CNET
Behind CNET’s Mad Scramble to Pre-Order an iPhone Duo
The iPhone Duo, Apple’s first foldable phone, is a hot ticket. Although the phone has an Oct. 23 release date, as of now models preordered through Apple won’t ship until the last week of January. The availability at mobile carriers like AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile is more variable. CNET Editor in Chief David Katzmaier is…
@alexanderfazel
October 16, 2026 at 12:08 pm
It was interesting for me: I got up at 5am exactly (Pacific Time) and Apple Store came up around 5:01 am. I used the Apple Store app, selected my pre-prepared order and picked in store pickup. I selected the store I want and I got some kind of error and apology message. I tried again two more times on the same thing happened. Frustrated, I went into Safari Mobile and logged into my Apple Store account. Tried it from there, and it worked! I got a slightly later launch day time slot for in-store pick up at my favorite Apple Store.
In all the years of preordering, I have never seen a mobile browser prevail over the app. I must say, I love my new iPhone 18 Pro Max!
Sorry, I couldn’t resist. Before you shoot:
I think the iPhone Duo is a phenomenal product and even I’m surprised at how quickly it sold out. I hope everyone gets theirs. 👍🏻👍🏻
@sixmarch
October 16, 2026 at 12:24 pm
Verizon came through in the clutch for me. Got it for launch day delivery.
@weavedivas
October 16, 2026 at 12:32 pm
@sixmarch same here!!
@Ray_Entertainment
October 16, 2026 at 12:25 pm
Much easier if you have a Carrier and order thru them.
@Christian3828
October 16, 2026 at 3:01 pm
@Ray_Entertainment probably, but I got. A better deal directly from Apple than T-Mobile. I got $800 for my wife’s iphone 15 pro for 24 months instead of the Force 36 with T-Mobile.
@NinjaSushi420
October 16, 2026 at 12:40 pm
IPhone is garbage
@rugareee
October 16, 2026 at 1:18 pm
@NinjaSushi420 You don’t actually have to buy one, it’s optional
@rotorbob
October 16, 2026 at 6:20 pm
You must have fancy garbage.
@NinjaSushi420
October 16, 2026 at 12:42 pm
People use their phones mainly for three things, texting, calling, and watching YouTube or other social media. Thank God people are spending $2,000 to text, call and watch social media.
@ManuelMartinsPT
October 16, 2026 at 1:04 pm
Long live to my iPhone 11!
@hullstar242
October 16, 2026 at 1:53 pm
@ManuelMartinsPT same lol
@Aragorn7884
October 16, 2026 at 2:18 pm
Naw bruh, most of those people are going to flip it for a profit 🤑
@mikeBGzz
October 16, 2026 at 2:24 pm
Yea Verizon was taking preorder’s at 7:57 had mine ordered by 8!
@josher887
October 16, 2026 at 2:59 pm
I got the 1tb at 8:04am, and I’ve never done it this way before but, I decided to do pick up at a local Apple Store because I’m slightly more apprehensive about getting it shipped to my house, considering the price, picking it up on the 23rd I feel very lucky 😅
@jaredthegamer
October 16, 2026 at 3:04 pm
Opened Apple Store app at 4:58am PST. Couldn’t even get in until 5:03. Had my order pre filled from yesterday and heard that ordering to a store would be quicker but no stores in AZ showed any availability so ordered for delivery and shows Nov 6-13 for estimated delivery. 256GB night sky
@rangers68able
October 16, 2026 at 3:49 pm
Same
@stephenerdelyi
October 16, 2026 at 7:11 pm
Had an identical experience. Totally goofed by wasting precious seconds trying to order a local store stock vs starting with delivery from the go
@pruittfamily
October 16, 2026 at 3:07 pm
Interesting. I pre-ordered my pre-order and when the store opened, I click “Pay with Apple Pay” and BOOM, 1TB Night Sky will be delivered on Oct 23. No biggie.
@123tomandadrian
October 16, 2026 at 6:56 pm
Store didn’t open straight away for me, then my “get ready” order was gone. By the time I ordered (13:02 BST), my delivery estimate is 2nd of November. Still, not bad compared to others
@unmeitobaku4741
October 16, 2026 at 3:15 pm
Me to, i pre order the iphone duo 2tb night sky model, with the night sky case, and the AirPods Max 2 – Midnight ya boi 😂😂😂😂
@johnprince337
October 16, 2026 at 3:17 pm
Preordering was such a fail, and not getting it on release date means I will no longer be ordering a duo at all
@JP8-3
October 16, 2026 at 6:24 pm
I would of done the same tbh, there’s always a 50/50 it’ll suck
@austingarrett1152
October 16, 2026 at 8:43 pm
@johnprince337 That’s what I was gonna do if mine got delayed but I was able to get one next Friday.
