrial equipment, and home batteries. A 100-megawatt pilot in June was oversubscribed. The project sits in the PJM grid, which covers 13 states and about 67 million people, including data-center-heavy Northern Virginia. Since 2024, data center demand growth there has outpaced plant construction and pushed up prices. Google sees virtual capacity as a bridge because new gas plants are costly and gas turbines take years to deliver. AI infrastructure’s energy use and pollution have also met local opposition; nearly half of Americans strongly oppose new data centers near their communities, and at least 45 projects worth nearly $68 billion were delayed or shelved in the second quarter.

The Financial Times reported that the iTunes Store is drawing renewed interest from major labels and pop artists as a channel to sell exclusive content to core fans and lift chart positions, even though Apple retired the desktop iTunes app in 2019. Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift, Charli XCX and Tinashe have released exclusive digital albums with bonus tracks, live versions or B-sides. Billboard counts 1,000 paid streams or 2,500 free streams as one album sale, while one iTunes download counts as one. Grande’s exclusive live version of Petal lifted the album from No. 15 to No. 6 on the Billboard 200; Tinashe’s limited bonus version gave her a personal best. Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl sold 4 million physical and digital albums in its first U.S. week, including 358,000 downloads, while streaming-equivalent sales were 522,000. U.S. CD sales rose 16% in the first half of 2026, and used iPod sales also rose. Industry figures said the strategy has limited effect for artists without large core fan bases and could annoy fans amid high concert ticket prices.

In other reports, Mark Gurman said Apple will launch its first touchscreen MacBook Pro on Wednesday, ending nearly two decades of resistance to touchscreen computers. He said the high-end model will come in 14-inch and 16-inch sizes, weigh less, cost well above the existing $2,499 high-end version, and introduce OLED screens and Dynamic Island to the Mac line. Apple positions touch as an auxiliary input alongside the keyboard and trackpad, and macOS Golden Gate supports an interface that adjusts controls based on whether the user last used touch or a pointer. Apple executive Greg Joswiak also hinted on X at Pro-level product news next week. Gurman said Apple has deployed retail devices that can scan returned iPhones without opening the packaging and run hardware diagnostics, based on its Presto technology, to prevent customers from swapping contents while claiming to return sealed devices.

The Financial Times reported that OpenAI lowered the valuation target for its latest funding round to $1.25 trillion from $1.4 trillion after some investors resisted the price, and is seeking $30 billion in bridge funding before a listing next year. The new target is still nearly 50% above OpenAI’s current $852 billion valuation. Morgan Stanley and Dragoneer had pitched private-wealth clients at a $1.4 trillion pre-money valuation, but demand was weaker than in prior rounds. Concerns about debt-financed AI infrastructure have hit tech stocks. OpenAI raised $40 billion in March 2025 and a record $122 billion this March; Anthropic has raised nearly $100 billion this year and is expected to hold an IPO later this year. Some investors want to see Anthropic’s IPO pricing before adding to OpenAI, which plans to list in the first half of 2027.

According to social media posts, Hainan’s duty-free channel published iPhone Duo prices on Oct. 23: 256GB at 15,839 yuan, 160 yuan below the tax-inclusive 15,999 yuan; 512GB at 17,819 yuan, 180 yuan lower; 1TB at 21,289 yuan, 210 yuan lower; and 2TB at 26,239 yuan, 260 yuan lower. MacRumors reported that for the 25th anniversary of the original iPod, Apple added a hidden Easter egg on the Apple Music website, replacing 404 pages with an interactive original iPod. Users can browse menus and preview 90-second clips from well-known Western pop artists with the Click Wheel; in Settings > About, long-pressing the center button launches the classic Breakout game.