r/iPhoneDuo • u/Bitter_Offer7123 • 4d ago
Discussion Here are the several cases I mentioned earlier
Disclaimer: I’m not an Apple hater, and I’m not trying to blow this out of proportion. I just think this is something worth paying attention to.
Since my earlier post got quite a bit of attention, here are the several cases I was referring to.
This issue has already sparked quite a bit of discussion among Chinese users. Maybe it’s simply because foldables are more popular in China, meaning there’s a larger user base and more reported cases.
What’s concerning is that all these devices show display damage in almost the exact same spot, right along the crease.
Of course, I’m not saying every iPhone Duo will develop this issue. But seeing multiple devices fail in such a similar way does raise questions about a potential design flaw.
The good news is that, from what I’ve seen, Apple has been offering replacements for the affected devices.
Still, I really hope Apple investigates what’s causing this. Hopefully it’s limited to a small number of units rather than a broader design issue.
*EDIT
Just a quick clarification since there's been a lot of speculation in the comments.
I'm honestly surprised to see people calling me a bot, accusing me of posting AI images and spreading propagand, or even claiming I was sent by China to make Apple look bad?? I really didn't expect this many conspiracy theories lol...
I've made my profile public. Anyone who looks can see I've been an Apple enthusiast for years. Most of my devices and my entire smart home setup are Apple-based, and I'm actually considering getting an iPhone Duo to replace my iPad.
The reason these reports are coming from China is pretty simple: the phone went on sale there roughly 12 hours earlier. I came across these cases in Chinese communities and wanted to share them with a wider audience.
One important update: the owner of the phone in the second photo claims the display failed while he was still at the carrier store. He had just tried out the phone and was walking toward the store's exit when the screen suddenly failed during a normal unfolding motion. The carrier directed him to Apple, but according to the owner, the Genius Bar at Apple's Shanghai Wujiaochang store classified it as user-induced damage and refused warranty coverage.
Genuinely hope Apple investigates these cases and provides fair solutions for affected customers. I want the Duo to succeed just as much as anyone else here.
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u/chief_blunt9 4d ago edited 4d ago
Don’t worry nerds. When I get mine in an hour I’ll tell you geeks mines fine.
This is gonna backfire so bad if my shit comes broken…
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u/majestic_waterbear 4d ago
Hey it’s been an hour. Stop what you’re doing and post an update for us nerds.
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u/chief_blunt9 4d ago
My nerds. It is with great honor to tell you my new duo is perfectly fine. Thankfully our long national nightmare is over
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u/Deephalfpanda57 4d ago
Almost an hour now how’s it holding up?
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u/the-dumb-nerd 4d ago
Currently on fire. Local community burned down. Don't worry tho. Pretty sure they will push a patch to fix it soon.
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u/Traditional_Dish_147 4d ago
By the end of the weekend we should have a better idea how widespread this issue actually is. Hoping it’s nothing more than a rare manufacturing defect but it wouldn’t be the first “-gate” in Apple history lol
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u/Dichter2012 4d ago
“You are folding it wrong!” /s
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u/utnow 4d ago
Okay that would have been a legit funny advertising campaign. Or even just something for the announcement. A bit of nostalgic throwback for people who know. Just a good tagline for people who don't. Kinda pokes from at themselves a little in a way that honestly highlights that they stuck with it and did (eventually) fix it. Missed opportunity tbh.
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u/PFI_sloth 4d ago
All it would take is one broken screen for some article farm to say “fold-gate”
Honestly I think there is probably a ~0% chance that there weren’t foldgate articles written and ready to go before the duo even hit stores
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u/daddyescape 4d ago
This is enough reason to cancel your order asap!
<trying to improve Dec ship date>
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u/techie-techie 4d ago
Interesting that the line on the right portion is just where the right side battery’s L shape corner is. It appears the hinge was a tad bit tight and the damage occurred during opening the fold and the battery’s corner poked the inner side of the display. Mind you, Apple’s latest batteries have metal casing and is very rigid. I recall both
Link of internal’s picture: https://www.reddit.com/r/iphone/s/9b9x4qhpJz
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u/MobileNerd 4d ago
I think you are right the l shaped battery it hitting the screen. The hinge mechnism seems to be protected all the way down. The battery is the only thing it could be. Would seem very easy for Apple to put some extra protection in that area on new builds.
