Apple held its fall product launch event in the early hours of September 10, Taiwan time, marking the first major product presentation hosted by newly appointed CEO John Ternus. At the event, Apple unveiled the new iPhone 18 lineup, AirPods, Apple Watch, and the long-awaited iPhone Duo, the company’s first foldable smartphone. The product portfolio spans smartphones, wearable devices, and personal audio products, highlighting not only continued upgrades across Apple’s existing product lines, but also a further push into the premium segment through the introduction of its new foldable device. | Product | U.S. Pricing | Key Highlights | | ------------------------------------- | -------------------: | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | iPhone Duo | Starting at US$1,999 | Apple’s first foldable iPhone, featuring a 7.6-inch inner display and a 5.4-inch outer display. It introduces support for Split View and Apple Pencil, while also incorporating a dual-battery design and an eSIM-only configuration globally. | | iPhone 18 Pro | Starting at US$1,199 | Introduces a physical variable aperture on the main camera for the first time, alongside new Pro Controls and image authentication features. Sustained performance improves by 40%. | | iPhone 18 Pro Max | Starting at US$1,299 | Features a 6.9-inch display with specifications largely identical to the iPhone 18 Pro. The U.S. eSIM-only model offers up to 45 hours of video playback. | | Apple Watch Series 12 | Starting at US$399 | Features an all-new health sensing system with significantly enhanced heart rate and HRV monitoring, along with a new Readiness Score and Audio Intelligence. It is also the thinnest Apple Watch to date. | | Apple Watch Ultra 4 | Starting at US$799 | Incorporates the same health sensing capabilities as the Series 12 and delivers up to 84 hours of battery life. Max Extended Workout mode supports up to 45 hours of use while recording GPS data every second. | | AirPods 5 | US$129 | Features built-in ANC with up to a 50% improvement in noise cancellation performance, while also supporting Live Translation and Siri AI capabilities. | | AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case | US$149 | Supports wireless charging and Apple Watch chargers, while adding stem-based swipe volume controls and longer battery life. |

Apple Unveils Its First Foldable Smartphone, the iPhone Duo

The key focus of this launch event was Apple’s first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, which marks the company’s formal entry into the foldable smartphone market. The device features a dual-display design, with a 5.4-inch outer screen when folded and a 7.6-inch inner display when unfolded. On the hardware side, it is powered by the 2nm A20 Pro chip and incorporates a dual-battery system, a redesigned thermal architecture, and a global eSIM-only design to free up additional internal space. Positioned at the ultra-premium end of the market with a starting price of US$1,999, the iPhone Duo is not intended simply to replace the existing Pro Max lineup, but rather to establish a new product category between flagship smartphones and compact tablets. That said, pricing remains notably high, with the 256GB model priced at NT$74,900 in Taiwan, which could limit consumer adoption and shipment volumes in the near term. As a result, the first-generation model is likely to serve primarily as a platform for establishing product positioning, validating market demand, and developing Apple’s foldable-device ecosystem, rather than becoming an immediate key driver of iPhone shipments. Nevertheless, Apple’s entry into the segment is expected to accelerate foldable smartphone adoption in the premium market and support demand across related supply chains, including foldable displays, hinges, ultra-thin glass, and thermal solutions.

Comprehensive Specification Upgrades Across the iPhone 18 Pro Series

As for the iPhone 18 series, Apple has discontinued the standard model this year, launching only the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max. The move is widely viewed as a response to rising component costs, particularly for memory, while prices for comparable storage configurations have also increased by approximately US$100 versus the previous generation. Product upgrades are primarily focused on performance, camera capabilities, and AI features. Both the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max are powered by the 2nm A20 Pro chip, delivering 50% higher memory bandwidth and up to 40% better GPU performance than the A19 Pro. A redesigned package and a vapor chamber three times larger than the previous generation further enhance thermal management, enabling up to a 40% improvement in sustained performance. On the camera side, the 48MP main camera introduces a physical variable aperture for the first time, allowing users to adjust light intake and depth of field based on shooting conditions. The new Pro Controls also provide manual adjustment of aperture, shutter speed, and white balance, further strengthening the devices’ positioning for professional photography. In addition, the next-generation Dynamic Island can display up to three Live Activities simultaneously, while the devices also incorporate Apple’s in-house C2 modem. On the software side, iOS 27, Apple Intelligence, and the next-generation Siri AI improve contextual understanding of personal content, on-screen awareness, and cross-app functionality. Overall, the positioning of the iPhone 18 Pro series remains broadly unchanged, with Apple instead strengthening its competitiveness in the premium segment through comprehensive upgrades in 2nm processing, thermal management, imaging, and AI capabilities.

