Apple’s inaugural foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, is experiencing initial supply constraints. Industry estimates suggest that the initial available supply is under 6 million units, with pre-order stocks from the three major domestic carriers already depleted. However, experts caution against drawing conclusions about actual demand based solely on the sold-out status, given the limited allocation for the domestic market.
CNBC reported on Wednesday that Tarun Pathak, Research Director at Counterpoint Research, anticipates the initial demand for the iPhone Duo to outstrip supply.
Counterpoint Research projects the short-term supply of the iPhone Duo to be less than 6 million units. With approximately 1.4 billion iPhones currently in use worldwide, even a small fraction of existing users opting for the foldable model could potentially exceed the available supply.
Despite its premium price tag of 1,999 USD for the base model, the iPhone Duo is generating significant consumer interest as Apple’s first foray into the foldable smartphone market. Counterpoint Research suggests that the limited initial supply could lead to prolonged shortages in the coming months.
In South Korea, pre-order stocks prepared by the three major carriers were quickly exhausted.
Industry sources report that SK Telecom, KT, and LG Uplus sold out their entire pre-order inventory during the week-long pre-sale event for the iPhone Duo, which kicked off on October 16.
On SK Telecom’s official online store T Direct Shop, the first batch of pre-order stock, which guaranteed launch day delivery, sold out within a minute of becoming available. On KT’s official online platform, initial stocks for both the 256GB and 512GB models were depleted within one minute each. LG Uplus also reportedly exhausted its prepared inventory on the first day of pre-sales.
However, this rapid sell-out appears to be influenced not only by consumer demand but also by the limited initial allocation for the domestic market. Without disclosure of actual sales figures, it’s challenging to accurately gauge demand levels based solely on pre-order depletion.
An industry insider commented that while the iPhone Duo’s pre-order stock is selling out rapidly, it understands that the initial supply allocated to the domestic market is quite limited.