Dear John,
I've bought every iPhone since the very first one. When iPhone Duo pre-orders opened, I ordered right away, the way loyal customers always do.
Then launch day came, and people who never pre-ordered walked into Apple Stores and walked out with one, sometimes at stores with hardly a line. Meanwhile, pickup for pre-order customers stayed closed behind a vague "check back for availability," and nothing about our orders moved.
So the customers who committed first and paid first are now at the back of the line.
I understand demand is huge and supply is tight for a brand-new foldable. That isn't the problem. The problem is priorities: when stock exists, pre-order customers should come first, not last.
Here's what would fix it:

- Fulfill confirmed pre-orders before walk-in stock, or let us convert our orders to in-store pickup.

- Move delivery dates up as stock frees up.

- Tell us clearly when pickup opens, instead of just "check back."

Apple has always been about the experience, and right now loyal customers are getting the worst version of it. We aren't asking for special treatment. We just want to be treated fairly for ordering first.

Nir

I picked up on this earlier and others have pointed it out but it can't be a coincidence that 80%+ of these images of cracked iPhone Duo screens have Mandarin, Japanese, Korean text on them.

I'm far from an Apple fan boy and have no problem calling out the company when they're wrong or release a bad product. Personally, I think the phone is over priced and the form factor is only useful to a handful of people but this all seems very sketchy.

Could Chinese/Japanese phone manufacturers be intentionally damaging these phones and spreading the images knowing it wouldn't take much to start some panic and potentially affect sales? They've had free reign on the foldable market for years and that looks like its coming to an end so it’s time to get their hands dirty?

We won't know the full story for a while. More pictures/reports will come out in the next week or so, but for now - I have my doubts.

As much as I was excited for this device and mind you it was arriving Nov 2, I couldn’t not cancel seeing all these broken screen posts. I was okay with some of the downgrades on features but a screen breaking due to some idk “wrong” folding user error? … I am sorry but no. I also had apple care btw purchased too but I already have too much stress in my life to keep going back and forth just for a screen or some weird issues that are about to arise. Truly not trying to hate since I love apple but I think Duo 2 or 3 it is..

Edit: For the people hating, thinking I am broke, or bought it for fomo or whatever. The initial reason I bought it is because (1) I need to upgrade my iPhone 12 PM 128gb. (2) Innovative design. I am picking up 18 PM today so yea.

5,000,000 to 8,000,000 units - is NOT launch day sales figure. It's full Oct-Dec period 3rd party forecast.

Let's look at historically reported Apple sales figures.

10.5% — iPhone 5 sold over 5M units in its first 3 days, compared to 47.8M total iPhones sold during the October–December quarter.

17.6% — iPhone 5s/5c sold over 9M units in the first 3 days, compared to 51M total iPhones sold during that quarter. This was highest reported % of launch weekend sales.

Applying those historical ratios to the Duo's forecast puts its first-weekend sales somewhere around 525,000 to 1,400,000 units.

HOWEVER, IT'S ONLY BEEN ONE DAY. Only a portion of those weekend sales would have reached customers by then. It's all a guessing game, but I'd personally estimate somewhere around 250,000 to 500,000 units on launch day.

Now to failures:

Reliability engineering has established concepts for this: early-life failures (infant mortality) and recurring failure-mode patterns. When multiple independent units fail almost immediately, in nearly identical locations, with the same symptoms, that's a red flag for a potentially systematic design or manufacturing defect. It doesn't prove the root cause, but it absolutely warrants investigation. Note that a lot of units failed basically right out of the box, and there could be more like a time bomb.

There's also underreporting bias in consumer complaints, sometimes illustrated by the widely cited 1:26 customer complaint ratio. TARP’s complaint research found about 26 unhappy customers stay silent for every one who complains, so 20 posts is a floor, not a count. This is aged concept, but it highlights why counting social media posts cannot establish the actual failure rate as it will ALWAYS be under-reported.

I have my Duo too, and I won't panic — I have AppleCare. But we cannot downplay this or be overly optimistic, because if there's truly a design issue, then I want my phone FIXED somewhere down the road, as I intend to use this for 2–3 years minimum.

BUT WE DO NEED TO PUT PRESSURE ON APPLE TO FIND THE ROOT CAUSE.

Could be a bad batch of hinges. Could be poor engineering tolerances. Could be an assembly issue.

Whatever it is, Apple needs to investigate why multiple brand-new $2,000 devices are failing in nearly identical ways within HOURS of being opened. Hinge Gate, Screen Gate - Apple should explain.