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u/techie-techie 4d ago
I was about say meybe they can just stress it mid-production (you know, like bend 30000+ times like Joanna Stern did in her review), but then I remembered near the end of video she said the hinge actually felt a little tightened. I say mechanical wear, probably lubrication issue?
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u/techie-techie 4d ago
Right! Hinge is definitely in issue here as you also pointed out. My point with the battery is related to the consistent straight line we are seeing that basically runs over the L’s (reverse in your picture) middle edge to the right portion of the screen. I have not seen any damage picture where there’s a full or left only horizontal line.
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u/Mat-Helm 4d ago
Let
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u/Mammoth-Path-6520 4d ago
I like whitebargate
Or the white bar of death
Or "aye yo bro, did your new iphone get white barred? cuhh my sht got white barred forreal"
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u/darthjoey91 4d ago
No, we already had that for the Vision Pro that could just spontaneously develop a crack in the middle of the outer screen.
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u/MobileNerd 4d ago
Wow that looks like the exact same spot the guy in Australia had his crack.
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u/Umbrasquall 4d ago
They all have the white line across the right screen.
People were calling that guy a liar because the screen was "glossy". Lol.
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u/Fickle_Assistance669 4d ago
I feel so bad for that guy, he got dogpiled on for having a legitimate issue with his phone and having the decency to warn us about it.
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u/phero1190 4d ago
People can't admit that Apple isn't perfect. It's honestly incredible to watch.
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u/titanup001 4d ago
I always compare Apple to Radiohead. Love the product, but they can be douchey sometimes, and I’m often embarrassed to be associated with the psycho fans.
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u/Betancorea 4d ago
It’s because fanboys can’t accept anything negative against their point of view. It triggers them hard and they cope by calling it AI, fake or the poster a bot.
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u/TeaAndSageDirtbag 4d ago
Because the guy at the back had 5 fingers on one hand…
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u/T_Briggs 4d ago
So glad I bought Apple Care.
Looks to be a manufacturing defect as they’re damaged in the same exact spot
Hopefully it’s only a certain batch thats facing this issue
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u/MemphianSphinx 4d ago
I would imagine something like this is a simple warranty replacement so
is unnecessary apple care 2
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u/Upbeat-Armadillo1756 4d ago
That's correct. And it's unlikely that you have a defective unit that starts breaking AFTER the warranty period is up and you don't have Apple Care. If it's going to break, it'll happen right away like these.
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u/Repulsive_Peak_8655 4d ago
Even then if this becomes common and generate enough noise, apple will Probably implement an extended warranty program.
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u/rxf555 4d ago
This kind of stuff this early will 100% be covered under consumer protection in most countries
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u/Patjack27 4d ago
You don’t need consumer protection, Apple ha sa limited warranty on their devices
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u/daitenshe 1d ago
You’re getting downvoted but in the US this likely would’ve been the case for at least some if this hadn’t become such a widespread (or at least widely discussed) issue
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u/Mammoth-Path-6520 4d ago
You don't need apple care for this
You just march back and immediately demand a replacement or sue them lol
You think people will pay $2000 usd for a phone, have this happen to it, and then just move on and be sad? 😂
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u/ReacherNMN 4d ago
Check samsung subs. Samsung refuses warranty for vague reasons that people don’t even try anymore.
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u/Mammoth-Path-6520 4d ago
For something like this that is shaping up to be a common defect? If they don't immediately refund everyone that's a lawsuit waiting to happen lol
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u/static_silence24 4d ago
Except if they read out the accelerometer and determine it’s been dropped. As Samsung routinely does to wiggle themselves out of warranty claims
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u/pokenguyen 4d ago
How much Apple Care for 2 years?
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u/xAlphaKAT33 4d ago
It's 20 a month or 200 a year (us) for the Duo
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u/pokenguyen 4d ago
So 10% more expensive, seem cheap for this kind of device, but 2000$ is already too much….
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u/NoxTempus 4d ago
That was my initial thought after I saw the 3rd+ pic.
But, I saw a comment on another thread that said people were probably piercing the screen with their nail when closing it by pushing on the screen. Given the position that seems plausible.
Also, I do think most of these look like front impact. The pictures I've seen of faulty screens usually have cleaner cracking.
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u/kyronami 4d ago
I wonder if this is actually a device/hardware issue or just display models that kids and other people are pressing on the screen with their fingers hard to fold it close or abusing them
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u/pngopb 4d ago
Samsung used to have the same issue up until the Fold 4 where display units would be cracked on day 1. However, whatever improvements they made in each generation since seem to have fixed it. Not sure why Samsung went backwards considering Apple is using their display.
