Apple has a small surprise planned for iPhone Duo buyers in the United States. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, customers who buy the device at an Apple Store will see their own name on the very first startup screen, with a greeting like "Hello, Mark" appearing when the phone turns on for the first time.
The detail is exclusive to the iPhone Duo, and Gurman says it will support English and Spanish. It only applies to purchases made in US Apple Stores, which makes the Duo's retail launch a bit different from a standard iPhone unboxing.
How the personalized iPhone Duo boot works
Gurman says Apple retail stores will have a system in place to customize the boot of the device. It is not clear yet how Apple will technically pull this off, or whether it will rely on Presto, the system Apple Stores already use to update iPhones wirelessly without opening their boxes.
Presto was first reported by Gurman in 2023. It lets Apple retail employees power on an iPhone, install software updates and power it off again while the device stays sealed in its packaging, so a personalized boot screen would fit neatly into that existing in-store workflow.
iPhone Duo pre-order and launch dates
The iPhone Duo launches on October 23, and pre-orders open on Friday, October 16. Deliveries and in-store availability both begin on October 23.
Apple has also said customers can get ready for iPhone Duo pre-orders starting October 12. The personalized greeting appears to be a launch-window perk tied to buying in person at a US Apple Store rather than ordering online.
- First boot greeting personalized with the buyer's name
- Exclusive to the iPhone Duo, US Apple Stores only
