RIYADH: Apple has released its first foldable iPhone to great fanfare, but its $1,999 price tag will test the resilience of premium smartphone demand in Saudi Arabia as the wider market contracts. The Kingdom has been one of the technology company’s more resilient markets, with its shipments continuing to grow as the overall smartphone market contracts. According to technology research group Omdia, Apple’s shipments to Saudi Arabia rose 3 percent year on year in the second quarter of 2026, even as the overall market contracted 18 percent. Mohammad Owheeb, an Apple-focused tech blogger, told Arab News that much of the conversation around the Duo boils down to one simple question: “It looks amazing, but would I actually pay that much for it?” He added that Gulf consumers “usually have a strong appetite for flagship Apple products, and the Duo is getting huge attention,” but that the $1,999 price definitely changes the conversation. “Even enthusiasts are thinking twice,” he noted. Ahmed Al-Hamad, owner of Ghayth Alshammal Telecommunications Establishment, a mobile phone sales and repair shop in Riyadh, told Arab News that while he was considering buying a Duo, the $1,999 price tag was weighing on his decision.  He said: “The price is not justified compared to Samsung’s Flip and Fold devices. There is a significant difference.  “The Flip and Fold offer a more powerful processor and higher memory at a lower price.” Nouf Al-Buraik, a Riyadh-based photographer in the advertising industry, was impressed by new features such as aperture control and a camera app feature that allows the screen to reflect both ways, but had reservations over its design. “I feel as though the size of the device is inconvenient as it resembles a tablet,” Al-Buraik told Arab News. Abdullah Al-Sabe, a tech expert who was at the launch at Apple’s campus in Cupertino, California, told Arab News he did not think the cost of the phone would put people off. “In terms of the price, the price is very normal. All foldable phones’ prices start at around SR8,000 ($2,132) to SR12,000,” he said, adding: “Apple did not come with an entirely new price” Omdia’s Manish Pravinkumar told Arab News that while there is little evidence of “a broad-based retreat from premium smartphones” in Saudi Arabia, the $1,999 iPhone Duo “will test how far that resilience extends at the very top of the market.” Pravinkumar said the Duo’s price places it in a fundamentally different category from the conventional premium flagship, with a much narrower addressable audience, and that initial demand is likely to be concentrated among affluent early adopters. He added that its strategic impact “could be significant even if its unit volumes remain well below those of the Pro Max.” Testing the price ceiling Average selling prices across the Middle East hit a record $450 in the first quarter and held near that level at $448 in the second. Apple’s quarterly numbers showed iPhone net sales rising to $54.3 billion in the three months ending June 27, up 22 percent year on year, part of $196.5 billion in iPhone revenue over the first nine months of the fiscal year. Pravinkumar said Saudi Arabia has a relatively strong capacity to absorb higher flagship prices, supported by consumer purchasing power, financing through retail programs such as Tabby and Tamara, trade-ins, and an established premium retail ecosystem. Still, he added that there is a limit to how far prices can rise before consumers begin extending replacement cycles or choosing lower-priced flagship alternatives, and expects the market to become “increasingly polarized” by mid-2027, with premium demand remaining resilient while affordability pressures weigh more heavily on the mass market. A late but immediately significant entrant Apple's arrival in the category is small in volume but outsized in impact, according to Counterpoint Research, which forecasts up to 6 million foldable iPhone shipments in 2026 — a 25 percent global share. Neil Shah, co-founder and vice president of research at the firm, told Arab News that the Middle East is “high on the focus markets” for Apple. He added that many loyal customers have been waiting for seven to eight years since the first Android foldable was launched, which will “drive a fair amount of pent-up demand for Duo.” Shah warned that supply constraints could ultimately have as much bearing on sales as demand, saying: “More than price, however, it will remain to be seen how Apple allocates supply to these regions as it faces serious memory chip supply situation.  “Apple could still prioritize some of the markets at least in near term and then roll out more aggressively starting next year.” What the foldable actually tests For Apple, the Duo may be less about attracting new users than persuading existing customers to pay more for a new form factor. Pravinkumar said there is likely to be some trade-down given the iPhone 18 Pro’s lower $1,199 entry point, but he distinguished this from any real erosion of Apple’s customer base, citing Saudi Arabia’s 3 percent growth in a contracting market as proof of the ecosystem’s strength.  He added that the Duo is more likely to create a new ultra-premium tier than replace the Pro as Apple’s core volume driver. Owheeb agreed the Duo isn’t likely to cannibalize the Pro Max: “They target different buyers — the Pro Max remains the traditional flagship, while the Duo is for early adopters who want something genuinely different.”