Paul Jones / Android Authority
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The iPhone Duo started shipping last Friday, but its release didn’t get off to a good start. A large number of enthusiasts who paid a handsome price for the fairly new folding bar broke its inner screen with minimal use. The damage was so widespread – and perhaps even worse was the damage to Apple’s image – that the fruit company publicly acknowledged the issue and confirmed free replacements for anyone whose iPhone Duo broke so quickly.
Independent teardowns by JerryRigEverything and iFixit also confirm the poor durability of the screen, especially around the central part of the hinge. The most common image we’ve seen is a black line running from the top or bottom edge to the center of the folding screen, with another line, often colored and thicker, making a right angle.
For many people, this punctuates (no pun intended) the excitement since Apple first officially revealed the iPhone Duo last month.
A similar sentiment appears in responses to a survey we conducted here Android authority since the iPhone Duo sales day.
The iPhone Duo’s early flaws are scaring buyers away
A good part, close to 40%, of the respondents to our survey say that these cases break the trust that potential buyers had in the device. The perception seems to be particularly shaped because screen repairs themselves cost around $1,000 – making the $20 per month (or $200 per year) payments for AppleCare+ an absolute must.
The criticism is also harsh because Apple is seven years late to the folding party, and even boasted about the design of the hinge carefully to avoid situations that arise with the early units.
These flaws prove true for another large chunk of our respondents, close to 30%, who say they wouldn’t have bought the iPhone Duo in the first place.
A smaller percentage of respondents, almost 13% of them, are still confident that Apple will iron out these shortcomings of the next generation. Another 8% believe Apple should fix them sooner. Of course, correcting the hinge issues may take significantly more effort, but Apple is currently doing its bit by handing out replacements.
At the same time, durability remains an unending concern for folding phones, which is also why almost 11% of respondents also say that they will never buy a folding bar, regardless of its brand.
We’re bound to hear comparisons to Samsung, which now seem to have perfect folding phones, even though its earliest crop of foldables also suffered from similar physical flaws. The comparison also comes up because Samsung supplies these folding screens to Apple. But several authority figures, including JerryRigEverything, confirm these issues have little to do with the screen itself and are mostly caused by a lack of support around the central part of the hinge.
As usual, Samsung did not hesitate to enter Apple and did has released a new ad highlighting its expertise foldable. Another Instagram post from the official Samsung handle in Saudi Arabia mocks the iPhone Duo’s cracked screen by setting the effect as wallpaper on a Fold 8.
Check out this post on Instagram
We can expect more reactions like this from Samsung, and more reports from early adopters. Whether it really slims down sales for Apple — or helps push more buyers to the Fold 8 — is for us to observe in the coming months.