Apple iPhone Duo pre-orders sell out in 15 minutes in Hong Kong
Apple launched pre-orders for its first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, on Friday evening. Launch-day store pickup slots sold out in under 15 minutes. Only the top-tier 2TB model at HK$27,999 remained available for same-day collection. Home delivery for other models was pushed to late January.
Apple launched official pre-orders for its highly anticipated first foldable device, the iPhone Duo, on Friday evening, triggering a massive wave of traffic that exhausted launch-day store pickup slots in less than 15 minutes.
The luxury dual-screen smartphone, which marks Apple's most expensive mobile release to date, became available for reservation starting at 8pm. Testers from Sing Tae Headline, the sister publication of The Standard, confirmed that within 30 minutes of opening, shipping delivery times for most standard models had already been pushed back to late January of next year.
In preparation for the evening rush, both the official Apple website and the Apple Store mobile application went offline for scheduled maintenance earlier in the afternoon, displaying a standard holding screen welcoming early visitors and advising them that pre-orders would commence precisely at 8pm.
Prospective buyers faced varying levels of success depending on the platform they used. Digital tests conducted during the opening minutes revealed that the desktop website version operated relatively smoothly, allowing some early customers to complete their payments by 8.04pm for the entry-level 256GB storage model in the signature night sky colourway.
In contrast, those attempting to purchase through the official Apple Store mobile application encountered significant system bottlenecks. Many users were placed in a virtual queue, encountering holding screens that asked them to remain on the page, followed by system notifications indicating that their waiting times were almost over. By the time mobile app users successfully bypassed the virtual waiting room at approximately 8.18pm, they were met with notices stating that same-day store pickup was entirely unavailable.
The rapid depletion of stock left latecomers with highly limited options if they hoped to receive their devices on the official release day of October 23. Shortly after the 15-minute mark, the only inventory remaining for launch-day in-store pickup was the top-tier 2TB storage variant, which carries a premium price tag of HK$27,999. For all other storage capacities, the option for physical store collection was completely greyed out. Customers choosing home delivery instead of store pickup faced even longer delays, with estimated delivery windows rapidly slipping, leaving many who ordered later in the evening with projected arrival dates extending into late January.