The inner screen of an iPhone Duo owned by a buyer in Korea is showing a crack along the hinge.SCREEN CAPTURE
Korean consumers are rushing to return or resell Apple iPhone Duos as concerns grow over screen durability and app compatibility with its new foldable display.
The scramble follows Apple’s acknowledgment of a screen issue online users have dubbed “crackgate,” with multiple buyers reporting cracks in similar spots.
Dozens of posts on Korean online communities, including forums run by portal Naver, FM Korea and Clien, feature users who say they have already received a refund or are considering one.
Apple’s first foldable iPhone went on sale in Korea and other first-wave markets on Friday, starting at 3.29 million won ($2,480). That same day, buyers in the United States, Australia and China began posting photos, mostly on Reddit, of inner screens that had cracked along the hinge, sometimes after only hours of use.
Apple acknowledged on Tuesday an issue affecting “a small number” of units and directed affected customers to replacements. In Korea, however, scarce stock has made replacements hard to get, and store employees are steering customers toward refunds instead.
A customer is trying out an iPhone Duo at Apple Hongdae in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Oct. 27.KIM HA-YOON
More than cracks
Some Korean users have reported similar screen problems, but buyers whose phones show no defect are returning them over the controversy.
One buyer ordered a 256-gigabyte Duo from Apple’s online store on Oct. 16 and received it a week later. The phone worked fine, but the buyer is returning it anyway.
“Crackgate was decisive,” said the buyer, who was reached through an online community and requested anonymity.
The inner screen of an iPhone Duo owned by a buyer in the United States is showing a crack along the hinge.SCREEN CAPTURE
A second buyer, also reached online and who has used the Duo since Friday, said the risk alone was enough to warrant a refund.
“Even if there’s no problem now, I don’t know when one might come up,” the buyer said on Tuesday. “If it does, it will be an inconvenience.”
Cracks are not the only complaint. Posts on Korean online communities point to apps such as Naver Map, YouTube and Instagram that fail to fill the Duo’s screens, as well as touch glitches. Some users who said they were returning the phone cited its heftiness and lack of Face ID.
Price drove other returns. A third buyer, who preordered a 256-gigabyte Duo on Coupang, which set its own return policies, filed for a refund the day the phone arrived.
“The price itself was a real burden,” the buyer said. “3.29 million won wasn’t easy, and AppleCare+ [Apple’s paid protection plan] is expensive too, so I felt I would have to baby the phone. As it happened, the crack issue blew up the next evening, so I thought I’d lucked out in a way.”
A customer is unfolding an iPhone Duo at Apple Hongdae in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Oct. 27.KIM HA-YOON
Apple responds
Customers who buy directly from Apple's online store can return or exchange a product within 14 days of receiving it, for any reason, as long as it is undamaged, according to Apple Korea. The policy does not apply to phones bought from other retailers or carriers, most of which sell the Duo on installment plans.
“If users experience issues with their iPhone Duo display, they should contact AppleCare [Apple’s customer support service] for a replacement,” Apple said in a written statement. The company did not say what causes the cracking or how it will prevent the problem in units yet to ship.
Under Apple’s warranty terms in Korea, Duos with manufacturing defects qualify for a replacement or free repair during the two-year warranty period, but user-caused damage is not covered.
Apple has secured a small number of units for replacements, according to industry sources.
A bright line runs across the inner screen of an iPhone Duo owned by a buyer in the United States after the display cracked along the hinge.SCREEN CAPTURE
Refunds over replacements
In stores, however, replacements remain hard to come by. Customers whose phones fail can receive an immediate refund or wait for a replacement or repair until stock arrives.
Apple Myeongdong in Jung District, central Seoul, has no new units in stock, so replacements take time, according to a shop employee. Instead, it recommends refunds, which go through immediately.
At Apple Hongdae in Mapo District, western Seoul, exchanges depend on stock, and customers can only return the phone when none is available, an employee said. Repairs for manufacturing defects also depend on inventory and could take about a month, the employee said.
Apple is not selling the Duo at its stores in Korea, according to employees at both stores. Orders placed on Apple’s online store now are scheduled for delivery on Jan. 22 or 23.
An iPhone Duo is listed for 3.1 million won on Danggeun, a neighborhood-based resale app.SCREEN CAPTURE
Premium fades
Others are turning to the secondhand market, with lower premium fees than before. Before launch, resellers who had secured preorders listed the 512-gigabyte model on Joonggonara and Bunjang, two popular secondhand online marketplaces, at an average of 559,000 won above its 3.59 million won retail price, according to an Oct. 21 tally of 11 listings by the Korea Economic Daily.
On Tuesday, 256-gigabyte Duos were listed on Danggeun, a neighborhood-based resale app, in southern Seoul’s tony Gangnam neighborhood for 3.1 million to 3.3 million won, near or below the 3.29 million won retail price.
The Coupang buyer, who balked at the price, has since switched to Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Z Fold8.
“After a 3.29 million won phone, a model with twice the storage for just over 2 million won felt very reasonable,” the buyer said. “In Korea, Galaxy is more convenient in many ways.”