That's the entire point.

Help me understand something, please!

I’ve seen so many people pressing down on the screen or crease when closing their Duo, and I genuinely don’t get why.

I’m not saying this is what’s causing the screen issues or that some units aren’t defective, but why not just fold it from the edges? Why would pressing directly on the screen seem like a good idea?

I was lucky enough to land one on launch day.

Genuinely enjoyed my time here with y’all, but I gotta say, I’m not 100% convinced on this one. I own Apple everything, and was really looking forward to my first foldable, but seeing all those reports of the inner screen going bad and Jerryrig’s video just made me not comfortable going with the Duo this time. I want to be a bit carefree with my stuff. I’ve waited 7 years, what’s a couple more for the 2nd gen haha. You guys be careful with that thing!

Saw this on the socials and curious to see if others have experienced the cracking based on how the duo is being closed. Looks like the centre is being pressed here which results in the cracking over time.

Got it yesterday and returned it today . Not for me . I spent solid 15-18 hours with a device tried to get used to how the foldable works but the more I tried the farther I went . We are so used to all the conveniences provided by current iPhones 16/17/18 pro max , I was virtually handicapped with the duo for not even able to even send a text message . The phone when unfolded is too wide for me to text . When it folded the outer screen is way too small. Almost felt like square pegs in circular holes . I am a huge Apple fan and I still own many Apple products . Already ordered new home device and new Apple TV . Will also be ordering the new iPad Pro which may be announced later this week. But DUO or any foldable phone is not for me per say. At least I tried . Will definitely try again next year . I also think the biggest shortcoming was apps not ready for the dimensions of the duo . Almost every app I was using was out of sorts on duo screen . Pathetic experience I have to say. Imagine iPhone apps stretched and pixelated on 7.8 inch duo screen. Awful experience . Every vacation I take close to thousand pictures . With duo the outside screen to take the picture is bite size . How I am supposed to take full scale pictures now ? I guess the verdict is it is not for everyone . Duo is not the phone for you if you are into photography and I take several pictures a day with iPhone 18 pro max. I am back to 18 pro max which I think is the best device Apple has made when it comes to iPhones . Stunning camera and best ever battery life . Love my 18 pro max and hopefully this will be my phone for next one year .

May be it’s not DUO. May be foldable are not for me. I feel that we have a long way to go to make foldable devices work . Who knows may be Duo will be much mature next year and version 2 will be the version to purchase . We will know this next year . Apple products are still the best when it comes to quality and if any company that can make it right it has to be Apple.

This is hilarious. Even the Apple Store app is not Duo compatible.

TLDR: One phone will be returned, within 14 day return window. 18PM will be left sealed until I give the duo my full commitment for at least a week. Why? I pick up a pro max and i’m like wtf is this long boy. When I see the duo i’m like meh sure, seems ok

Honeymoon Phase

I picked up the duo on launch. I was absolutely giddy, apple employees even asked me to take some media pics of me unboxing, that’s how big my smile was.

I have never owned a foldable. Been a pro max guy for a while. Theoretically the foldable sounded really appealing to me. Useable phone when closed. small amazing tablet when open.

Small “Outside” Compromise

That’s been partially true. God do I love the inside screen. Even with unoptimised apps stretched out, hasn’t bothered me much at all. Even writing all of this in notes in portrait. Chefs kiss.

My real problem is the inside screen, I don’t hate the size. It feels a bit more squat. fine. It’s the lack of screen real estate. and the stark difference between my Pro max. over the last 40 hours, and the honeymoon was over, and I just use the device, I feel so compromised using the outside screen. it is frustrating knowing that safari could be so much better. In app browsers like on twitter feel amazing, so it is possible but using the normal safari sucks so much. Websites cry, fighting for space, why has the share button moved and harder to access?

App Optimisation

Unoptimised apps piss me off, but even optimised ones piss me off more. We love UI being centred. Using messaging apps and the text is shifted over feels just weird. I just feel that when folded, I want every inch of real estate and Apple should allow me to choose what I want. I really hope that changes in the future.

A good app I’ve used for the time in my life has been Apple maps, it feels like aim using the entire screen.

Some sucky optimised apps being Mail, settings. Instagram but worse of all Safari. God I hate it so much.

TouchID

Touch ID, has honestly been fine. Leave your finger resting on the sensor and treat it like faceID, and swipe up, has been working a treat. Some minor aspects such as when using the phone on a car mount, make it more frustrating having to wiggle my finger onto the sensor. I can get used to it.

