Apple shrugged off widely-reported delays to shipments of iPhone Duo models by delivering the first units to eager customers worldwide.
Pictures from various of the vendor’s retail locations showed a clamour for its first foldable model, which hit stores on time based on the release schedule Apple gave when it unveiled the device in September.
Apple stated it is offering a range of trade-in and leasing options on the devices, which have a starting price of $1,999 for versions with 256GB of storage.
The vendor may be particularly pleased with the turnout at a store in Shanghai, China, given the nation is one of its biggest markets.
Bloomberg journalist Vlad Savov wrote the iPhone Duo could ignite a so-far muted foldable smartphone market, though also cautioned the sector may remain niche if Apple fails to shift enough of the devices.
Reports last week pointed to significantly longer waiting times for customers ordering the devices online compared with previous Apple smartphones, with shipments tipped to take up to three months instead of the roughly six weeks of past devices.
Apple highlighted there are “exceptional” deals to be had purchasing iPhone Duo models through mobile operator channels.
The post iPhone Duo hits stores appeared first on Mobile World Live.
Paulina Montesinos met a man named Baruc, an Italian in his thirties with an attractive profile, on the dating app Bumble. After they matched, their story moved quickly: they chatted for days, went out on a few dates and soon he started showing strong affection and lavish gestures. “I’ve met the perfect man,” she thought. He also presented himself as vulnerable, neurodivergent and with an intense past that aroused deep empathy in Montesinos.
© Mike Blake (REUTERS)
La arruga del iPhone Duo se hace mucho más visible después de 11.500 pliegues. El primer plegable de Apple acaba de pasar por una prueba de resistencia independiente que ha dejado un resultado un tanto agridulce para los de Cupertino: la pantalla acusa el uso intensivo, pero la bisagra sigue funcionando sin problemas. Y hablamos de un teléfono que cuesta 2.339 euros en España.
Recordemos que uno de los puntos que más llamó la atención durante la presentación del primer plegable de Apple fue la arruga prácticamente invisible de su pantalla interior. Los de Cupertino recurrieron a un acabado nanotexturizado para disimular esa marca que aparece en el centro de los paneles plegables, aunque parece que el tratamiento pierde eficacia conforme se utiliza el teléfono.
Según leemos en Digital Trends, el youtuber Tim Pan ha querido comprobar cómo envejece la pantalla del iPhone Duo después de abrirlo y cerrarlo miles de veces. Para empezar, realizó 500 pliegues manualmente y comprobó que la arruga central ya era más fácil de apreciar que al sacar el dispositivo de su caja. Y todavía quedaba bastante prueba por delante.
Los siguientes 10.000 ciclos los realizó con una máquina, y los resultados fueron bastante más evidentes. La marca del centro de la pantalla se había vuelto mucho más pronunciada de lo que era originalmente, tanto que ni siquiera el tratamiento mate conseguía disimularla. No obstante, el panel seguía funcionando sin problemas y no aparecieron daños que impidiesen utilizar el teléfono.
Para terminar, Pan añadió otros 1.000 pliegues a una temperatura de 20 grados bajo cero, con lo que completó los 11.500 ciclos de su experimento. El resultado parece indicar que el tratamiento nanotexturizado no impide que la arruga se haga más visible con el uso, aunque tampoco sabemos si todas las unidades van a envejecer de la misma manera.
La cuestión está en cuánto tiempo necesita un usuario normal para abrir y cerrar su teléfono tantas veces. Si utilizas el iPhone Duo y lo pliegas diez veces al día, alcanzarías los 11.500 ciclos en algo más de tres años. Si lo haces cien veces diarias, llegarías a esa cantidad en menos de cuatro meses. Y cien aperturas y cierres diarios tampoco parecen especialmente difíciles de alcanzar si utilizas mucho el dispositivo.
Eso sí, conviene matizar algo: una prueba acelerada de resistencia no equivale a varios años de uso real, por mucho que podamos hacer cálculos sobre la cantidad de veces que abriríamos y cerraríamos el teléfono. Lo que ha comprobado Pan es que la arruga se vuelve más pronunciada después de someter una unidad a un uso intensivo, no cuánto tardará en sucederle a todos los compradores.
En cuanto a la bisagra, los resultados son bastante distintos. Pan aseguró que seguía funcionando con la misma suavidad que el primer día, algo que encaja con las primeras impresiones sobre su solidez. Lo único que observó fue que algunos pelos y partículas de arena podían introducirse en su interior desde determinados ángulos, aunque no parece que eso afectase al funcionamiento durante la prueba.
Y no es el único experimento que se ha realizado con el primer plegable de Apple. Joanna Stern, periodista de The Wall Street Journal, utilizó un robot al que llamó Hingey para abrir y cerrar un iPhone Duo 32.640 veces durante cuatro noches. La máquina trabajaba a un ritmo de 17 pliegues por minuto y, en esta ocasión, lo que se quería comprobar era la resistencia de la bisagra.
Después de terminar la prueba, Stern utilizó un dinamómetro para medir la fuerza necesaria para abrir el dispositivo y descubrió que la bisagra se había vuelto ligeramente más rígida. La diferencia, no obstante, era prácticamente imperceptible durante el uso cotidiano. De hecho, la periodista aseguró que "en el uso diario, realmente no podía notar ninguna diferencia", y que el teléfono se sentía casi igual que cuando era nuevo.
Lo que no examinó Stern fue la arruga de la pantalla, de manera que no sabemos cómo habría quedado después de tantos ciclos. Tampoco Apple ha publicado una cifra oficial sobre la resistencia de su bisagra. Por ahora, ninguna de las dos pruebas ha conseguido provocar un fallo en el mecanismo de plegado, aunque la realizada por Pan sí deja dudas sobre la evolución del aspecto del panel.
Hay otro detalle que conviene tener en cuenta, y es el precio. El iPhone Duo cuesta desde 2.339 euros en España, mientras que el Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 parte de unos 1.999 euros. Estamos hablando de una diferencia aproximada de 340 euros entre ambos plegables, aunque pagar más por el modelo de Apple no parece garantizar que la arruga vaya a permanecer igual de disimulada.
Por lo demás, las pruebas dejan resultados bastante aceptables en lo que respecta a la resistencia mecánica del teléfono. La bisagra ha soportado miles de aperturas y cierres sin averiarse, mientras que la pantalla ha seguido funcionando incluso con una arruga más marcada. El desgaste visible del panel es, por ahora, la principal reserva, especialmente para quienes esperaban que Apple hubiese conseguido eliminar este problema habitual de los plegables.
© Difoosion
El iPhone Duo es lo que tenemos tras años, años y años de rumores de un móvil plegable de Apple. Finalmente, la multinacional de Cupertino se decidió a fabricar un smartphone de doble pantalla, uno que no tiene una cantidad oficial de pliegues que puede soportar. Y es que Apple no ha detallado las veces que puede desplegarse.
No importa. El sector tecnológico está lleno de personas que buscan descubrir lo que las grandes marcas no revelan, y una de ellas es la periodista Joanna Stern, que ha desplegado el móvil 32.640 veces en cuatro noches. No lo ha hecho directamente ella, sino una pequeña máquina diseñada específicamente para esto. ¿Cuál es el resultado?
Apple es una compañía opaca en cuanto a proporcionar al público cierta información de sus productos. Por ello, la pantalla plegable del iPhone Duo supone todo un misterio en cuanto a la cantidad de pliegues que puede soportar. Hace lo contrario a Samsung, que sí especifica las repeticiones que resultan capaces de soportar sus Fold y Flip, aunque también haya creadores de contenido que realicen sus propias pruebas.
Por este motivo, el mismo día que el dispositivo se pueden adquirir en tiendas (si es que lo encuentras en alguna) y llega a sus compradores, tras las reservas abiertas el 16 de septiembre, la pantalla del Duo ya está siendo sometida a todo tipo de pruebas. Es algo lógico teniendo en cuanta que hablamos de smartphone cuya versión más barata (256 GB) está en los 2.339 euros y la más cara (2 TB) se va hasta los 3.839.
Una de las más interesantes es la de la periodista y youtuber Joanna Stern, que en su canal ha doblado el móvil más de 30.000 veces. Concretamente, lo ha hecho 32.640 veces en cuatro sesiones nocturnas de 8.160 repeticiones por noche. Y todo ello sin contar las veces que lo ha hecho ella por el día en el uso cotidiano. Eso sí, sobre estos pliegues nocturnos, no ha sido ella quien los ha hecho, sino una máquina.
Según Stern, la pantalla sigue prácticamente igual. En el uso cotidiano no percibe diferencias. Aunque lo curioso es que que ahora, en vez de aflojarse al abrirse, la pantalla ofrece incluso algo más de resistencia.
No obstante, conviene recalcar que este resulta un experimenteo que se ha llevado a cabo con una unidad concreta. En otra prueba, el youtuber de tecnología Tim Pan dobló el 11.000 veces en distintas condiciones de temperatura, incluso a -20 ºC en 1.000 pliegues. La bisagra continuó funcionando, pero quedó mucho más marcada.
En definitiva, después de 7 años del primer plegable de Samsung tenemos el primer plegable de Apple. Como no hay información sobre las pruebas de pliegues, solo nos queda esperar a medio plazo para saber cómo se desenvuelve en el día a día, fuera de laboratorios. ¿Resistirá más o menos que los Samsung?
© Difoosion
La fiebre por el nuevo iPhone Duo ha llegado a la Puerta del Sol. Decenas de personas han hecho cola por el primer modelo plegable de Apple desde la primera hora de la mañana de este viernes, a tan solo unos pocos metros de los manifestantes que el 26 de septiembre decidieron instalar sus tiendas de campaña en el kilómetro cero de Madrid, tras el desahucio de Maricarmen Abascal y en protesta por la crisis de la vivienda. La expectativa ha sido tal que algunos han decidido esperar frente a la tienda casi 24 horas antes. Es el caso de Anthony Bravo, de 31 años, el primero en llegar para adquirir el nuevo móvil. “Estuvimos aguardando desde las diez de la mañana de ayer jueves. Es el primer iPhone de la generación plegable. Es un poco caro, 2.300 euros, pero creo que el precio es justo por la innovación”, aseguraba poco después de haber sido recibido con aplausos por parte de los trabajadores de la marca, 10 minutos antes de la apertura oficial de la tienda, a las ocho de la mañana.
© EPV
Por quase duas décadas, a Apple fez apenas pequenas alterações no iPhone, sua máquina de fazer dinheiro. Isso muda nesta sexta-feira (23), quando a empresa começa a vender seu primeiro telefone dobrável, o iPhone Duo, apostando que o dispositivo pode fazer pelo mercado de pequenos dobráveis o que o iPhone fez pelos smartphones.
A sua recepção poderá representar um teste inicial para o novo CEO da Apple, John Ternus, o antigo chefe de hardware que apresentou o iPhone Duo apenas uma semana depois de assumir o cargo, em setembro.
Isso também pode ter grandes implicações para uma categoria de nicho na qual rivais como a Samsung e a Huawei já vendem produtos premium há anos.
Poucos minutos após a abertura da pré-venda na última sexta-feira, a previsão de entrega do Duo pela Apple foi adiada para o final de janeiro, já que a demanda superou a oferta. A empresa classificou a resposta dos clientes como “nada menos que extraordinária”.
As primeiras análises elogiaram o design premium do Duo de US$ 1.999, bem como sua dobradiça robusta e quase invisível. Esse é um grande feito para telefones cuja tela com vinco proeminente tem sido, por muito tempo, uma grande desvantagem e um potencial fator de dissuasão para os compradores.
Mas os analistas também disseram que as concessões na câmera, incluindo a ausência de uma lente teleobjetiva e aplicativos de terceiros que ainda precisam ser adaptados ao novo tamanho da tela, podem decepcionar alguns compradores.
Eles observaram que o iPhone Duo, em seu formato menor e dobrado, é menos prático para a infinidade de tarefas rápidas que a maioria dos usuários realiza diariamente em iPhones padrão, levando vários analistas renomados a desaconselharem o Duo para muitos clientes da Apple.
“Foi muito divertido testar o Duo por uma semana, mas a sensação é de que usei um protótipo extremamente refinado — não um produto final que eu gostaria de comprar e usar”, escreveu John Gruber, comentarista veterano da Apple e autor do blog Daring Fireball, em uma análise.
O comentarista de tecnologia Marques Brownlee, popularmente conhecido como MKBHD, disse em uma análise no YouTube que “se você é uma pessoa comum que não faz muito mais do que enviar mensagens de texto, usar redes sociais e navegar aqui e ali, então provavelmente não vale a pena. Mas se US$ 2.000 não significam muito para você, e você gosta da ideia, depois da curva de aprendizado e de se acostumar a não ter reconhecimento facial, é um telefone realmente divertido”.
A disponibilidade limitada pode decepcionar os fãs da Apple, que já estão formando filas em frente às lojas para comprar o Duo.
A Apple informou à Reuters que a disponibilidade nas lojas físicas variará de acordo com o país, com estoques limitados nos EUA, Austrália, Canadá, México e grande parte do Reino Unido e da Europa. Na China, França, Hong Kong, Índia e Japão, as unidades estarão disponíveis apenas para clientes que fizeram o pedido online.
Em Macau, território administrado pela China, onde o iPhone Duo estará disponível apenas para clientes que comparecerem pessoalmente, fãs já começaram a formar filas horas antes, conforme mostram publicações em redes sociais e reportagens da mídia.
“Os dispositivos dobráveis são uma categoria consolidada há anos, mas sua adoção tem permanecido relativamente limitada em comparação com os smartphones convencionais. A entrada da Apple nesse mercado pode levar o formato a um público muito mais amplo”, disse Francisco Jeronimo, vice-presidente da empresa de pesquisa de mercado IDC.
A IDC prevê que a Apple deterá 44% do valor do mercado de dispositivos dobráveis em 2026, com 31% das unidades vendidas. Até 2027, a empresa se tornará líder de mercado na categoria, tanto em valor quanto em unidades comercializadas.
“A Apple apresentou argumentos convincentes para esse formato”, disse Jeronimo após passar uma semana com o Duo.
“Agora vem o próximo desafio: transformar a empolgação em disponibilidade, adoção e um novo capítulo duradouro para o mercado de smartphones”, acrescentou Jeronimo.
Houve muitas vezes em que eu não queria largar o iPhone Duo. Depois que você se acostuma a ler, assistir TV e navegar pelo Instagram em uma tela gigante, é difícil voltar para um pequeno retângulo brilhante.
Há apenas um problema: muitos aplicativos ainda são feitos para aquele pequeno retângulo.
Esta é a experiência de usar o iPhone Duo, o primeiro iPhone dobrável da Apple, que será lançado em 23 de outubro. Seu preço inicial é de US$ 2.000, o que o torna tão caro quanto o mais recente MacBook Pro de 14 polegadas da Apple. (No Brasil, os valores começam em R$ 21.999).
É uma grande mudança para a Apple, que raramente mexe na fórmula vencedora que transformou o iPhone em um negócio que faturou mais de US$ 200 bilhões no ano passado. Mas, depois de anos de atualizações incrementais do iPhone, a Apple enfrentou a pressão de provar que ainda conseguia cativar os consumidores.
Experimentei um pouco desse futuro depois de passar cerca de uma semana com o novo telefone dobrável que a Apple forneceu à CNN Internacional para testes.
O iPhone Duo se tornou meu tablet para assistir à Netflix, um despertador de cabeceira à noite, uma tela extra para assistir futebol no domingo, um monitor em miniatura quando conectado ao meu teclado Bluetooth e uma câmera com tripé embutido.
Mas houve muitas outras vezes — talvez até mais — em que me frustrei porque os aplicativos não funcionavam como deveriam, já que os desenvolvedores ainda não os atualizaram. E apesar da abordagem “simplesmente funciona” da Apple, o iPhone Duo exige um período de adaptação.
Embora o software do iPhone Duo certamente parecesse muito mais fluido e suave do que as alternativas para Android, muitos de seus recursos principais já estão disponíveis em celulares Samsung ou Google há anos.
O iPhone Duo representa a maior mudança que a Apple fez no iPhone em seus quase 20 anos de história.
Ele possui uma tela externa de 5,4 polegadas que, ao ser desdobrada, revela uma tela interna de 7,6 polegadas. Fechado, o iPhone Duo lembra um passaporte, porém visivelmente mais grosso e pesado. Aberto, ele se assemelha a um iPad Mini mais fino e compacto.
Uma das perguntas mais frequentes que recebo sobre o iPhone Duo é se a dobra da tela é visível. A resposta, acredite ou não, é não. A dobra é quase imperceptível ao usar aplicativos ou navegar pela tela inicial, e mal a sinto ao deslizar o dedo na tela.
O formato não convencional do iPhone Duo permite que ele faça coisas que você não conseguiria fazer tão facilmente com um telefone comum. Abra-o como uma tenda ou apoie-o como um livro com a tela bloqueada, e o visor se transformará em um relógio de cabeceira, porta-retratos digital ou calendário.
Alguns aplicativos, como a câmera e o Apple Fitness Plus, serão exibidos na parte superior da tela quando dobrado ao meio como um laptop — mas isso depende se os desenvolvedores programaram seus aplicativos para funcionar dessa forma.
Com o telefone aberto, você pode tirar selfies com as câmeras traseiras enquanto visualiza uma prévia na tela externa, o que foi muito útil quando eu estava gravando o vídeo para esta análise.
O iPhone Duo permite executar dois aplicativos na tela simultaneamente, o que foi útil em situações que envolviam pesquisar informações ou visualizar conteúdo em vários aplicativos. Você pode, por exemplo, arrastar e soltar uma imagem diretamente do aplicativo Fotos para uma mensagem de texto quando ambos os aplicativos estão abertos.
Também usei o modo de tela dividida para mostrar a um amigo minha fantasia de Halloween e o personagem do filme em que ela se baseia, tudo ao mesmo tempo.
Embora seja conveniente, provavelmente não é o motivo pelo qual você compraria um iPhone Duo. A tela interna do Duo é melhor aproveitada quando você dedica toda a tela a um único aplicativo, como a Netflix. Além disso, a tela tem um acabamento fosco, que reduz o brilho e não fica com marcas de dedo facilmente.
Mas muitos aplicativos, incluindo alguns populares como Google Maps, Gmail, Call of Duty Mobile e Uber, não foram atualizados para aproveitar ao máximo essa tela grande quando testei o Duo antes do lançamento. Alguns aplicativos pareciam janelas flutuantes no meio da tela do tamanho de um tablet.
Esses aplicativos podem se expandir para ocupar mais espaço na tela, mas ainda assim não preenchem todo o espaço.
Outros aplicativos foram atualizados para ocupar a maior parte da tela, mas ainda apresentavam uma barra preta na lateral. Isso é o que acontece quando os desenvolvedores não atualizam seus aplicativos usando as ferramentas de desenvolvimento de software mais recentes da Apple, conforme explicado no site da empresa.
A boa notícia é que mais aplicativos foram atualizados, mesmo durante os poucos dias em que tenho o telefone, incluindo Google, TikTok, Instagram e Threads. Mas a incerteza de não saber como um aplicativo vai ficar parece inconsistente e pode ser irritante — e esse é um aspecto em que o Android saiu na frente.
Os aplicativos otimizados para o Duo oferecem uma amostra do que é possível. Meu aplicativo favorito até agora é o jogo de plataforma e quebra-cabeça Planet of Lana, que fica lindo e colorido na tela maior do Duo.
Eu também gostei muito de usar o Apple Books, que permite visualizar as páginas em ambos os lados da tela quando ela está levemente dobrada, como um livro de verdade. (O aplicativo Kindle da Amazon é um dos muitos que ainda não foram atualizados).
Os aplicativos Mensagens e Mail da Apple também mostram a caixa de entrada à esquerda e as mensagens à direita, para que você possa ver tudo de uma vez.
Pelo preço, o iPhone Duo deveria ser capaz de fazer tudo o que um celular normal faz e muito mais.
Minha maior preocupação era que o design o tornasse desconfortável de usar quando fechado, mas digitar e deslizar na tela externa é surpreendentemente natural e confortável. Cheguei até a preferir o teclado mais largo do Duo ao do meu iPhone 18 Pro.
Ainda assim, houve uma curva de aprendizado no início. Eu vivia apertando o botão da Siri sem querer, que fica na lateral do Duo, quando na verdade queria apertar os botões de volume na parte superior do telefone.
Também não sabia que era preciso ter um aplicativo aberto para usar o modo de tela dividida, em vez de simplesmente abrir um novo aplicativo e arrastá-lo para um dos lados da tela a partir da tela inicial.
A duração da bateria é razoável e condizente com o que se espera de um celular novo. Normalmente, minha bateria estava em 35% ou 46% na hora de dormir, embora isso sempre varie dependendo dos aplicativos que você estiver usando e da frequência com que usa a tela do tablet em comparação com a tela externa.
O iPhone Duo possui câmeras semelhantes às do iPhone 18 Pro, mas com uma diferença fundamental: não há câmera teleobjetiva. Isso significa que as fotos com zoom não ficarão tão nítidas ou claras quanto as tiradas com o iPhone 18 Pro, embora as fotos capturadas por ambos os telefones sejam semelhantes em outros aspectos.
A pergunta que mais me fazem sobre o iPhone Duo é se vale a pena pagar US$ 2.000. É difícil responder a essa pergunta, considerando que ele custa mais do que um mês de aluguel para a maioria dos americanos.
O único motivo para considerá-lo seria se você realmente quisesse uma tela maior do que a de qualquer outro celular, mas que ainda coubesse no seu bolso.
Meu conselho? Espere até que os desenvolvedores tenham mais tempo para otimizar seus aplicativos antes de decidir. Embora o Duo seja interessante, os aplicativos ainda precisam evoluir bastante.
La expectación ante la llegada del iPhone Duo, que se agotó en reservas online y tiene un plazo de entrega de tres meses, ha vuelto a poner en el centro de la actualidad tecnológica a este tipo de dispositivos. En realidad, la propuesta del primer smartphone plegable de Apple es muy similar a la que hemos visto durante los últimos años en fabricantes como Samsung, Huawei o Motorola: un teléfono que se abre para mostrar una pantalla enorme con la que es posible leer, ver vídeos, consultar documentos o trabajar con varias aplicaciones a la vez de forma más cómoda que con un terminal tradicional. Sin embargo, esa versatilidad tiene un precio, tanto económico como práctico. Las preguntas que muchos se hacen antes de tomar la decisión de adquirirlo son obvias: ¿Merece la pena pagar más por un móvil que se dobla? ¿Es tan delicado como puede parecer? ¿Puede sustituir realmente a una tablet?
© EPV
El iPhone Duo ya ha batido récords antes de salir a la venta. A los pocos minutos de iniciarse las reservas online el viernes pasado, ya se agotó el stock en todo el mundo del primer móvil plegable de Apple, que además, en toda la historia de los iPhone, ya es el modelo que más retraso de entrega acumula en su lanzamiento. El plazo de entrega mínimo es de tres meses. Si se intenta comprar ahora mismo en España, no llegará hasta finales de enero de 2027, mientras que en otros países se retrasa hasta febrero. El gigante tecnológico estadounidense explica estos problemas por una demanda “sencillamente extraordinaria”, mientras que sus críticos culpan a Apple de no haber sido capaz de tener suficientes unidades de este modelo, de fabricación extremadamente compleja.
© picture alliance (Getty Images)
Apple added a US titanium supplier for the iPhone Duo, committing up to $100 million to Pennsylvania-based Perryman Company while expanding domestic production of camera technology for the iPhone 18 Pro.
As part of its American Manufacturing Program (AMP), Apple said today (20 October) the deal with Perryman is over the next three years for titanium used in its products, including the iPhone Duo, which starts at $1,999.
The announcement follows reports of tight supply for Apple’s first foldable. The phone is due in stores on 23 October, but online delivery estimates slipped to January 2027 within minutes of preorders opening on 16 October.
Apple stated Perryman will melt, forge, and roll grade 5 titanium, which it said will contain at least 80% recycled material. Titanium is used for the Duo’s enclosure, providing durability, according to the iPhone maker.
It is also expanding its partnership with Qnity Electronics, headquartered in the US state of Delaware, to produce technology for the new variable aperture in the iPhone 18 Pro camera system.
Apple said nearly 100 components used in the iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 Pro, from wireless chips to the silicon which powers key functions across the devices, are produced by US companies across more than a dozen states.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s (TSMC) Arizona plant will produce more than 100 million chips for Apple in 2026, while Corning’s Kentucky facility will make all cover glass for iPhones and Apple Watches sold worldwide by year end.
Apple also highlighted investments with other AMP partners, including Broadcom for US-made chips and Amkor Technology, which is building a semiconductor packaging and testing facility in Peoria, Arizona.
“We’re thrilled to expand our work with companies producing advanced materials and components for our newest iPhone lineup right here in America,” stated Apple COO Sabih Khan.
The post Apple pledges $100M to US titanium supplier for iPhone Duo appeared first on Mobile World Live.
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Apple's latest privacy crackdown left the online ad industry scrambling for answers. Now, the tech giant has finally offered some.
Late on Monday, Apple published a blog post laying out its rationale for new restrictions that block technology used to identify and track consumers across websites. The changes are implemented through WebKit, the browser engine that powers Safari and other browsers on iPhones and iPads.
Apple said the change was designed to target "identity resolution," a method adtech companies use to connect separate data points about users — such as email addresses, phone numbers, IP addresses, browsing history, or information about the device they're using — to identify and track them across devices.
The method grew in popularity as many web browsers, including Apple's Safari, began phasing out third-party tracking cookies, the small files dropped on a user's device that were traditionally used for web tracking. The ad industry deploys tracking to precisely target specific audiences and measure whether their campaigns are working.
In its blog post, Apple said that while users might readily offer their email address to log in to a website or sign up for a newsletter, most wouldn't expect it to also be shared with other companies for invisible tracking purposes.
"It's not enough to block cross-site cookies to prevent cross-site tracking today because the tracking industry has not stopped trying to track users on the web," Apple said. "They have ushered into what they call the post cookie era and in our latest releases we have put strong protection in place."
The blog post explains that Apple is implementing "domain-level" blocking, a broad intervention designed to ensure that identity providers can't circumvent the restriction by changing how they send data.
Apple took the adtech industry by surprise earlier this month when it came to light that it had begun blocking the domains operated by several companies that offer alternative identifiers, without warning. The blocked domains included those operated by The Trade Desk, LiveRamp, ID5, Permutive, and Audigent.
The stakes are high for adtech companies that have invested heavily in building identity graphs and alternative tracking identifiers to mitigate the impact of the loss of third-party cookies. Apple's latest move threatens to undermine those efforts and put a dent in their businesses if targeting its users across the web becomes more difficult.
The initial rollout had also blocked The Trade Desk's ability to serve ads at all on Apple-operated browsers. Apple rolled out a fix a few days later that restored The Trade Desk's ad-serving domain from being blocked alongside its advertising identifier, Unified ID 2.0.
The ad industry is now bracing for impact as more users begin updating their devices to iOS 27. Ad pros previously told CMO Insider that the change will make it harder for advertisers to identify and reach people across the open web.
Industry insiders said that by effectively shrinking the pool of users they can target, advertisers are expecting less reach, higher prices to reach the audiences they can still identify, and more difficulty in controlling how often people see an ad and measuring whether their campaigns worked.
Identity resolution has become widespread across the open web. An academic paper published in September that analyzed 600,000 websites over 41 months found that 83.76% of those sites were using alternative identifiers by May 2025.
If advertising becomes less effective on the open web, marketers could funnel more of their budgets into so-called "walled garden" platforms like Meta and Google, which aren't as heavily reliant on alternative identifiers because they have reams of their own logged-in user data. Apple, too, has a growing advertising business within its App Store and apps, including News and Maps.
There are still unanswered questions about Apple's exact definition of an identity resolution provider, and the company has already demonstrated it can add domains to its block list without warning.
There's also an indication Apple is only getting started. First reported by AdExchanger, Apple has created a broader list that can dynamically block potentially hundreds of adtech, martech, and data companies. Affected companies may not realize they've been added to the list until they begin experiencing disruptions.
In Monday's blog post, Apple linked to its long-standing tracking-prevention policy, which acknowledges that its blocking rules may have unintended impacts. Those include disrupting the funding of websites that use targeted or personalized advertising, advertising measurement, and fraud prevention.
The policy states that while Apple will try to limit unintended impact, "when faced with a tradeoff, we will typically prioritize user benefits over preserving current website practices."
Ever since Apple launched its Intelligent Tracking Prevention feature in 2017, the tech giant has been locked in a cat-and-mouse game with the adtech industry, which has persistently developed workarounds to its privacy updates. Adtech companies have argued that these techniques were necessary to help publishers effectively monetize their websites with ads while still maintaining user privacy.
Apple, which has long held that "privacy is a fundamental human right," makes it clear in its policy that it won't allow workarounds to proceed on its watch.
"We treat circumvention of shipping anti-tracking measures with the same seriousness as exploitation of security vulnerabilities," the Apple policy states. "If a party attempts to circumvent our tracking prevention methods, we may add additional restrictions without prior notice."
credit should read CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images
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”.
The post Apple iPhone Duo delivery dates slip into 2027 appeared first on Mobile World Live.
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.”
AT&T strikes $2B sale to exit Mexico
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.
Nokia offloads Enterprise Campus Edge unit
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.”
The post The Friday File: Apple HomeView; AT&T Mexico; Nokia ECE appeared first on Mobile World Live.
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.
The post Apple, Nvidia, Ergen each give $25M for Trump project appeared first on Mobile World Live.
Apple expanded its smart home portfolio of devices as it looks to better compete against rivals including Google and Amazon, which included the debut of its $299 HomeView hub.
HomeView Hub, which is available from 13 November, recognises users by their faces to allow them to give hands-free commands to access personal content across Messages, FaceTime, Calendar, Reminders, and Find My.
It is available in two distinct configurations: a tabletop design powered by a standard USB-C cable or a wall-mounted version which connects via various options, including Ethernet or Power over Ethernet (PoE) wired mounts, with the latter available in early 2027.
HomeView Hub, which includes a 7-inch LiquidRetina display, does not have buttons, instead it relies on the new Siri AI to enable users to access apps or content. With a built-in, front facing FaceTime camera, it can recognise up to six different users by voice or appearance. It then gives personalised responses to each one for tasks such as accessing calendars, videoconferencing, viewing cooking recipes or listening to music through its speakers.
CCS Insight chief analyst Ben Wood, who attended today’s (13 October) event in New York City, told Mobile World Live HomeView “has quite a distinctive design compared to rival smart home devices”.
“It will be immediately familiar to anyone who has used an Apple Watch, and Apple has the advantage that it can use Apple ID to easily and securely identify individuals in a household to provide information specifically about them,” he said. “It is little surprise that the HomeView coincides with Apple’s renewed push on Siri AI and Apple Intelligence.
“The company has undoubtedly been waiting for the upgraded Siri experience, given how important the voice interactions are with this product,” he added.
To increase its presence in the smart home sector, the iPhone maker partnered with LG Electronics Inc. and Schneider Electric SE to release a lineup of Apple Home Collection accessories, including indoor and outdoor cameras, a video doorbell, thermostats, and door locks.
Wood noted these partnerships signalled a willingness by Apple to go outside of its own ecosystem to develop new products and services.
“However, looking closely, it appears like there has been very deep collaboration between Apple and these partners to ensure the design, engineering and experience closely match what users would expect,” he explained.
While Apple’s tie-ups with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric mark a shift from its traditional strategy, Wood argued they give consumers a single source for a smart home set-up.
“By making cameras, a lock, thermostats and a doorbell as easy to connect as AirPods, the companies address one of the sector’s biggest hurdles: “the complexity of getting things working,” he said.
Availability for the Home Collection products starts in December, with select accessories available beginning early 2027. The prices range from $199 to $399.
“Since Apple is calling the suite of new products the Apple Home Collection, I’d expect it to dedicate space in its extensive network of Apple Stores to showcase a turnkey smart home solution,” Wood stated. “Given that many technology enthusiasts have already adopted smart home products from other manufacturers, I suspect Apple’s new lineup will appeal to customers who have considered investing in a smart home device but have been apprehensive about the category’s complexity.”
Under the leadership of CEO John Ternus, who took over in September from Tim Cook, Wood argued Apple is taking a cautious approach to the smart home market where rivals such as Amazon’s Ring, Google’s Nest and Arlo and others “already have a strong profile”.
“But Apple may benefit from making the experience seamless, building on its trusted reputation and focus on privacy while giving existing customers yet another reason to stay inside its extremely strong ecosystem,” he said.
More devices
Alongside HomeView, Apple unveiled an updated Apple TV 4K set-top box with built-in microphones and a remote control which is easier to locate. It also features Siri AI which enables users talk to Siri hands-free.
Customers in the US and 29 other countries and regions can pre-order Apple TV 4K starting today from Apple’s online and in the Apple Store app, with availability in stores beginning 13 November. It cost $299 or $9.83 per month for six months.
It also introduced the HomePod mini 2 speaker, which comes in a fresh range of colours, including pink, green, blue, white, and midnight, and features lighting animations which reflect the album artwork of the song being played.
The speaker can provide room-filling sound on its own, as part of a stereo pair or in a multiroom audio set-up. When connected to the new Apple TV 4K, four HomePod Mini 2 speakers can create a surround-sound home cinema system which Apple claims is its most immersive home theatre setup to date. Multiple users can also control smart home accessories and automations securely through voice commands.
HomePod Mini 2 can be pre-ordered starting today with availability beginning on 30 October. It is priced at $149.
The post Apple revamps smart home strategy with HomeView appeared first on Mobile World Live.
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