Bloomberg: Apple will put more than 150 iPhone Duo demo units on Fifth Avenue, but stock will stay limitedBloomberg: Apple will put more than 150 iPhone Duo demo units on Fifth Avenue, but stock will stay limited

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported on 11 October that Apple is preparing its largest in-store demonstration of a new iPhone in years for the iPhone Duo.

The details come from Gurman's Power On newsletter and are reported, not announced: he cites people he does not name, and Apple has not described its store plans. Apple's own store page confirms the dates around them. The Get Ready step opens today, 12 October, pre-orders start at 5am Pacific on 16 October, and the phone is available from 23 October. In the US it costs 1,999 dollars for 256GB, rising to 3,199 dollars for 2TB, in Night Sky or Star White.

How many demo units will stores have?

Gurman's figures, as relayed by MacRumors and iClarified:

• Fifth Avenue, New York: more than 150 units, with a dedicated takeover area.
• Apple Park Visitor Center: nearly 100.
• Michigan Avenue in Chicago, The Grove in Los Angeles and Upper West Side: about 30 to 40 each.
• A typical Apple Store: about 20.

New fixtures include one that shows the phone opening and closing, and a MagSafe stand that holds an unfolded Duo beside two standard iPhones. Untethered units will let customers try StandBy, and most stores get a second display table. The Presto machines that update a sealed iPhone in its box get a Duo version. We had already reported Gurman's account that they will put the buyer's name on the iPhone Duo Hello screen.

Will there be enough iPhone Duo stock?

Gurman says that about two months ago Apple thought production problems could push sales into later November. It has since built enough phones for the October launch, but stock is expected to remain limited, MacRumors reports. 9to5Mac adds that some colours may be harder to find. None of the reports gives a number of units, and Apple has said nothing about supply.

Our take

The two halves of this report fit together. A 1,999 dollar phone that folds is something most buyers will want to hold before paying for it, so Apple is putting the phone in as many hands as possible while it has few to sell. Twenty demo units in an ordinary store is a lot of floor space for one product. Apple is treating the Duo as a launch to be seen, not only sold.

The supply note is the part buyers should act on. An unconfirmed report at the start of October put iPhone Duo assembly yields only just above 60 per cent. Gurman's account that Apple caught up, but only just, is consistent with that. APPDOOK's reading is that anyone who has decided to buy should use Get Ready today and pre-order at 5am Pacific on Friday. Shipping estimates on the first morning will show how limited limited is.

Anyone still deciding loses little by waiting for a store visit. That is the point of 150 units on Fifth Avenue, and the folding screen is the one thing a review cannot settle for you.