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u/Ok_Faithlessness7385 4d ago
It's not the same display Samsung uses on Galaxy devices. Apple contracts Samsung Display to manufacture custom panels built to Apple's own design specs, dimensions, and material choices. Samsung Display is just the component manufacturer here, they don't hand over internal Galaxy R&D secrets, and they don't dictate how Apple engineers their hardware. If there's a flaw on a 1st-gen device, that falls on Apple's specifications, not Samsung's displays.
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u/static_silence24 4d ago
Those screens were likely developed by Apple and are only built by Samsung.
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u/OmarDaily 4d ago
People think Samsung that make screens and Samsung that sell phones are the same… They are completely different entities..
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u/Quiet_Government2222 4d ago
In cases like this, the issue often doesn't lie with the display itself; rather, it frequently stems from the design of the hinge and internal components. Since foldable displays are inherently fragile, the hinge must provide the necessary protection.
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u/Time_Entertainer_319 4d ago
It’s on the same spot. Looks like a device issue. If it were random, then it would be user issue
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u/Dazzling-Voice7180 4d ago edited 4d ago
I was eviscerated in this sub Reddit a few weeks ago when I made the mere suggestion that their QC might (not will) slip trying to field so many units against their viable yields, and that why I'm waiting until better yields start showing up and also not wanting to be a launch day beta tester. I wish I could tag the guy who went on a 20 post tangent just losing his shit on me saying this is all but impossible.
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u/TeslaM1 4d ago
Had an iPhone since 2007 but this subreddit is toxic when it comes to anything remotely concerning.
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u/Dazzling-Voice7180 4d ago edited 4d ago
actually, hey u/stultus_respectant, how’s this wild plot twist that *nobody* could have predicted...
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u/ClumpOfCheese 4d ago
Any new product I always think it’s worth waiting at least six months or until the second generation.
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u/gift_for_aranaktu 4d ago
I had this exact thought, yeah. “Huh, wonder what them low yields were about then…”
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u/alabasterskim 4d ago
I don't think it's even a QC thing. This is just how much more malleable foldable screens in general are.
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u/Fresh_Ad_230 4d ago
Early adopters know the deal. Growing pains are part of the experience, apple or not.
Source: OG Fold owner.
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u/Prestigious_Act_1618 4d ago
To all the people who think this is fake, this literally happens to 5% of foldables. People have reported these issues on the google fold and the even the new fold 8. This is why people say get the insurance. Most of those people never even dropped their phone they just opened it one day and it happened.
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u/Dazzling_Jellyfish70 4d ago
I agree about insurance, but these are situations where the (free) one-year limited warranty would apply.
Legally, these are the fault of Apple due to manufacturing defects so they must replace the devices at no cost.
This was our policy for devices in the first year when I worked at the Apple Store and Apple spells it on their Hardware Warranties page.
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u/Working_Use2500 4d ago
If you just open the linked post, it is describing how the person with the second image phone got denied warranty by Apple.
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u/matthader 4d ago
Getting denied by an Apple Store employee* *is not the same as being denied by Apple. I was an FRS back in the day and there are dumb/cynical/hateful Apple store employees just like anywhere else, and documentation is probably lacking for common issues as Apple would often slow roll it out to us until it was 100% confirmed.
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u/chitransguy 4d ago
Were you red zone or did you work at the bar? Because I can absolutely see how they’d try to claim accidental damage. I have no doubt they’ll eventually have an REP to cover this.
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u/OkieDreamWeaver 4d ago
Currently using a Moto RAZR Fold that I've had since release and completely agree. It's my 3rd foldable, but the first time I'd had the inner display explode. Still, I've enjoyed this phone way more than any of the Samsung offerings and I've stuck with it until now (gonna switch to the Duo for awhile to scratch the iOS itch). Even with quality phones, I feel like a lot of people are about to get surprised by the failure rate with foldables. It's just part of the game.
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u/Tadpoles-Z 4d ago
Exactly. ...and there will be knives and pitchforks. I'll have my popcorn 🍿 ready. People are going to treat their iPhone Duos with the same disregard that they treated their previous iPhones and will oftentimes suffer for it. 🤷🏾♂️
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u/Sluggerjt44 4d ago
Ya in the z fold subreddit. Every once and a while I'll come across a post where someone just opened their phone sndnrhe screen was broken or they heard a weird popping sound and found it broken. It happens. I definitely bought insurance just in case
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u/jesse6225 4d ago
I have a Z fold 3. It has had a crease for most of the time i had it.
