Developer Creates Walkman-style Music Player App for iPhone Duo

Independent developer Vidit Bhargava has created an application that offers an experience similar to using a classic Walkman for the iPhone Duo, Apple’s first foldable device, for which pre-orders are expected to open in late October 2026.

According to a TechCrunch report on Monday (28/9), the application, named Duo-Man, utilises the dual screens of the iPhone Duo to mimic the mechanics of vintage Walkmans. With the app, users can open the Duo to select music and ‘insert’ a virtual cassette, then close the device to begin listening.

Although it does not use physical cassettes or mechanical buttons like a real Walkman, Bhargava has endeavoured to recreate the authentic experience by recording the clicking sounds and static hiss of an actual Walkman to be used within the application.

Speaking to TechCrunch, Bhargava shared that he is a Walkman enthusiast. “I still own one and listen to it occasionally, and I have even modified devices in the past,” said Bhargava, who previously developed the dictionary and vocabulary app LookUp, as well as the film recommendation app Movie Buzz.

“So, when looking for ideas for a hackathon, I searched for a physical object with a hinge. I remembered how a Walkman door had to be opened to insert a cassette, and I thought it would be cool if that could be replicated on the Duo,” he added.

Bhargava shared information about the app on the X platform, where it received a positive response from netizens. The post reached 1.8 million views and garnered nearly 10,000 likes. This response encouraged Bhargava to develop the project, which began as a hackathon experiment, into a fully functional application.

Duo-Man will eventually support Apple Music and local music files. The app is also planned to include a feature allowing users to use the Apple Pencil to ‘rotate’ parts of the cassette. Bhargava also revealed plans to introduce fast-forward and rewind features similar to those found on a traditional Walkman.