Cutting corners: When Apple unveiled the foldable Duo, many wondered how well the hinge and screen would hold up. Within hours of the iPhone Duo's launch, images of cracked screens began circulating on social media, and the damage isn't limited to the fold itself.
The iPhone Duo subreddit alone already has multiple threads from users complaining about, and sharing pictures of, cracked screens. Some report that Apple has been generous with replacements for the $2,000 phone so far, but it remains to be seen how the company's policy will evolve as it works through production challenges.
Most of the photos show a break running along the fold, with a bright line of pixels extending from it toward the right edge of the screen. The result resembles a giant white L-shape stretching from one end of the internal screen to the middle.
iPhone Duo screen cracked within 6 hours of ownership
by u/Midnight_Slump in iPhoneDuo
One user in Australia reported the problem just six hours after buying the iPhone Duo, having opened the device fewer than 20 times. He says he felt something along the hinge beneath the screen before hearing a crack as the display broke. There were no marks on the screen's surface or the exterior hinge to suggest anything had been caught.
Apple's phone support offered an express replacement but required a hold for the phone's full price, and couldn't say when the replacement would arrive. He went to the Apple Store instead, where staff immediately granted a full replacement.
Another user reportedly didn't even finish the initial setup before a similar crack appeared. Photos on Reddit, X and the MacRumors forums show comparable damage from the US, Australia and China, including what appear to be demo units in China, though the circumstances behind most of those images are unclear. One user speculates that the tension springs that hold the iPhone Duo in various positions are to blame. It's too early to say how widespread the problem is, and reviewers who put the phone through thousands of folds reported no cracks.
Didn't even make it through setup before I had the screen crack
by u/leftyhyzer16 in iPhoneDuo
It's fortunate that affected users are getting quick replacements, considering Apple's listed repair costs. Without AppleCare+, repairs and replacements go from $49 to $1,499.
Apple's reported manufacturing problems and low yields could also make replacements harder to come by, as demand has outpaced supply. While some customers have picked up units straight from stores, other orders are already backed up into 2027.
Reviewers have been generally positive on Apple's first foldable phone, praising its hinge as the best they've used on a foldable and, in several cases, its speakers. Complaints largely center on the lack of Face ID and on software and developers who have yet to release updates that take full advantage of the large screen.
The iPhone Duo's screen is cracking in the same weird L-shape for multiple owners
