iPhone Duo pre-orders open next month, and a new analyst report indicates the device could be in even shorter supply at launch than expected. Here are the details.
Following months of rumors about Apple’s first foldable iPhone, last week Apple unveiled the iPhone Duo.
Unlike the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, iPhone Duo won’t ship in the typical September timeframe. Instead, pre-orders will open Friday, October 16 ahead of the first deliveries October 23.
We’ve seen reports before saying that supply could be very constrained. And the latest update from analyst Jeff Pu adds further corroboration to that claim.
In a research note seen by 9to5Mac, Pu writes that iPhone Duo units shipped in 2026 are now expected to be only 6 million, down from his previous 7 million estimate.
The reason isn’t a lack of demand, but rather “hinge constraints” that are causing production slowdowns.
Even if Apple produces 6M units by year end, selling all of them would mean Duo accounts for roughly 6–9% of iPhone sales during that period. Foldables currently account for only about 2–3% of the non-Apple smartphone market. Expecting Apple to immediately double or triple that penetration with a $2K first-gen device in roughly two months, in this economy, is a pretty wild assumption.
For context, Pu estimates 72 million iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max models will ship by the end of the year—about 12x the iPhone Duo estimate.
So if you’re hoping to get an iPhone Duo at launch, it might be quite the challenge despite having the highest-ever $1,999 starting price for an iPhone.
Are you planning to buy an iPhone Duo? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments.
*Buy iPhone with 15% discount from Apple refurbished
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Check out 9to5Mac on YouTube for more Apple news:
Introduced in 2007 by Steve Jobs, iPhone is Appl…
Ryan got his start in journalism as an Editor at MacStories, where he worked for four years covering Apple news, writing app reviews, and more. For two years he co-hosted the Adapt podcast on Relay FM, which focused entirely on the iPad. As a result, it should come as no surprise that his favorite Apple device is the iPad Pro.
