iPhone Duo preorders open as Apple Store goes down

Reports indicate Apple's suppliers will ship roughly 7 to 10 million Duos for the rest of 2026, which is a small number next to the overall smartphone market. Foldables remain a small slice of total sales, but Apple's entry is expected to leave a mark.

For the fastest possible checkout, buyers can use Apple's 'Get Ready' process, which lets them save all their preorder selections in advance in the Apple Store app or on Apple's website. Apple set a deadline of 9 p.m. PT on Thursday, October 15 to complete it, meaning Eastern time buyers had until midnight.

Once those choices are saved, the company says checkout can be completed in seconds when preorders open. Storage, color and purchase-versus-lease decisions are the ones to settle before the rush.

Apple is widely reported to have Samsung as its key supplier for the iPhone Duo's folding display, which has led some to claim Apple is simply 'using a Samsung display.' In an interview with YouTuber MrMobile (Michael Fisher), Apple executives pushed back on that framing.

JP Guillou, Senior Director of Display Technology for iPhone, said the display doesn't exist at the vendor until Apple starts working on it. Rich Dinh, VP of Hardware Engineering, said there is no pre-cooked shelf of components to choose from, and that the project was built from the ground up with partners who help manufacture Apple's designs.

The interview also covered durability, the choice of an under-display camera on the folding screen and Apple's overall approach to product design. It was filmed after the iPhone Duo introduction and published on YouTube on October 15.

If you want an iPhone Duo on day one, treat October 16 as a timed event rather than a casual purchase: preorders open at 8:00 a.m. ET / 5:00 a.m. PT, and reports suggest launch stock could vanish quickly. The 'Get Ready' window is the main tool for a fast checkout.

At $1999 for the 256 GB model, the Duo sits well above the standard iPhone 18 Pro line and is aimed at buyers who specifically want Apple's take on a foldable, with its larger inner screen and Touch ID trade-offs.

Apple has not announced iPhone Duo availability, pricing or preorder timing for Tunisia, so there is no confirmed local launch date or TND official price yet. The dollar price is the only figure Apple has published, and any Tunisian listing would come from resellers or import channels.