The glass is soft and closing it causes constant strain. To me it looks like these people might have closed the phone by pushing the center in with their fingers.
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u/ancientesper 4d ago
But other foldables don't crack at the same spot, that has got to be a design flaw. I don't think people need insurance for this issue, since it's a manufacturing defect and within the return window.
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u/Tank_Gloomy 4d ago
Yeah, it's practically impossible to ensure that absolutely every single unit comes 100% spotless after machining, one or two on the batch will absolutely have a small bit of metal bushings, thin fibers or something the tool was picking up during work and you're the unfortunate soul to receive that unit. This is especially prevalent when you're shipping thousands of units, probably daily to put up stock.
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u/EricDArneson 4d ago
I was going to say this has happened to some users with android devices if you read those subreddits
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u/Ok_Passage_7151 4d ago
My Vision Pro had a power issue day 1. They fixed it and it’s been solid since.
Day 1 new form factor devices have both yield and QC issues. It’s part of tech.
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u/kvetcha-rdt 4d ago
This looks to be where one set of tension springs in the hinge are.
Curious that we didn't see any instances of this during pretty serious durability testing by reviewers, but there are a lot more units out there now, I guess.
Will be curious to see how often this crops up with purchased units.
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u/SilverCarbon 4d ago
I'm all for repeatable, equivalent testing but there are many ways to use and hold the new foldable and for many this will be the first foldable ever in their hands. Certain repeated pressures the designers never imagined (nor intended) could crop up. It's difficult to have these surface with reviews, especially if it only affects a tiny percentage of devices.
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u/kvetcha-rdt 4d ago
Yeah, I’m genuinely just curious to see if this ends up being a manufacturing boo-boo for a subset of units or something more significant.
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u/Canadian_Lumberjack_ 4d ago
Some insider baseball here: the next few weeks will serve as an important EFFA Capture period for Apple. Early Field Failure Analysis. In some cases, engineers are at Apple Stores to directly receive damaged devices, talk to customers, and report back to their superiors. They will be looking for broken screens, cosmetic issues out of the box, etc. Stores also have limited DOA inventory on hand to replace these types of units. As EFFA Captures are made, Apple will discover the most common faults and (hopefully) have the opportunity to provide feedback and direction to the factories to modify or improve specific tolerances to ensure these issues happen less often.
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u/tknosoujirou 4d ago
How long does it take for a company to analyze these units and make tweaks to the production line? 2-3 months?
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u/All-Sorts-of-Stuff 4d ago
It depends on the root cause. As a ballpark, EFFA programs generally last for about 6 months after launch - it’s a period where you’re accelerating returns, conducting detailed failure analysis with engineers instead of technicians, etc. If the fixes are really just process tweaks (changing the parameters of some adhesive pressing fixture, etc), the changes can be qualified and rolled out to new units in a matter of weeks, depending on whether WIP or Finished Goods need to be reworked. If it’s an actual component change, it can take a lot longer depending on the specific part
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u/cronies4life 4d ago
it's best to wait until 2028 for v3, where they have time to make design changes to fix the defects
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u/000extra 4d ago
No way it’s a coincidence that it’s happening all at the same spot, center 2/3 of the way down the screen
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u/Ill-Mastodon-8692 4d ago
just like melted connectors on 5090, cracked day 1 Duo’s will happen
dont panic people
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u/awais786m 4d ago
Mines is fine thankfully and genuinely it’s so cool
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u/jsnxander 4d ago
Man I wish I was still at my old company! I could've expensed this thing. Sigh...maybe really good foldables will reach mid-tier pricing before I'm in a home.
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u/Ambitious-Seesaw-830 4d ago
“Mines?” How were you able to afford one?
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u/Dazzling_Jellyfish70 4d ago
Everyone has different ways of speaking casually, it doesn’t mean they’re stupid or unemployed.
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u/LV426_Tourism_Board 4d ago
This is a still from the HTX Studio review where they used a CT scanner. If this is a hinge issue, it looks like that rectangle with the grey dot is the culprit.
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u/planedrop 4d ago
It's relatively common for folding phones to have a higher failure rate from normal usage, this isn't surprising to me as a long time fold user and it's probably not widespread.