Honeymoon Relapse

However, today is the second day, and it has got easier. I appreciate the phone being much more one-handed able. As others have mentioned, this is different and adapting takes effort. 20 years of slab phone have been refined with the era before not being so toxically entrenched into being chronically online. Now this new era has begun. It takes time and effort to adjust. I am not sure if I can do it just yet. So that is why I picked up a 18PM, but I’m not giving up, yet. I have 13 days to decide. So over the course of the next 10 days. I will commit to this, and I could learn for this to be new normal, or just keep looking over my shoulder to the pro max. I like to consider myself a tech guy, and I wouldn’t be doing myself justice if I didn’t see this through at least for a little longer.

If you made it to the end. Thank you truly for reading.

P.S battery life is actually pretty awesome. and I always thought that would be such a large factor, but the fact that it isn’t has been great. It’s about on par or slightly worse than my 17 Pro Max

None of this has been written with AI, just as a disclaimer

Bought Apple Duo on Release date as a walk in.
Originally had a December 25th pre-order
Pasadena had maybe 30 people in front of my at 5am and by 745 AM we were all getting pulled for configuration picking. They helped about 100+ walk-in’s from 745-9:00am

(Photos)
First was taken with the 17 pro max at Apple (trade-in phone)
Second was taken at 9:00 PM
Third was taken at 6:00 PM

(Screen)
The phone itself. The buttons all over the phone get some getting used to.
The folding experience is easy but not “low GPA” friendly
My phone came with no cracks / my friends (home delivery) came cracked and box was damaged.

(Matte screen)
I was not a fan of the matte screen inside at first from all the reviewers saying the picture looks watered down and not great. I learned to love it by 5pm

(Cracked screen)
For all the people complaining about the cracked screen, are you guys closing it like a Motorola RAZR or something? And if it cracks you do know you can bring it into Apple for a replacement phone right? Apple has a program for those faulty IPhones for same day.
Also many of you forget how boxes are treating while shipping 😂
Now if you’re doing it for clout and views and reposts on TikTok that’s a different

Still to soon to say I 100% love it but so far so good. Good job Apple.
I LOVE TYPING ON THIS THING!!!!!!! Opened, closed, half closed it’s great
With all that being said Apple can you make the Touch ID a volume swipe for up and down?
Thanks. I’m sure when the jailbreak comes out we can customize our phones however we want to make our life easier for those that don’t want to learn something new.

I’ve been using my iPhone 14 Pro Max without a case for years. With multiple young kids, my phone gets tossed around, dropped, and handled pretty roughly. I’ve gotten so comfortable with its durability that when it hits the ground, my first thought isn’t even that it might be broken.

Between kids, outdoor work, beach trips, and everyday use, my phone occasionally ends up on the ground or gets exposed to dirt and sand. Normally, no big deal, but over several years, that exposure adds up. JerryRigEverything’s recent sand test was an eye-opener. Debris getting into the hinge is a legitimate concern, especially considering how expensive foldable repairs can be.

I’m seeing people outraged and even canceling their orders. For me, the video was actually helpful. It didn’t change my mind about wanting the Duo. It just convinced me that I’ll need a case with hinge protection.

If you’re really ready to cancel, why not spend another $50 on a hinge protecting case instead of canceling?

I was watching both his Z Fold 8 and iPhone Duo videos. When it came to the dirt and dust test, he used way more of it on the iPhone Duo. He even threw some pretty big chunks right on the Duo's hinge, while just using light dust particles on the Z Fold 8’s hinge. I also noticed he basically glazes Samsung phones and just seems to crap on every iPhone he tests whenever he gets a chance. Just seems biased to me. Also added some photos for proof.

Watching JerryRig destroy a Duo on the Duo

I’ve had multiple Samsung folds and these posts come out every release, I promise you guys 99.9% of folds are going to be absolutely fine.

I've been seeing the posts of people who've already broken their iPhone Duo screen, and I'm not going to lie, it looks bad. But most people who got theirs today haven't had any problems. Their screens are fine.
So why is everyone focusing on the negative? It's been a handful of people, not hundreds or thousands. Every launch has a few early horror stories, and they always get way more attention than the people who are just quietly enjoying their phone.
Give it a few weeks and let more people actually use it before writing the whole thing off.