@Ghost818-x8c
October 16, 2026 at 3:27 pm
Already ordered it today
@deadnsyde2
October 16, 2026 at 3:29 pm
so cnet doesnt get models delivered by apple? lol
@imac_games
October 16, 2026 at 3:54 pm
This makes me appreciate the fact that I was able to preorder right around 8am ET.
@JP8-3
October 16, 2026 at 6:20 pm
@imac_games same here, i learned my lesson after trying to order a steam controller
@504cool
October 16, 2026 at 4:31 pm
Katz is back 👍🏾. Before all the other TV reviewers there was David Katzmaier. I’ve waited for the Katzmaier blessing many a time before buying a TV. We have not forgotten 👍🏾.
Looking forward to seeing you all review the Duo.
@StableRiot
October 16, 2026 at 5:11 pm
Former Apple employee here. Preorder and store inventories are separate. Preorders are not shipped from Apple stores. A preorder secures your allocation, not necessarily the earliest arrival. Store purchases are first come, first served, but Apple stores replenishes their stock quickly. There’s a reason they are a five trillion dollar company. Apple’s website and Apple Store app show availability for same day pickup or two hour delivery at checkout. My advice: wait a week after launch, check local inventory, and bypass the preorder queue. I’ve purchased iPhones directly from Apple Stores around launch since 2007. I never preorder.
@Yoskio
October 16, 2026 at 10:14 pm
@StableRiot I got mine for pick up on the 23, i’m afraid is gonna get cancelled or something, do you know if is 100% sure that I got my iPhone Duo locked for that day? Do you ever have orders being canceled not by the buyer but by apple?
@Kdb0399
October 16, 2026 at 10:46 pm
To tryna save himself a seat at preorder nah
@knockinglogs793
October 17, 2026 at 2:01 pm
thanks bro. Also you posted this on every iPhone duo purchase experience short 😂
@emgual
October 17, 2026 at 4:10 pm
@Yoskio exercise patience
@Yoskio
October 17, 2026 at 4:13 pm
@emgual IMPOSSIBLE
@theodoricofyork
October 16, 2026 at 5:18 pm
Scalpers took over
@JP8-3
October 16, 2026 at 6:23 pm
I have a 128GB iPhone 15 pro, I was able to lock in a 512GB Sky Night for the 23rd. Super excited for the titanium fold !
@-DM
October 16, 2026 at 6:25 pm
People would buy a turd if Apple slapped their logo on it.
@davstar0
October 17, 2026 at 5:40 am
Where can i buy the Apple iTurd?
@BruceLeeRoy26
October 17, 2026 at 10:48 am
Same with Samsung, Google, Xiaomi, Motorola, etc what’s your point?
@EricK-vw5wh
October 17, 2026 at 4:37 pm
Do they sell those? Do you know where i can get one? Is pre-order required?
@davstar0
October 17, 2026 at 6:14 pm
@EricK-vw5wh😂
@birbsandsports
October 18, 2026 at 8:11 am
the iTurd ❤
@jamesducks9
October 16, 2026 at 6:52 pm
I too did this through the Verizon app after getting discouraged by the Apple store app and also secured October 23rd!
@AchillesNYC
October 16, 2026 at 9:35 pm
Bruh, this fomo craze is ridiculous. You got played. Its so easy to get one in store. Especially when people cancel their orders. It won’t be hard to get
@antoniok.4160
October 17, 2026 at 12:21 am
You guys are just as bad as the scalpers. You buy multiple iphone duos while real people get none. FU.
@RachelMigotti
October 17, 2026 at 5:06 am
Personally I think that Apple should be limiting sales to one Duo per person in order to insure most people get a fair chance to acquire a model.
@kylearmitage9323
October 17, 2026 at 12:24 am
I got super lucky and got one on launch day
@Deathweezy
October 17, 2026 at 1:27 am
How many dou do yall need i could make it happen
@EhCloserLook
October 17, 2026 at 2:40 am
I was trying to figure out how and why so many people online seemed to be able to secure an early delivery/pick-up date… and by watching this video it is dawning upon me that they probably were able to do so by ordering DUOs with (much) higher capacity than 256GB. 🤷🏼♀️
@TechinRL
October 17, 2026 at 8:15 am
I don’t think that’s correct. The two most important things were to choose delivery and to make no changes to your order. People have been giving nightmare scenarios of choosing pick-up times, finding they were taken, and getting delayed further when trying to switch back to delivery. Capacity isn’t an issue either. The 256GB I ordered went through within the first minute getting an Oct 23 delivery. My 512GB was delayed to Nov 2. I tried figuring out other options for earlier delivery, but every time i changed anything, the dates slipped. I ended up with a Nov 16-23 delivery. I did eventually find a Best Buy delivery for Oct 23 about 20 minutes after pre-orders started, so I’ll be canceling that second Apple Store order when the Best Buy order arrives.
