It’s been post-Phoned!
Apple fans were outraged after their iPhone Duo orders were postponed until as late as next year amid a preorder frenzy.
The tech titan’s first-ever foldable phone — which starts at $1,999 — sold out within minutes after it became available for preorder on October 16 at 8am EST.
While the first buyers’ delivery dates coincided with the product’s launch on October 23, those who waited just minutes later had their arrival times delayed until the winter.
As of 8:30, Apple’s US store displayed delivery dates of late January for every single configuration of the accessory, encompassing both colors and all four storage options from 256GB up to 2TB.
Suffice it to say, buyers weren’t pleased with the new shipping estimates.
“iPhone Duo won’t deliver until January 25th 2027?” spluttered one flabbergasted apple customer on X alongside a screenshot of their order screen.
“iPhone Duo pre-orders were insane!” lamented another techhead in an X post addressed to Apple’s new CEO John Ternus, who took over in September. “I pre-booked everything and in 2s my date slipped to early November. Tried the 1TB and 2TB models too and everything is now late Nov-early Dec.”
They added, “Sorry guys but this is likely going to be the first time ever that we won’t have an iPhone on launch day.
“Posting iPhone Duo because apparently this is like winning the lottery with preorders now shipping in late January 2027,” griped a third.
One disillusioned phone fan claimed that their order was postponed even though they ordered early.
In a play-by-play of the fiasco, the user said that they logged on at 8:03 — 3 minutes after launch — but got stuck on the ‘we love that early energy’ screen.
When they finally managed to get in a minute later, they saw that their Duo wasn’t shipping until November 2nd, so they selected the only “available store that had a pickup option on Oct 23rd (release day).”
Unfortunately, a minute later, they learned that said outlet was unavailable and their delivery was now estimated to arrive between Nov 23rd and December 1st.
“The iPhone Duo hype is real,” they said.
One angry social media user said that their order was pushed back until December even though they “set up the preorder 2 weeks ago.” Despite logging onto the Apple Store app “the moment it opened,” it reportedly glitched out and they couldn’t press buy.
Among other features, the passport-like iPhone Duo boasts a 7.6-inch inner screen — 80% larger than the iPhone 18 Pro’s screen when folded out — alongside a 5.4-inch outer screen.
Despite the multitude of screens, the titanium gadget clocks in at just a dynamic weight of just over half a pound and folds down to just over 3 inches like technological origami.
Speaking at Apple’s Cupertino, Calif., HQ, Ternus said that while foldable phones feel like “two phones awkwardly stuck together,” the Duo’s crease becomes effectively invisible when it’s closed.
Analysts have claimed that the new device could help usher foldable phones into the mainstream, mirroring its influence on smartwatches and wireless earbuds.
