Halide debuts dual-screen viewfinder and tactile exposure controls for Apple's foldable iPhone Duo
The specialized camera application exploits the 90-degree folding hinge to enable waist-level medium-format shooting and multi-angle RAW histogram inspection.
Technology news
Camera software studio Lux Optics has released the first major third-party camera application tailored specifically for Apple's newly launched iPhone Duo foldable smartphone. The Halide 27.2 update introduces a completely redesigned user interface that leverages Apple’s dual-pane windowing APIs and the hardware’s stiff 90-degree friction hinge to transform the foldable phone into a specialized two-tier photographic control deck.
When the device is partially folded into a semi-open orientation, Halide dynamically splits its rendering viewport across the central hinge. The upper vertical display serves as an unobstructed framing window, while the lower horizontal screen becomes a dedicated instrument panel featuring physical-style ISO wheels, shutter speed steppers, manual focus peaking toggles, and real-time RGB luminance histograms.
The update also introduces a dedicated waist-level finder mode inspired by classic twin-lens reflex film cameras, allowing photographers to hold the device securely at waist height while looking down into the tilted viewfinder for candid street photography. Lux Optics noted that maintaining fluid 120Hz preview responsiveness across both physical display controllers required building dedicated Metal rendering pipelines to eliminate inter-screen synchronization lag.