Apple launched preorders for the iPhone Duo on Friday.
credit should read CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images
Preorder sales for Apple's iPhone Duo kicked off on Friday.
Unless you pounced, don't expect to receive your shipment in time for Christmas.
Shipping dates have slipped into 2027 due to current demand and Apple's initial supply, which was expected to be limited.
Anyone purchasing an Apple iPhone Duo online as a Christmas gift may want to find a backup plan.
Expected shipment dates for new orders of the highly anticipated smartphone model have been pushed back to January 25, 2027. That includes iPhone Duos across all available carriers, colors, and storage sizes. For those who pounced on preorders when they went live early Friday morning, shipments will start arriving as early as October 23.
For latecomers, there is always the Hunger Games that is lining up early outside an Apple store on launch day to try to snag in-store inventory. The cheapest version of the foldable phone, with 256 GB of storage, costs $1,999. The model with 2 TB of storage is priced at $3,199.
While early demand for the iPhone Duo is certainly a factor in pushing back shipping dates, it's not unusual for new Apple products to see extended shipment times. Apple is also navigating "limited" supply due to supply chain constraints, Bloomberg previously reported.
Then-CEO Tim Cook talked about general supply constraints on Apple's broader product lineup during the company's third-quarter earnings call in July.
"If you look forward into the current quarter, the September quarter, we continue to expect high levels of demand," Cook said, speaking of broader product demand. "However, with less flexibility in the supply chain, we expect the impact from the supply constraints to increase significantly sequentially."
Apple’s first foldable smartphone is facing a supply crunch within minutes of preorders opening, with delivery estimates for the iPhone Duo slipping into January 2027.
Preorders opened at 8am in New York on 16 October, ahead of the device’s scheduled retail launch on 23 October. By then, Apple’s online store was showing delivery dates that crossed into late January across both colour options and all storage tiers, from 256GB to 2TB.
Customers across social media platforms including Reddit and X reported delays despite following Apple’s advice to reserve their preferred colour and storage configuration in advance. According to Bloomberg, retail stores also exhausted their initial preorder stocks almost immediately.
It remains unclear whether the delays reflect unanticipatedly strong demand, limited supply or a combination of both. Apple typically reserves some units for walk-in customers on launch day, potentially offering buyers a way to secure the device sooner.
Unveiled last month as part of its first major product launch under new CEO John Ternus, the iPhone Duo marks Apple’s long-awaited entry into the foldable smartphone segment, which has so far remained a relatively niche category despite offerings from established rivals. The device starts at $1,999 for the 256GB model, making it the vendor’s most expensive iPhone to date.
Last month, Counterpoint Research estimated Apple could sell around 6 million iPhone Duo units in 2026, potentially providing fresh momentum for the foldable market. At the time, Counterpoint Research senior analyst Ivan Lam noted the number was “contingent on how well the company ramps up production of the new hardware”.
Mobile World Live (MWL) brings you our top three picks of the week as Apple ramped up its smart home ambitions, AT&T agreed a $2 billion sale of its Mexican business and Nokia offloaded its Enterprise Campus Edge unit.
Apple revamps smart home strategy with HomeView
What happened: Apple unveiled a new smart home hub and a range of connected devices as it stepped up efforts to challenge Amazon and Google in the market.
Why it matters: The centrepiece of its launch was the HomeView Hub, a smart display featuring the company’s upgraded Siri AI. Apple also partnered with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric to introduce the Apple Home Collection, covering indoor and outdoor cameras, a video doorbell, thermostats and door locks.
Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said that despite its “cautious approach”, Apple had been waiting for the upgraded Siri to launch its home range, “given how important the voice interactions are with this product”. He also pointed to the partnerships as a way to reduce installation issues, saying they address “one of the category’s biggest barriers: the complexity of getting things working”.
Meanwhile, analysts at ABI Research said the launches represent “a more serious push into the smart home” by Apple but noted it “still trails Amazon and Google on smart home maturity”, arguing tighter integration with other devices and a personalised user experience will be central to its prospects. They also stated, “Apple’s long-term position will depend on how open it becomes to third-party devices, services, and possibly external AI agents.”
