Loop Capital recently changed its rating on Apple from “Buy” to “Hold” because of weaker sales expectations. The investment firm cut its price target from $370 to $330. According to the firm, the tech giant will likely ship 13 million fewer smartphones in the second half of 2026 than previously planned. The firm also lowered […]
Owners of the newest Apple devices can now fix their own hardware at home. The tech brand has officially added the iPhone 18 Pro, the M6 Mac mini, and the latest Mac Studio to its Self Service Repair program. This allows handy users to order official parts and tools directly from the company to perform […]
Apple has announced that domestic companies are stepping up to supply vital materials and components for its latest hardware. Across more than a dozen states, American suppliers are now producing nearly 100 different parts for the brand new iPhone 18 Pro and the highly anticipated iPhone Duo. This major update highlights the tech brand’s ongoing […]
Apple’s Product Environmental Report for iPhone Duo gives the foldable a carbon footprint of 93 kg of gross greenhouse gas emissions (CO2e) for the 256GB model. Apple’s report for iPhone 18 Pro puts the same storage tier at 63 kg, so the Duo starts 30 kg higher before any storage upgrade. Both reports carry a […]
Apple on October 20, 2026 announced new and expanded American Manufacturing Program (AMP) partnerships with U.S. companies supplying materials and components for iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 Pro. Apple says it will commit up to $100 million over the next three years with Pennsylvania titanium producer Perryman Company, and is expanding its partnership with Delaware-based […]
The titanium in iPhone Duo and the camera system in iPhone 18 Pro connect familiar product features to specialized American suppliers. Behind those parts are different kinds of manufacturing: processing metal, producing advanced films, forming protective glass and fabricating miniature lasers.
Apple’s October 20 supplier announcement identifies several of these connections. Read alongside the manufacturers’ own documentation, it provides a partial map of the work behind the devices, rather than a complete account of their global production.
Apple’s broader U.S. manufacturing program brings together businesses with very different specialties. Following individual components reveals how a metal producer, a materials company, a glassmaker and a semiconductor manufacturer contribute to devices sold under the same brand.
Image Credit: Apple Inc.
Perryman Processes Titanium for iPhone Duo
Apple identifies Perryman as a titanium supplier for iPhone Duo. The relationship concerns material production; it does not establish that Perryman builds the finished enclosure, hinge or assembled phone.
The geography requires care. Apple’s release groups melting, forging and rolling at Houston, Pennsylvania. Perryman’s facility directory describes a distributed network: melting and ingot breakdown at Coal Center, hot rolling and much finishing at Houston, and intermediate processing at Frackville.
Perryman’s operations therefore span several Pennsylvania locations. Apple has not published a facility-by-facility production route for its titanium orders, so the company’s broader manufacturing network provides context rather than a confirmed itinerary for each iPhone component.
Perryman lists electron-beam and vacuum-arc melting equipment, followed by processes that turn ingots into semifinished and finished material. It also documents laboratory and nondestructive testing capabilities.
In practical terms, the work converts raw inputs into controlled material forms that other manufacturing operations can use. Consistency in composition, dimensions and internal quality matters before a supplier further down the chain shapes a consumer product.
The Ultra 3’s titanium imprint process creates a clean, sculpted finish around its iconic contours.
Qnity Supplies Films for the Variable Aperture
Qnity Electronics has a different role: Apple says it will produce advanced films essential to the iPhone 18 Pro’s variable-aperture camera system.
An aperture controls the opening through which light enters the camera. Changing that opening helps manage exposure and depth of field, meaning how much of a scene appears acceptably sharp.
The announcement links Qnity to materials supporting that system, rather than identifying it as the manufacturer of the entire camera. Apple does not disclose the films’ composition, their exact position within the assembly or the production process.
It also does not name the relevant factory. Delaware is Qnity’s headquarters location, not sufficient evidence of where these particular films are made.
Qnity’s role highlights a less visible side of camera development: the materials that support a mechanism can be as specialized as its optical and electronic components. Apple identifies the films’ connection to variable aperture, but leaves their precise engineering role undisclosed.
Corning Makes Protective Glass in Kentucky
Corning’s Harrodsburg, Kentucky, operation supplies specialty glass for Apple, including Ceramic Shield. Apple’s October announcement sets an end-of-2026 target for all iPhone and Apple Watch cover glass, including iPhone Duo, to come from that facility.