Deep Integration of Apple Intelligence Across the Device Ecosystem

Beyond the iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 series, Apple also introduced updates to the Apple Watch Series 12, Apple Watch Ultra 4, and AirPods 5, with the key highlights centered more on software enhancements and deeper integration across the Apple Intelligence ecosystem. Both the Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 are powered by the new S11 chip and feature the Health Sensing System, which increases the frequency of heart rate and HRV monitoring. They also introduce a new Readiness Score that combines sleep, HRV, activity levels, and training load to assess users’ daily recovery status. Meanwhile, the redesigned Health app incorporates Apple Intelligence through new features such as Insights and Longevity, integrating heart rate, sleep, exercise, and other health data to provide personalized analysis, while Health Age offers a longer-term assessment of users’ overall health status. AirPods 5 further improve open-fit ANC and audio quality while serving as a more important voice interface for Siri AI, with support for Live Translation and hands-free interactions. On the software side, the next generation of Apple Intelligence and Siri AI will be rolled out progressively through iOS 27, watchOS 27, and other operating systems. In addition to broader world knowledge, Siri will be able to understand users’ personal context across messages, emails, photos, and on-screen content, while also performing actions across multiple apps. Apple Intelligence is also being integrated more deeply into native applications including Photos, Safari, and Health. Overall, Apple is extending AI from standalone features into a system-wide experience, with the iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods serving respectively as the core computing platform, health-sensing interface, and voice interaction gateway, gradually building a more personalized and seamless cross-device AI ecosystem.

Taiwan Apple Supply Chain Stock Performance

Taiwan-listed Apple supply chain stocks generally closed lower on September 10, primarily reflecting broader market pressure from international oil prices rising above US$100 per barrel and developments related to U.S. Treasury buybacks. Within the Apple supply chain, Shin Zu Shing and GIS-KY posted the steepest declines of 8.01% and 5.04%, respectively. The weakness likely reflected profit-taking after foldable iPhone expectations had already been priced in ahead of the launch event, resulting in a classic sell-the-news reaction once the product was officially unveiled. Shin Zu Shing is viewed as a key beneficiary of the iPhone Duo hinge supply chain, and its share price had already rallied significantly on the foldable iPhone theme, making it particularly sensitive to changes in shipment expectations. GIS-KY, meanwhile, is expected to benefit from downstream processing of ultra-thin glass for foldable devices. However, given that first-year iPhone Duo shipments are expected to represent only a small portion of total iPhone volumes, combined with a high starting price of US$1,999, the near-term revenue contribution to related suppliers may fall short of prior market expectations, resulting in heavier selling pressure following the official launch. In contrast, thermal solution suppliers outperformed, with Auras Technology rising 3.94%, reflecting the significant thermal design upgrades in both the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo. In particular, the iPhone 18 Pro adopts a vapor chamber three times larger than that of the previous generation, while the 2nm A20 Pro chip and growing adoption of on-device AI further increase sustained computing requirements, reinforcing market expectations for a structural upgrade in thermal management demand for premium smartphones. Overall, the day’s weakness appears to reflect deteriorating market risk sentiment and valuation normalization following the realization of new-product catalysts, rather than any material change in the medium- to long-term growth outlook for the foldable iPhone supply chain.

Conclusion

Overall, the key takeaway from Apple’s fall product launch was not simply another round of hardware specification upgrades, but rather the acceleration of product portfolio expansion and deeper integration of its AI ecosystem. The launch of the iPhone Duo formally fills Apple’s gap in the foldable smartphone segment. Although its high starting price of US$1,999 is likely to limit near-term shipment contribution, the more important implication is Apple’s entry into the foldable market, which could help accelerate category adoption and drive specification upgrades across hinges, ultra-thin glass, displays, and thermal components. Meanwhile, the iPhone 18 Pro series continues Apple’s premiumization strategy through the 2nm A20 Pro chip, higher memory bandwidth, and enhanced thermal architecture, highlighting how smartphone competition is gradually shifting from peak performance toward system-level integration of AI computing and sustained performance. Apple Watch and AirPods further strengthen health sensing and voice interaction as key user interfaces, with Apple Intelligence and Siri AI serving as the connective layer across devices. From a supply chain perspective, foldable-related stocks may face near-term pressure as expectations had already been largely priced in ahead of the launch and first-year shipment volumes remain limited. Over the medium to long term, however, Apple’s formal entry into foldable smartphones should still support faster technology adoption and supply chain maturation. Key areas to monitor going forward include foldable smartphone penetration and the continued impact of AI on demand for advanced process nodes, thermal solutions, and other high-end components.