Jeff Pu Sees ~7M iPhone Duo Units This Year — Cautious on 18 Pro Demand
9to5Mac (Sep 11, 3:05pm PT): GF Securities' Jeff Pu says Apple's $100 Pro hike landed below the feared $200–250, Duo's $1,999 hit the low end of $2k–2.5k, and he models ~7M Duo shipments through year-end. Hold rating; Q4 build 57M 18-series / 76M overall (−7% YoY).
As someone who tracks Apple supply-chain notes from San Francisco, this is the first post–Edge Light exclusive that actually moved the ball — not another pre-order how-to.
The beat
9to5Mac (Marcus Mendes, Sep 11, 3:05 p.m. PT) cites an investor note from GF Securities' Jeff Pu after Surprise and Shine.
Pu's read, in plain English:
- Apple's $100 iPhone 18 Pro / Pro Max hike came in below the $200–250 range the Street had been fretting about — "better than feared."
- He still flags margin pressure and "limited hardware upgrades," and stays cautious on the iPhone 18 Pro product cycle.
- iPhone Duo at $1,999 landed at the low end of the expected $2,000–$2,500 band.
- He models ~7 million Duo units through the end of the year as the demand driver for the 18 family.
- Rating: Hold (−10% to +10% relative performance under GF's scale).
- Q4 2026 build forecast in the note: 57 million iPhone 18-series units and 76 million iPhones overall — down 7% from the year-ago quarter.
From the note, as quoted by 9to5Mac:
For 2H26, we expect the iPhone 18 family to be supported by iPhone Duo (~7m units), while we see uncertainty around demand for iPhone 18 Pro/Pro Max and the impact on margin. Consumer interest in iPhone Duo appears strong… thus we view iPhone Duo as a key demand driver… and see post-launch order lead time and supply-chain build revisions as key indicators to watch.
I am not inventing sell-out times or Apple's internal forecast. This is one analyst note via 9to5Mac — watch the lead times after today's Pro pre-orders and after Duo's Oct 16 window.
Why it matters today
iPhone 18 Pro / Pro Max pre-orders open Saturday, Sep 12 at 5:00 a.m. PT (MacRumors time-zone guide; Apple Store was briefly down overnight ahead of the window). Duo still waits: pre-order Oct 16, availability Oct 23, starts $1,999.
Pu's frame matches what the keynote already showed on paper — Pro is an incremental camera/battery/modem cycle; Duo is the form-factor bet. If early Duo interest is real, the ~7M year-end number is the figure to stress-test against Oct lead times, not against another recap of Burgundy vs Glacier.
AirPods cameras
Still quiet. Event shipped AirPods 5 without cameras; Gurman's 2027 delay (Aug 19–23 coverage we already ran) still holds. No new exclusive there today.
Live catalog bridges
- iPhone Air Space Black 512GB — thin unlocked bridge if you are waiting on Duo's Oct 16 pre-orders
- iPhone 16 Pro 256GB — current Pro stand-in while 18 Pro pre-orders open today
- Anker Prime 25W Qi2.2 MagSafe 3-in-1 — MagSafe 3-in-1 for whichever phone you land on
Affiliate disclosure: We may earn a commission from qualifying Amazon purchases via our Associates links (tag thedealshome-20). Prices move; check the live buy box.
Bottom line: Jeff Pu via 9to5Mac says the $100 Pro hike was milder than feared, Duo at $1,999 is the demand story with ~7M units modeled this year, and Q4 builds are 57M / 76M (−7% YoY) — with a Hold and caution on Pro margins. That is the new exclusive — not another event rehash.
Products in This Review
iPhone Air Space Black, 512GB (Unlocked)
iPhone Air. The thinnest iPhone ever. 6.5-inch display, durable Ceramic Shield front and back, A19 Pro chip, 48MP Fusion camera system, and Center Stage front camera.
Apple iPhone 16 Pro, 256GB, Natural Titanium - Unlocked (Renewed)
Apple iPhone 16 Pro, US Version, 256GB, Natural Titanium - Unlocked (Renewed)
Anker Prime 25W Qi2.2-Certified Palm-Sized 3-in-1 Foldable MagSafe Charger
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