A Samsung iPhone Duo ad on Instagram plays on the foldable’s cracked inner displays, using three photos split by a fold with a bright line across one side. Apple says the fault affects a small number of units and tells owners to contact AppleCare for a replacement.
Samsung Canada posted the photos without naming Apple, but the line matches the faults owners have reported since the iPhone Duo went on sale on October 23. Apple has not said what causes the problem.
View this post on Instagram
The Samsung iPhone Duo ad borrows the look of the screen fault
The photos show a girl with a dog, a girl biting into a donut and a spiral staircase. A thin vertical line runs down the middle of each like a fold, and a bright line cuts across one side, the same pattern owners describe on their inner displays. Samsung’s pitch is that folding is nothing new to the company.
Samsung has sold foldables since September 2019 and unveiled the Galaxy Z Fold8 on July 22, three months before the iPhone Duo reached customers. Both phones have 7.6-inch inner displays, but the Galaxy Z Fold8 weighs 201 grams against 254 grams for the iPhone Duo.
Folded, the Galaxy Z Fold8 is 9.7mm thick against 11.3mm for the iPhone Duo. Samsung’s ad is not its first aimed at the iPhone, since it mocked the iPhone’s non-fold design in 2022.
Samsung still leads foldables, with the iPhone Duo forecast at 24.8%
In TrendForce’s foldable forecast, Samsung leads at about 7.1 million units and a 35.1% share. The iPhone Duo is forecast at about 5 million units and 24.8%, tied with Huawei for second place. Samsung’s US store prices the 256GB Galaxy Z Fold8 at $1,899.99 and currently marks it down to $1,699.99, while the 256GB iPhone Duo starts at $1,999.
Apple replaces affected iPhone Duo units through AppleCare
Apple gave its statement on October 26, after owners spent the weekend posting cracked screens on Reddit and other forums. Apple also said early response to the foldable has been incredibly positive and that developers are rapidly updating their apps for its form factor. Apple has not said how many units are affected or whether a replacement costs anything.
Teardowns of cracked units put the trouble near the middle of the hinge. One analysis found the breaks clustering just below where the display cable passes through, and a second teardown found the middle link of the hinge snapped. Neither confirms a cause.
Anyone with a cracked inner display should follow these cracked display steps before booking a visit. Outside a replacement, Apple’s standard inner display repair fee is $999 without AppleCare+ and $99 with it.
1 comment