Apple’s first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, is showing early signs of strong demand in South Korea, with deliveries from Apple’s online store pushed to late January 2027 for some models. Telecom carriers SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus also report brisk preorders, though exact figures are not disclosed and limited initial allocations may be driving sellouts. Analysts cite production yield issues for key parts such as hinges and ultra-thin glass as a supply constraint, while high pricing and carrier discounts remain important variables.

South Korea plans to revise its 5G service quality evaluation system ahead of the nationwide rollout of 5G standalone (SA) service in December. The Ministry of Science and ICT aims to develop new indicators that reflect SA features and conduct pilot measurements by year-end. Expected items include SA access and retention, latency and network slicing quality. The move follows criticism that speed-focused assessments do not reflect user experience or SA performance.