Apple Store employees are warning potential iPhone Duo buyers not to do this

These days, when Apple is about to release a new iPhone, everyone waits by their computer for the start of the pre-order period. Frantically typing away, potential buyers aim to get their orders in and confirmed before arrival dates start getting pushed out by months.

Apple is expected to build no more than 10 million iPhone Duo units this year

Due to the limited number of iPhone Duo units Apple will build this year, a figure not expected to top 10 million, pre-orders quickly became backordered with a release date moving into 2027. In years past, on release day, some would wait for hours in long lines that often snaked around Apple Stores from coast to coast.

Apple allowed its customer to set up an iPhone Duo pre-order in the Apple Store app

Apple tried to make it easier for iPhone Duo pre-orders to be placed by allowing consumers to set up their iPhone Duo pre-order in the Apple Store app as much as four days before the pre-order window was opened on October 16.

The goal was to allow those interested in pre-ordering the first foldable iPhone to enter their pre-order with a single tap. This might have backfired on Friday, increasing the number of pre-orders submitted, pushing delivery dates into 2027.

If you didn't pre-order an iPhone Duo, you might think that you'll be able to walk into an Apple Store next Friday, the Duo's release day, and snap up a unit in the color and configuration you want.

Apple Store customers are warned not to do this on Friday

But Apple is reportedly telling Apple Store employees to warn customers not to show up at an Apple Store on the October 23 launch day if they don't have a pre-order or else they face being disappointed when they leave the store. Apple's website says that you can check in with an Apple Store to ask about iPhone Duo availability starting on October 24, next Saturday.

You can save yourself a long, disappointing night sitting out in the cold outside an Apple Store only to find out that there are no iPhone Duo units available. Again, Apple recommends that you check with your local Apple Store on October 24 to see if they have any Duo inventory.
With the iPhone Duo sold out through January, if you need to have one before 2027, you might call every Apple Store and ask starting on October 24. If you have big bucks, you can buy a Duo pre-order from a scalper on eBay for $1,000 to $1,500 above the Duo's MSRP, and even higher.

If you have the money, you can find an iPhone Duo pre-order arriving next Friday on this app

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