John Ternus addresses iPhone Duo supply constraints, display issue

Today Apple reported record Q4 earnings, which beat Wall Street expectations overall. And in an interview with Reuters, CEO John Ternus addressed current iPhone Duo supply constraints and also referenced units that have been returned for display issues.

Apple is ‘not able to predict’ when iPhone Duo will reach supply-demand balance, says Ternus

Apple’s latest quarterly earnings did not include any sales for the iPhone Duo. That’s because it covered a period running July-September, and the Duo didn’t go on sale until October.

But Wall Street is understandably still very curious about how sales for the foldable are going. Especially as relates to revenue forecasts for the current quarter.

In an interview with Reuters, Ternus addressed two aspects of the iPhone Duo: supply constraints and units that have had display issues.

Regarding supply, it sounds like Apple doesn’t know when it might reach supply-demand balance:

“Duo is constrained as of today,” Ternus said. “The ramp is going well, and we’re working hard to get it to as many customers as quickly as possible, but at this point, we’re not ‌able to predict when supply and demand will be in balance.”

Currently, shipping estimates from the Apple Store are still set for late January. That’s where they’ve stayed since the first pre-orders immediately sold out on October 16.

On the matter of iPhone Duo screens cracking, Ternus was brief and essentially repeated what Apple had previously confirmed: that the issue is real, but limited to a very small number of units.

Ternus told Reuters that “a very small percentage” of iPhone Duo units had been returned with display issues. Apple is replacing those units with new models.