iPhone Duo already backordered until 2027 as pre-order sales soar

Apple is seeing strong demand for its new foldable iPhone, with supplies quickly selling out after pre-order sales opened on Friday.

"Apple opened iPhone Duo pre-orders this morning, and the early read looks robust in our view, with demand for Cupertino's first foldable running well ahead of supply out of the gates," Wall Street analyst Dan Ives, a partner at Yorkville Ives, said in a research note.

The pre-order window for the Duo opened on Friday at 8 a.m. ET on apple.com and in the Apple Store app. Within minutes, the estimated delivery of the phone was pushed back past Oct. 23, the device's official launch date, and into next year. As of Friday afternoon, the Apple phone was backordered until late January.

"It's been 3 minutes, and it's sold out at every store around the NYC/CT area," Max Weinbach, an analyst for the market research firm Creativestrat, said on X.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on how many pre-order requests it received. 

Apple's new CEO, John Ternus, announced the iPhone Duo last month. The Duo lets users split the screen to use two different apps on the device, or two windows of the same website for uses such as comparison shopping.

Prices start at $1,999 for a device with 256 GB of storage. When folded, it's about the size of a passport. The full display is the largest of any Apple phone, resembling more of an iPad than an iPhone.

Ternus also announced the iPhone 18 at Apple's annual fall showcase, which went on sale last month.

Ives thinks demand for the Duo will remain strong into 2027, with many iPhone users planning to upgrade. He projects Apple will sell around 10 million Duos in the next few quarters and up to 25 million in 2027.