Apple will replace iPhone Duos with faulty inner screens; owners should call AppleCare
Days after the foldable went on sale in the UAE from Dh8,499, Apple says a small number of units have an inner display problem and owners should contact AppleCare for a replacement. It has not said what causes it.
Apple has said it will replace iPhone Duo phones whose inner screens have failed, less than a week after its first foldable iPhone reached buyers. In a statement to the technology site 9to5Mac, the company said it was "aware of an issue impacting the inner display on a small number of iPhone Duo units" and that owners who have problems with the display should contact AppleCare for a replacement.
The reports began over the weekend of 24 and 25 October. Owners posted pictures of inner screens cracked along the centre line where the phone folds, and others described bright lines on one side and dead pixels, The National and 9to5Mac reported. 9to5Mac noted that some posts on Reddit were fake, made with AI, but that a number appeared to be genuine. Apple has not said how many phones are affected or what causes the fault. A teardown by the repair site iFixit pointed to parts that may press on the display near the hinge, a theory Apple has not commented on.
The iPhone Duo is Apple's first phone that folds. It opens like a passport to a 7.6-inch inner screen and has a 5.4-inch screen on the outside, and Apple says its hinge has more than 100 parts and supports the centre of the display when the phone is open. In the UAE, pre-orders opened on 16 October and the phone went on sale on 23 October, starting at Dh8,499 on Apple's UAE site; prices run up to Dh13,599, according to The National. Apple also sells a case at Dh319 and a folio with a kickstand at Dh529. Early online orders sold out within minutes, and delivery times were reported to have grown.
If your iPhone Duo's inner screen has cracked, shows lines or has dead pixels, contact AppleCare, Apple's own support service, rather than the shop or mobile operator where you bought it: 9to5Mac says buyers who went through a carrier should go to AppleCare directly, and that an AppleCare+ plan is not needed to qualify. Apple has not said publicly whether every replacement will be free, so ask when you book. Note the date the problem started and keep your proof of purchase. If your screen is fine, there is nothing to do for now: Apple says most phones are not affected.