@EhCloserLook
October 17, 2026 at 5:35 pm
@TechinRL I mean, that’s just my best guess… Apple’s site is to blame here. I guess they had a queue system in place? Which I didn’t realize was gonna happen as I would have queued up super early. Also, my pre-pre order didn’t even populate when I logged into their site that morning. 🤷🏻♂️
@Jesussavesyouandme
October 18, 2026 at 6:17 pm
I was checked out 2 clicks 801 confirmation order number home delivery 23
@Enspyre7208
October 19, 2026 at 6:51 pm
Same. I hesitated and bought 1 minute late and got Nov 6th. Should have insta delivered and secured the 23rd
@EhCloserLook
October 19, 2026 at 7:14 pm
@Enspyre7208 Checking earlier today, my delivery date moved up a week… hopefully that keeps happening!
@Szy007
October 17, 2026 at 4:28 am
Not sure whose actually excited 😮
@alpinzon
October 17, 2026 at 5:28 am
This is a totally unnecessary product
@SoKai_Paopu
October 18, 2026 at 5:49 am
@alpinzon minority thinker.
@mbabalos19
October 17, 2026 at 5:58 am
I got mine at T-mobile 2TB in starwhite. Checked out 05:03am PT, delivery by end of November. (still lucky not next year😂)
@raddaful
October 17, 2026 at 7:02 am
This guy looks like the bald guy with glasses from Better Call Saul
@Ja-Roni-MaL1
October 17, 2026 at 10:09 am
Had to pull out that card to get a expensive phone for the company, nice way to explain that expense through content for the same company. Good work
@mrginge004
October 17, 2026 at 12:14 pm
With all of the horror stories coming out about preorder experiences, I’m shocked I was able to get an Apple Store pickup next Saturday. Time-slots were going quick so I guess what saved me was going for a higher storage right off the bat
@Cody_M_D
October 17, 2026 at 5:03 pm
You need one phone FYI not multiple unless you are horrible at filming. You film it of another product and it should be a camera not a phone. So that’s a lie. Testing and filming should be all the same product. You don’t need multiple you need one. I mean I’m happy your not complaining but let’s be honest you only need one not multiple!
@kindofmajor
October 17, 2026 at 5:15 pm
Literally did exactly what they wanted you to do 😂
@og-um4tv
October 17, 2026 at 8:24 pm
Stuck with my instinct and ordered it for delivery to my home. Oct 23 delivery. 256gb night sky
@Drmdunn
October 17, 2026 at 9:10 pm
Why don’t people just order through their carrier? It was so easy for me to get my preorder that way. No fuss.
@ChaydenWalkerSMChair
October 18, 2026 at 7:00 pm
Not everyone’s carriers do this. For example I use Mint Mobile.
@CHINAmilitary
October 18, 2026 at 9:03 am
apple iphone….. my fart…!!!
@itsjohnny2159
October 18, 2026 at 10:41 am
Mine delivers January 25th. The way I see it is, I’m in no rush. Let all you other people test it out for me and let me see all the reviews then I can either keep my pre-order or cancel it
@AlexanderCheney
October 19, 2026 at 7:16 am
I was super happy to get an in-store pickup for launch day.
@bayareahustles
October 19, 2026 at 10:42 am
Waiting on the TEMU version
@mikewolf5367
October 19, 2026 at 11:13 am
I keep picturing the CNET employees submitting these receipts to the boss for reimbursement and the boss flipping out 😂.
@a1antan
October 19, 2026 at 5:28 pm
First time using a browser to pre-order an Apple product.
Every year I manage to get an iPhone on day one from the Apple Store app.
Apple Store app on my iPhone never brings me to the site to place an order. I quickly tried my luck in the Chrome browser and checked the Apple Store website.
I managed to complete all steps smoothly and make payment. All done within 5 minutes. Order placed at 8:07 pm. The collection time slot allocated was from 11:15 to 11:30 am on launch day, 23rd October to pick up at Apple Store.
Although I got it, one of my friends wants one more set as well. Apple only allow one customer to order two units. I helped him and took over my unit. What a helpful person I am. Lol.
Fortunately I manage to get mine set from one of the local telcos. Paid $50 deposit to secure my pre-order and collection day is 30 or 31st of October.
Alan Tan from Singapore.
@Moonwired
October 20, 2026 at 12:25 pm
Surprised it is both this popular, and how badly apple underestimated demand.