They are more fragile though, doesn't matter what the fold fanboys say. I've had 5, all 5 developed cracks in the display (though only 1 had dead pixels) within 1 year of normal use and this is true for several other people I know with multiple folding phones. I do imagine the Duo will mostly last longer, and sometimes it really is just luck of the draw (I also know someone with a Fold 5 that didn't get cracks for over 2 years of heavy use).
But I wouldn't put this as concerning at all, it's very unlikely to be widespread.
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u/TKisely 4d ago
I have multiple Samsung foldables without any similar issue, one of them was my main and only phone without case for 3 years. I even dropped it once (closed, on the edge). I think most of the time it is user error or simply luck how it is dropped or if something get inside the folding mechanics.
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u/planedrop 4d ago
Well drops aren't the issue, folding displays are less likely to break in a drop since they are flexible rather than rigid like a glass display.
The issue is more so continued use, I was one of those people opening the phone for 99% of my use cases and not using the outer display much at all.
But really more so my point is all folding displays will eventually break and faster than that of a normal slab display, under normal use. For a slab if you don't drop them they'll just eventually die, but all folding displays will break from the stress of opening and closing eventually. For me at least, and those that I know IRL, it happened faster than I was comfortable with.
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u/blackninja126 4d ago
Everyone with a 256gb night sky should cancel, I heard it affected those ones the most … nothing to do with my Nov 2-9 delivery date
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u/__Jaume 4d ago
Sorry i already have it in my hands
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u/blackninja126 4d ago
Kindly share your address and I'll come take it off your hands for you, free of charge lol
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u/Rayzakii 4d ago
Apple probably sold some hundred thousand of devices today
It’s totally expected to have some with problems
When you say several cases, it actually means less than 0,01%
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u/t33lu 4d ago
yeah people fail to realize that 99% uptime is still 3 days a year or downtime.
Everything is just a bit more amplified because it's a new product launch and its because its apple. I hope everyone gets a replacement though and its easy to verify.
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u/Koalazilla 4d ago
Yeah. This could turn out to be a bigger manufacturing quality issue but with any device you will ALWAYS have a certain failure amount, especially with a first gen device like this. Because it is Apple we will hear about it significantly more than any other brand. I can guarantee Samsung has plenty of failed units that end up out there but we just don’t see it in pop culture being as discussed because of their lower cultural impact. It took Samsung phones blowing up for them to get any news coverage back in the day.
Also until we know more I’d brush this off as an acceptable failure rate but competitors and people on the internet will amplify it.
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u/Best-Difficulty-2575 4d ago
Exactly, even the the z folds are still having this problem. It’s not something new it’s just amplified because all eyes are on it and you have some hoping it fails so they can be like “ah ha, told it was a shit product”.
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u/cyhlalala 4d ago
And even then, theres people here thinking it's all fake AI posts or people doing it on purpose for social media posts
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u/GreatGojira 4d ago
I'm not an Apple hater. My iphone 14 is the best phone I've ever had. That's coming from someone who USED to be an Apple hater.
My golden rule is to always wait to buy new products. As much as I love the idea of the Duo, I would rather wait to let Applw get the kinks before I buy one.
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u/theNorrah 4d ago
I've been on first gen, iPhone, 5k iMac and Airpods max, M1 Pro Laptop.
There have been issues for sure. But every single one of them is functional today.
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u/willzyx01 4d ago
Damn. Glad I have Apple Care, but this shouldn't be happening at all. If they all have a crack in the same location, could it be one of the hinges?
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u/Weekly-Ratio-230 4d ago
"Apple's Shanghai Wujiaochang store classified it as user-induced damage"
There you go.
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u/Scharmlek 4d ago
From what I'm seeing (correct me if I'm wrong), it seems like all or most of these issues are Chinese models. Makes me wonder if it was just a bad batch sent over that way.
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u/MallFoodSucks 4d ago
It got released in Asia first. Time zones. It’s all China, Japan, Australia.
By end of day you’ll see US ones.
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u/reddituserVibez 4d ago edited 4d ago
this the first device since many many many years, i got Apple Care for.. (since it’s the same price, i subbed to Apple Care One) so idc what happens with it.. i‘m not even using a case.. lol
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u/HanneSolow 4d ago
I read somewhere that many factories in China had problems to get theirproduction quality
Maybe this is what we are seeing here. Hopefully this will get solved quickly.