Apple acknowledges screen issue in a limited number of iPhone Duo devices and offers replacements

Key Facts

Apple said it is aware of an issue affecting the inner screen of a small number of iPhone Duo devices and asked affected customers to contact AppleCare to replace their devices. The acknowledgment followed posts over the weekend showing cracks and lines on the inner screen near the central hinge. A Reuters report said affected units tend to show the issue soon after use. The complaints present an early test for the company’s first foldable phone as its international rollout gets underway. The available information showed no documented premarket share move, contrary to what appeared in the previous draft. Apple shares closed at $348.91 on October 29, compared with $343.83 in the previous session, according to EL7 data.

The company described the cases as affecting a “small number” of devices and presented replacement as the available remedy for customers experiencing an issue with the inner screen. Apple’s guidance to contact AppleCare is not limited to cracking near the hinge, but covers screen problems with the device. Francisco Jeronimo, an IDC vice president, said a prompt replacement offer is “the right first step” in addressing the issue. He added that a fast and transparent response could limit damage to the foldable-phone category, suggesting that how complaints are handled may shape consumer perceptions of the newest phone category. Jeronimo cited Samsung’s experience with the original Galaxy Fold in 2019, saying it showed how a fast and transparent response can contain the impact on the category. That puts the speed of replacements and clarity of communication at the center of Apple’s handling of the first reports.

User posts pointed to the area near the central hinge, but Apple did not identify a technical cause in the statement cited. Device-repair company iFixit offered a possible explanation based on a hinge simulation, placing the reported damage near the central support bar. iFixit suggested the bar may not move out of the screen’s path when the phone is folded, potentially creating a small stress point near the reported fracture. Apple did not immediately comment on the explanation, so it remains a technical possibility raised by iFixit rather than a confirmed cause of the defect. The issue is particularly significant because the company describes the precision hinge as designed to support the middle of the screen and keep it flat when the phone is open. The contrast between the hinge’s stated function and the location of damage reported by users puts the design’s durability under scrutiny, without the available explanation establishing a causal link between them.

The iPhone Duo began becoming available in more than 70 countries and regions on October 23, and Apple set its starting price at $1,999 in the United States. The company described the phone as opening like a passport booklet, a design that IDC analysts said could constrain supply because of manufacturing complexity. The emergence of a screen issue during the initial rollout adds pressure on the company to manage replacements while expanding sales, while available sources gave no figures for the number of affected units or the complaints’ impact on sales. The phone is due to become available in 28 additional countries and regions starting October 30, broadening its launch on the day the issue is being reported. That expansion alone does not establish the scale of demand or supply, but it puts the company’s response before a wider pool of potential buyers.

The issue comes ahead of Apple’s fourth-quarter fiscal results on November 2. The expansion of iPhone Duo availability to additional markets is due just days before the announcement, making the phone’s performance and supply potential areas of investor focus during the results period. An IDC analyst estimated that the complexity of manufacturing the foldable device makes supply constraints likely, while the available information included no estimate of production volume or sales. It also gave no indication that the screen issue had changed the company’s expectations or launch plans. Apple’s statements so far have focused on acknowledging a limited issue and directing affected customers to replacement. The financial results are due on the announced date of November 2, after availability begins in 28 additional markets on October 30.