Clutching Last Month's New iPhone, He Waited 18 Hours... "I'm Paying 3.3 Million Won to Take Home the 'Duo' Too" [On-the-Scene Report]

iPhone Duo launches worldwide on Oct. 23
First buyer waits in line from 3 p.m. the previous day
Excitement over the foldable phone's large screen and form factor
Preorders at all three mobile carriers sell out in one minute

"Duo! Duo! Five, four, three, two, one. Welcome!"

At around 7:30 a.m. on the 23rd, customers were lined up outside Apple Store Myeongdong in Jung District, Seoul, where Apple's first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, was launching that day. Despite the chilly weather, they waited outside, their breath visible in the cold air. However, the number of customers in line was around 100, somewhat fewer than on the launch day of the iPhone 18 Pro last month. Apple had decided that customers who had not preordered the iPhone Duo would not be able to purchase it even if they visited the store.

On the morning of the 23rd, the launch day of the iPhone Duo, customers enter Apple Store Myeongdong in Jung District, Seoul, as employees congratulate them. Photo by Lee Myunghwan.

At 8 a.m., the store doors opened as employees led a countdown, and customers entered one by one in order. Once inside, they collected the iPhone Duo units they had reserved. Apple Store Myeongdong normally opens at 11 a.m., but moved its opening time up to 8 a.m. that day for the iPhone Duo launch. The store had gathered and displayed the iPhone Duo units on the display table closest to the entrance.

Park Seonggeon, 33, who became the first customer to purchase the phone that day, received it before anyone else after waiting at the Apple Store since 3 p.m. the previous day. In his hand, he also held a burgundy iPhone 18 Pro. He had also waited from early morning on Sept. 18, the iPhone 18 Pro's launch day, to become the second customer to buy one, and had previously said he would line up again for the iPhone Duo launch.

"I bought it because Apple entered the foldable market relatively late, so I expected the technology to be fairly refined," Park said. "I plan to attach an external camera to the iPhone Duo and use it for work. The price of 3.3 million won is a burden, but I think it's reasonably priced considering the versatility of a foldable smartphone," he added.

Park Seonggeon, 33, the first customer to purchase the iPhone Duo at Apple Store Myeongdong, poses for a commemorative photo holding the product. Apple

Customers expressed excitement about the iPhone Duo's large screen and form factor. Jeong Haeung, a creator who runs a movie review channel and is in his 20s, said, "I used to carry both an iPhone and an iPad mini for filming and editing videos, and I think the iPhone Duo combines the two. It will also be useful for livestreaming because I can view the broadcast image captured by the rear camera on the external display."

The iPhone Duo's launch price in South Korea is 3.29 million won for the 256-gigabyte (GB) model. With initial supplies limited, preorders sold out quickly despite the high price. The online Apple Store says that even if customers place an order now, they can expect to receive it in late January next year. Preorders offered by the country's three mobile carriers also sold out in no time. At T Direct Shop, SK Telecom's official online store, the first round of preorders, which guaranteed delivery on launch day, closed in one minute. At KT Direct Shop, all units allocated for the first and second rounds had also sold out within one minute of preorders opening.

The iPhone Duo is an inward-folding smartphone, with its screen folding inward. When folded, its screen measures 136 mm (5.4 inches) and the device is 11.3 mm thick. When unfolded, the screen measures 193 mm (7.6 inches) and the device is 5.2 mm thick. The inner display has a 4:3 aspect ratio, optimized for viewing content. It also features a nano-texture layer that reduces screen reflections, with a focus on minimizing screen creases, which are considered a weakness of foldable smartphones. The application processor (AP), which serves as the smartphone's brain, is the same A20 Pro chip used in the iPhone 18 Pro. The phone is equipped with a dual-camera system featuring 48-megapixel cameras.

The iPhone Duo, Apple's foldable smartphone, is on display at Apple Myeongdong in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 23rd, its release date. Yonhap News.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.