Harrodsburg is already operating; the broader production transition remains a dated target. Corning’s account of the plant describes both current manufacturing and development work for future products.
Opened in 1952, Harrodsburg is Corning’s longest-running American plant. Its history includes the development of fusion-draw glassmaking, a process used to create large, thin sheets of glass. Corning describes the site as both a manufacturing operation and a place where teams develop materials for future products.
Protective cover glass is distinct from the panel that generates an image. Manufacturing a transparent protective surface involves different requirements from producing OLED pixels, electronics or the other layers in a display assembly.
The iPhone Duo connection therefore should not be expanded into a claim that Corning supplies its complete folding display. Apple’s statement identifies cover glass, with a specific production goal.
Image Credit: Apple Inc.
Coherent Produces Lasers in Sherman, Texas
In an August 2025 supply announcement, Coherent identified its Sherman, Texas, facility as the production site for vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers, or VCSELs, supplied to Apple under a multiyear agreement.
These semiconductor devices emit light from their surface. Coherent connects them to features including Face ID on iPhone and iPad; Apple’s latest announcement specifically associates its technology with iPhone 18 Pro.
Sherman has compound-semiconductor capabilities covering epitaxy, fabrication and device manufacturing. Epitaxy means growing controlled semiconductor layers; fabrication then creates the structures needed for individual devices. This is specialized chipmaking for optical functions, rather than assembly of a complete camera.
The connection described here concerns Face ID and supported Apple devices, with the October announcement specifically naming iPhone 18 Pro. It illustrates why the supplier map differs by model: a component associated with one phone should not automatically be assigned to another.
Different Processes Contribute to One Device
These suppliers illustrate distinct stages of production. Metal processing prepares structural material; films support a camera mechanism; cover glass protects surfaces; semiconductor lasers contribute to optical sensing. Each requires its own equipment, expertise and quality checks.
Their contributions establish specific American manufacturing connections, not U.S. final assembly or an entirely domestic iPhone. Following the component and its documented production stage provides a more accurate picture than treating every supplier announcement as evidence that the whole device is made in one country.
As always, my shortcut and CLI are based on Apple’s official product bezels, which is why, as of today, there is no support for Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 yet (those frames haven’t been published by Apple). iPhone 18 Pro is the new default frame family for the two Pro and Pro Max screen sizes, and the CLI supports all the new device colors this year (Burgundy, Glacier, Silver, and Black).
iPhone 18 Pro in Burgundy.
iPhone Duo support is experimental. I obviously don’t have an iPhone Duo yet, but thanks to Opus 5.5, I was able to grab screenshots from the Xcode 27.1 Device Hub, verify them against Apple’s official assets, and test everything in the Frames CLI. It should work! The CLI – and, thanks to its skill, your agent of choice – supports framing screenshots taken on the inner and outer display, different poses, different rotation settings, as well as screen recordings.
If you’re a developer working on iPhone Duo apps, I think the updated Frames CLI should come in handy to automate the process of framing multiple screenshots and screen recordings. As before, you can take advantage of CLI features such as proportional scaling, merge mode, and batch mode, which should help you with your upcoming App Store submissions for the iPhone Duo.
The Frames CLI is free and open source, works with any agent, and is highly customizable. I’ll release an updated version of the Apple Frames shortcut once I can get my hands on an actual iPhone Duo next month (hopefully). Fingers crossed.
According to Apple’s release notes, iOS 27.0.1 addresses an issue that could cause Face ID not to work properly on the iPhone 18 Pro.
Some iPhone 18 Pro users have complained that authentication can fail to work for things like unlocking a locked app. In some cases, the device freezes up and then reboots. Other users have seen a “ Face ID is Not Available” message when attempting Face ID setup, and others have experienced issues with the Require Attention for Face ID setting.
Apple’s security support pages say there was a CoreGraphics out-of-bounds write issue that could be exploited with a maliciously crafted file, allowing for arbitrary code execution. […] Apple says the flaw was exploited in an “extremely sophisticated attack” on targeted individuals running older versions of iOS.
Just a matter of days after iOS 27 has been released to the public, people have already discovered a way to temporarily brick your phone with a quick series of swipes on the home screen. And it’s starting to going viral on social media as some kind of iPhone prank to do on your friends.
Luckily, it is only a software soft-lock and you can easily get out of this temporarily bricked state by force rebooting your phone.
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