Apple Fan Brings 53 Old iPhones to Collect New Duo in Dubai

A Dubai-based Apple enthusiast has offered a striking illustration of the technology giant's brand appeal, bringing 53 iPhones spanning nearly two decades of product history to an Apple Store as he collected two of its latest devices, the iPhone Duo.

Mohammed Shakaa, originally from Karachi, Pakistan, arrived at an Apple Store on Friday, October 23, with a collection ranging from the original iPhone to the iPhone 18 Pro Max. According to Khaleej Times, Apple staff had contacted him the previous day and invited him to bring the devices along.

For Shakaa, the collection is more than an assortment of smartphones. It reflects a long-standing interest in how Apple’s products have evolved, from their designs and cameras to battery performance and software. He has also collected different colour versions of some models, keeping the devices displayed at home as a record of the company’s product history.

Although he owns some phones from other manufacturers, including Samsung and Motorola, Shakaa remains particularly attached to Apple. His decision to preserve dozens of older models rather than simply replace them illustrates how the company’s products can become objects of personal interest and collecting, extending their appeal beyond their everyday function.

That attachment also shapes how he approaches new releases. Shakaa secured two iPhone Duo devices after pre-orders opened on October 16. He told Khaleej Times that he had been among the first customers at major Apple launches for three consecutive years, describing his latest outing as completing a personal hat-trick. He hopes to attend an Apple launch in California in the future and be among the first customers there as well.

The iPhone Duo marks a new chapter in Apple’s smartphone range as its first foldable iPhone. The device opens to reveal a larger inner display and folds into a more compact form, bringing Apple into a category already developed by rival manufacturers. It became available in the United Arab Emirates on October 23, with a starting price of AED 8,499.

Shakaa’s visit gave the launch a distinctly personal dimension. Rather than arriving only to collect a new device, he brought a visible record of his years as an Apple customer, linking the company’s latest product to the phones that came before it. The collection also offered a snapshot of how smartphone design and features have changed across successive generations.

For Apple, whose product launches regularly attract customers eager to experience new devices early, such enthusiasm illustrates the role of brand loyalty in the consumer technology market. Some buyers are drawn primarily by specifications, price or practical needs; others develop a longer-term relationship with a company’s products, following new releases and keeping older devices as part of their personal histories.

Shakaa’s collection does not, by itself, show how widespread that level of devotion is among Apple customers. It does, however, provide a striking example of how a technology product can acquire value beyond its technical features, becoming a symbol of personal identity, nostalgia and participation in a global community of enthusiasts.

As Apple enters the foldable-phone market, the iPhone Duo represents both a new product category for the company and another release for long-time customers to follow. For Shakaa, adding two of the devices to his collection means extending a relationship with the brand that began with earlier generations of the iPhone and has continued through nearly two decades of change.