iPhone Duo Priced at 3.29 Million Won Faces "Free Replacement" Just Four Days After Launch...Apple Can't Escape the "Curse of the First Generation"

Apple has officially acknowledged the screen damage issue on its first foldable iPhone, the "iPhone Duo," and launched a free replacement program. This comes just four days after its official launch on the 23rd. The so-called "curse of the first generation"—whereby new form factors inevitably face teething problems—has not spared Apple, which has positioned itself as a paragon of quality.

On the 26th (local time), Apple stated, "We are aware of issues affecting the internal display in a small number of iPhone Duo units," and added, "Users experiencing issues should contact AppleCare to arrange for a replacement." This is the first time Apple has acknowledged a screen defect with the iPhone Duo. AppleCare here refers to Apple's customer support channel, and users can request replacement regardless of whether they have purchased AppleCare Plus, the paid warranty service.

Shortly after launch, reports emerged from the United States and China of displays cracking when users unfolded the device. The reported cases shared a common pattern: the screen malfunctioned horizontally and vertically along the hinge at the fold. However, Apple has not disclosed the cause of the defect, which symptoms qualify for replacement, or how long replacements take. While some users have received replacement units at Apple Stores overseas, tech media MacRumors reported that some users are waiting for replacements due to initial inventory shortages.

Foldable history has witnessed this scene twice before. In 2019, Samsung Electronics' first foldable, the Galaxy Fold, saw widespread screen damage during pre-launch reviews, delaying the launch by five months before the hinge and screen protector were redesigned and the device eventually reached the market. In 2023, Google's first foldable, the Pixel Fold, similarly saw reports from reviewers and early adopters of dead pixels around the fold area immediately after launch. Regardless of the manufacturer, the "rite of passage" of the first-generation foldable remains unchanged.

Apple itself has paid tuition fees with each generation of new designs. In 2010, the iPhone 4 experienced poor signal reception with its first design embedding the antenna in the bezel—the so-called "antennagate"—and distributed free bumper cases. The 2014 iPhone 6 suffered the "bendgate" scandal as its thinner aluminum body bent, and the butterfly keyboard introduced in MacBooks in 2015 faced such frequent failures that Apple ran a free repair program before ultimately abandoning the design entirely. This free replacement also falls within that lineage.

A defect is not necessarily a brand death sentence. The divergence lies in the response. In 2016, Samsung Electronics decided to discontinue the Galaxy Note 7 just two months after launch following its battery combustion crisis, after two rounds of recalls, and recovered all units sold. It was a decision that resulted in losses in the trillions of won, but industry consensus holds that the Galaxy brand survived precisely because of that determination. Conversely, responses that deny defects or blame consumers tend to be remembered longer than the defects themselves. Apple, which initially questioned the "way of holding" rather than addressing the antenna issue, was the party that paid that tuition.

This curse is particularly painful because of price and volume. The domestic selling price for the iPhone Duo starts at 3.29 million won. With component costs for memory semiconductors soaring and the first foldable production process not yet stabilized, initial supply quantities are inherently limited. Analysts predict that rapid device replacement will be difficult in an inventory-constrained situation, and consumer complaints about not receiving immediate replacements have been reported by foreign media outlets including Bloomberg. The cost of the defect is ultimately being passed on to consumers as waiting time.

Therefore, what matters more than the curse of the first generation is what comes next. Perfect first generations are rare, and protecting a brand depends not on whether defects exist but on the response that follows. Apple acknowledged the defect within four days and opened free replacement without membership conditions. The start is not bad. What remains is the transparency and speed of replacement criteria, and inventory. Whether Apple can maintain that 3.29 million won trust is now determined not by the curse, but by the response.