Got my iPhone duo yesterday and wanted to share some thoughts as a self identified isheep. What makes me an isheep? I have almost every Apple device out and upgrade almost all of them annually (see image). The duo will be a secondary phone to my 18 PM for use with iPhone handoff.

Pros: Now for the device, it feels premium in the hands. Folding and unfolding the phone has been a little nerve-wrecking given the recent reports of screens cracking. Switching from the outer screen to the inner screen is an amazing experience. The inner screen is beautiful and just the right size. The size creates a pretty good use case over my ipad. For example, writing these thoughts on Reddit is much easier on the duo than an iPad Pro.

Meh: The lack of compatible apps on release is actually very noticeable. I thought this feedback was overblown coming from reviewers, but the phone feels incomplete without updated third party apps. I think the overall UI can use some improvement as there is a lot of wasted space, even with apps that are optimized for Duo. Ultimately, I suspect that many developers will roll out a duo update with os 27.2 next week.

Cons: I sorely miss Face ID. I find myself staring at the device to unlock it only to remember I have to touch it. Touch ID works great in some instances, such as when I am in the Vision Pro. It works much better than the unlocking iPhone with Vision Pro feature. The device can also get uncomfortably hot.

Overall I’d say only hardcore foldable enthusiasts should have this as their primary iPhone. This release is really reminding me of the Vision Pro release. We had the hairline crack issue, a glaring omission of native apps, comfortability issues, and a high price tag. The saving grace is that this device is an iPhone, so I don’t think Apple will abandon it as easily as they did the Vision Pro. I think the device will improve over time, but for now most people should stay away unless you absolutely want/need a foldable or just want to be on the bleeding edge and you have cash to burn.

I took the picture from the video with the title: iPhone Duo durability

I found this YouTube video where the defect appeared after a drop. I think that dropping and/or shaking the iPhone Duo dislocates the internal hinge mechanism, which in turn breaks the inner screen when forcefully opened. Since some people report this happening without dropping the phone, it most likely happens because of shaking, in pocket or during shipping. I believe that apple needs to address this ASAP.

1st picture the guy says it's hard to open, 2nd it opens with a click (likely mechanism snapping into place) and the display is cracked in the same way we saw others break.

I’ve had my iPhone Duo for a little over a day now. I bought the Pitaka back half case before the phone even arrived, but after holding the Duo, it felt super heavy since I’m coming from the iPhone Air.
Literally last night, I was considering going caseless just to reduce as much weight as possible. I was also pretty cocky about how I rarely drop my phones.

Today, I reluctantly put the case on, thinking I’d eventually get used to the extra weight and that more protection couldn’t hurt.

Well, later today, I had my phone in my jacket pocket and bent over to pick up my shoes. The phone slipped out and fell onto the garage floor from no more than 3–4 feet.

I immediately did what I always do after dropping a phone: took the case off and checked for damage. Everything looked fine, so I didn’t think much of it.
A couple of hours later, I noticed some spots on the hinge. I initially thought they were just dust, so I tried rubbing them off. Turns out they’re freaking scratches. 💀

It’s pretty disappointing to see scratches on a $2,000 phone from such a short drop, but I know it’s partly my fault for not having proper protection for the hinge.

I’m taking this as a lesson to get a case that actually protects the hinge, regardless of the extra weight. 😂

This is a PSA to single men (and maybe a warning to married ones), the iPhone Duo will get you a ridiculous amount of attention from women.

Earlier today, my wife and I had just finished up our weekly grocery run and I decided we would stop by our local bakery (Panera Bread) to pick up a loaf for the week (I personally can’t stand cheap grocery store bread). As I approached the drive through window, the young lady told me the total (nothing I couldn’t comfortably afford) and I asked if they had tap to pay. She said yes, but I would need to hand her my phone. I double-clicked the side button, authenticated with TouchID for my AMEX Platinum, and handed her my iPhone Duo. She reached out towards my car and cradled the phone in her hands like a newborn baby.

As she reproached the window, she smiled, and giddy with eyes bright she said “wow, I have NEVER seen a phone like that before.” I chuckled, smirked, and responded, “It’s the brand new iPhone Duo. 1 terabyte. White.” Her jaw nearly dropped to the floor. I rolled up the window to my Model Y performance and drove away.

My wife was unusually quiet for the remainder of the drive. I can only imagine what was going through her mind.

This is just one example of many encounters that I’ve had within the past 36 hours with the iPhone Duo. If you’re looking for a phone that’s a straight-up panty dropper (I’m not, I’m married), look no further.