What happened: AT&T agreed to sell its Mexican business to Grupo Televisa and Fintech Holdings for $2 billion, ending its decade-long attempt to challenge America Movil’s dominance in the country.
Why it matters: Grupo Televisa and Fintech Holdings will each take an equal stake in the operation. AT&T Mexico had 24.7 million wireless subscribers as of 31 December 2025, equivalent to around 16% of the market. Meanwhile, incumbent America Movil’s Telcel held approximately 58%.
LightShed Partners analysts Walter Piecyk and Joe Galone described the move as part of a wider strategic shift under CEO John Stankey, noting AT&T is increasingly focused on “US wireless and highly durable fibre business”. They said the $2 billion sale proceeds represent less than five weeks of AT&T’s annual capital investment, arguing the Mexican operation has limited relevance to its future priorities. They also pointed to America Movil’s resilience, noting that “Telcel still controls nearly 60% of the market, while AT&T and Telefonica are heading for the exits”.
The analysts further highlighted a potential competitive threat from SpaceX, whose combination of terrestrial spectrum and satellite capacity could challenge traditional wireless economics.
What happened: Nokia agreed to sell its Enterprise Campus Edge (ECE) business to investment firm Aurelius Group, as it continues to offload assets and streamline its core strategic focus.
Why it matters: ECE serves almost 900 customers across manufacturing, mining, logistics, airports, ports and power generation. Its portfolio spans private wireless networks, industrial devices, on-premises operational technology, edge computing and software for industrial AI applications. Nokia said the sale would allow it to focus capital and resources on areas offering greater long-term value. ECE will operate as a standalone company under Aurelius, with employees expected to transfer when the deal closes. Earlier this month, Nokia sold its fixed wireless access customer premises equipment business to US broadband vendor Inseego.
Future Wireless principal analyst Pablo Tomasi called ECE sale “the end of a bold chapter” in Nokia’s history, arguing the vendor had abandoned its push to become an industrial vendor. Kyung Mun, principal analyst at Mobile Experts noted ECE was “a smaller part of its overall private networks business”, which also includes railway and defence. He noted Nokia held more than 50% of core and RAN equipment sales in 2025 including both industrial and enterprise segments, adding: “The ECE business grew in the low double digits. Let’s see how it does under the new owner.”
Apple, Nvidia and EchoStar chair Charlie Ergen reportedly committed $25 million each for the construction of US President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom project, which has raised $333 million to date in private donations.
The Washington Post reported “the vast majority of the funds raised came from companies and wealthy individuals with interests before the federal government” after obtaining an internal spreadsheet used to track contributions for the fundraising effort.
The Post noted more than three-quarters of the funding was pledged in amounts of at least $5 million, with Amazon, Comcast, Microsoft, and T-Mobile US among the largest corporate donors.
It stated Nvidia and Ergen, among others, requested their donations be kept anonymous
The news site noted companies or executives of firms that have had contracts with the federal government during Trump’s second term accounted for about half of the total funds raised for the project which also includes office space and an underground military facility.
According to internal contractor documents obtained by the Post, the total cost of the project is now $600 million after Trump initially stated he and wealthy donors would pay the estimated $400 million project, although Reuters reported he later unsuccessfully asked Congress for $1 billion. The Post noted Trump’s name did not appear on the list of 67 donors who contributed $10,000 or more to the project.
The funds for the project are administered through a complex, multi-step pipeline involving a private nonprofit, federal agencies and direct oversight by the Trump administration.
The news agency reported Nvidia became “a top contributor to the ballroom in October 2025, nearly three months after it struck a groundbreaking pact with Trump to sell advanced microchips to China despite national security concerns”.
“As an American company, our support for the United States is paramount, and independent of any business interests,” a representative for Nvidia told Mobile World Live. “We were proud to be able to make a donation to a nonpartisan trust that serves all Americans and have said so publicly since the donation was made.”
Apple and EchoStar did not reply to requests for comment on their contributions.
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