Morpheus

From The Vergecast

The iPhone Duo should have been an iPad

Published
October 23, 2026
Length
1:49:30
Starts at
1:49:12

Audio is streamed from the publisher.

Chapters

Read from the show notes

  1. 0:00 No Sevens Pact
  2. 1:03 Show Agenda Setup
  3. 1:46 Duo Score Debate
  4. 3:08 App Optimization Phases
  5. 7:47 Two Thousand Dollar Problem
  6. 10:44 iPad Not iPhone
  7. 14:41 Outer Screen Compromises
  8. 18:04 Developer Badges Future
  9. 20:34 Early Adopter Reality
  10. 30:19 Handoff eSIM Limitations
  11. 34:49 PHP Shell Chaos
  12. 36:17 PHP Under the Hood
  13. 37:46 AI Finds the Exploit
  14. 40:46 Disclosure Panic Fallout
  15. 42:44 Patch Now or Go Dark
  16. 45:58 Autonomous Defense Arms Race
  17. 48:42 Agents Break the Web
  18. 53:04 Muse Adoption Shopping Stats
  19. 54:11 Bots Buying Movie Tickets
  20. 1:01:05 Instagram Deepfake Crisis
  21. 1:07:30 Brendan Carr is a Dummy
  22. 1:10:06 FCC Threatens Poll Coverage
  23. 1:17:44 FCC Free Speech Alarm
  24. 1:20:20 The Lightning Round
  25. 1:20:49 Arc Browser Shutdown
  26. 1:23:12 AI Browsers Future
  27. 1:27:14 Meta Terms Backlash
  28. 1:34:04 Netflix Identity Crisis
  29. 1:43:16 Gemini Confusion Car
  30. 1:49:12 Wrap Up And Awards

Not from the publisher — times may be approximate.

We gave the iPhone Duo a 7 /10. But that wasn’t always the score we planned, and it might not be the right score forever. Such are the challenges of reviewing — and assessing — a big, new idea about the most popular smartphone in history. On this episode of The Vergecast, David and Nilay debate whether the Duo deserved the score it got, and try to work through how this device might change over time. After that, the hosts talk about the huge PHP cybersecurity flaw that rocked the web this week, the ongoing increase in AI shopping, an impending reboot inside of Netflix, and some very confusing Gemini news. Also, Brendan Carr is a Dummy. Further reading: The iPhone Duo is a messy, expensive, good time All the news about the iPhone Duo Daring Fireball: The iPhone Duo PHP: The three little letters wreaking havoc across the web AI agents are ready to shop. Some retailers are wary Walmart is inviting AI agents to shop for you 10 million people have already set up Muse agents. Netflix is telling investors not to worry, even though you’re watching less and less Google’s more personalized Gemini AI is heading to your car Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. 0:00 No Sevens Pact 01:03 Show Agenda Setup 01:46 Duo Score Debate 03:08 App Optimization Phases 07:47 Two Thousand Dollar Problem 10:44 iPad Not iPhone 14:41 Outer Screen Compromises 18:04 Developer Badges Future 20:34 Early Adopter Reality 30:19 Handoff eSIM Limitations 34:49 PHP Shell Chaos 36:17 PHP Under the Hood 37:46 AI Finds the Exploit 40:46 Disclosure Panic Fallout 42:44 Patch Now or Go Dark 45:58 Autonomous Defense Arms Race 48:42 Agents Break the Web 53:04 Muse Adoption Shopping Stats 54:11 Bots Buying Movie Tickets 01:01:05 Instagram Deepfake Crisis 01:07:30 Brendan Carr is a Dummy 01:10:06 FCC Threatens Poll Coverage 01:17:44 FCC Free Speech Alarm 01:20:20 The Lightning Round 01:20:49 Arc Browser Shutdown 01:23:12 AI Browsers Future 01:27:14 Meta Terms Backlash 01:34:04 Netflix Identity Crisis 01:43:16 Gemini Confusion Car 01:49:12 Wrap Up And Awards Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices