Apple's first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, is in unexpectedly short supply despite criticism that it is too expensive. With pre-order deliveries pushed back to January, resale listings marked up by hundreds of thousands to several million won above list price have appeared on secondhand trading platforms.
Dozens of resale listings went up on eBay after iPhone Duo pre-orders opened on the 16th, according to 9to5Mac and MacRumors on the 17th. An iPhone Duo in Night Sky with 2 terabytes of storage was marked as sold on eBay for $5,000 (about 6.9 million won), roughly 1.56 times the U.S. list price of $3,199 (4.28 million won). A pre-order slot for the 1TB model in the same color, listed at $2,599 (3.47 million won), sold for $4,400 (5.88 million won). Marked-up listings also appeared on South Korean secondhand platforms, with sellers asking 4.2 million to 4.5 million won for the 512GB model priced at 3.59 million won.
Customers who pre-order the iPhone Duo through Apple's online store now face delivery around late January. In the U.S., estimated shipping dates for every color and storage combination slipped to Jan. 25 within about 30 minutes of pre-orders opening. In South Korea, orders placed now will also arrive only in late January.
Strong Early Demand or Limited Supply?
Apple acknowledged strong initial demand for the device. The company said pre-order demand for the iPhone Duo, its first foldable model, has been exceptional and that it is working to get the product to customers quickly, according to the Financial Times.
Still, some observers suggest that limited initial supply, not just strong demand, contributed to the shortage. Even before the launch, analysts had expected Apple to struggle to secure early volumes, citing low production yields and delayed component deliveries because foldable displays and hinges are difficult to manufacture. MacRumors reported last month, citing Chinese business outlet Jiemian News, that the iPhone Duo's final assembly yield stood at slightly above 60% as of Sept. 17.
With only limited volumes allocated to South Korea, domestic mobile carriers are also said to be having trouble securing early supply. The carriers plan to deliver devices to pre-order customers in stages as they obtain additional volumes, and are taking pre-orders and selling the phone in line with the handsets they have secured and future supply schedules. Some carriers are running pre-orders in rounds and are currently accepting third-round reservations.