The iPhone Duo has a hidden way to open Control Center that skips the swipe from the top-right corner. Tap the battery, Wi-Fi and cellular icon at the top of the screen and Control Center opens. It is a small change, but it matters most when you hold the foldable in your left hand.
Stephen Robles showed the shortcut in a video on X on October 23. Early reviews of the iPhone Duo had flagged Control Center as awkward for left-handed use, since the standard gesture starts at the far right edge of a wide phone.
One Tap on the Status Icon Opens Control Center
On a Face ID iPhone, you open Control Center by swiping down from the top-right corner. The iPhone Duo keeps that gesture and adds a second route. The icon showing battery, Wi-Fi and cellular status now works as a button, and a single tap brings up Control Center.
Robles also shows what happens when a Live Activity is running, such as a timer or a sports score. The button moves lower on the screen, which puts it even closer to your thumb.
Getting to Control Center on iPhone Duo is *the best* https://t.co/jvd1mw64dR
— Stephen Robles (@stephenrobles) October 23, 2026
The Wide Design Is Why the Corner Swipe Gets Awkward
The iPhone Duo is about the size of a passport when closed. It has a 5.4-inch outer display and opens to a 7.6-inch inner display, and both screens are wider and shorter than a regular iPhone. That shape is comfortable for two-handed use, and it is fine in the right hand with a slight stretch.
Left-handed use is where it falls apart, because even a folded iPhone Duo leaves the top-right corner a long way from your thumb. The gesture is also fussy, because starting the swipe too close to the top-center of the screen opens Notification Center instead.
The tap shortcut gets around both problems. You do not need to find the exact corner, and you do not need to reach across the full width of the phone.
The iPhone Duo Handles Several Basic iPhone Actions Differently
Control Center is one of a handful of places where the foldable departs from the usual iPhone playbook. There is no Face ID, so Touch ID sits in the side button and also lets you unlock with an Apple Watch. The volume buttons are at the top of the phone, and there is no Action button.
The software is different as well, since the foldable runs iOS 27.1, which Apple released only for the iPhone Duo, and it has layouts built around the two displays and Split View for running two apps side by side. For owners setting up the phone on launch day, the Control Center tap is one of the small changes worth learning early, alongside the apps in our guide for new iPhone Duo owners.
Nothing is lost for anyone who prefers the old method. Swiping down from the top-right corner still opens Control Center on the iPhone Duo, and the controls inside are the same ones you get on other iPhones. The iPhone Duo starts at $1,999 and went on sale on October 23.
