Apple Announces iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max With Variable-Aperture Camera and A20 Pro Chip

Apple today announced the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, adding a variable-aperture 48MP Main camera, the A20 Pro chip, longer battery life, a smaller Dynamic Island, and new camera controls. Prices start at $1,199 for the iPhone 18 Pro and $1,299 for the iPhone 18 Pro Max.



Both models come in black, silver, glacier, and a new burgundy finish, with 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB storage options. Pre-orders open at 5 a.m. PT on Saturday, September 12, and availability begins Friday, September 18.

Variable-Aperture 48MP Camera

The updated 48MP Fusion Main camera introduces variable aperture to the iPhone. Its six-blade aperture uses a rotor mechanism to adjust automatically for lighting and depth of field, while photographers can manually select from four aperture settings in the Camera app. Apple is also making an API available so third-party camera apps can control the aperture across a wider range.



The camera can open to f/1.48 for low-light scenes, use f/1.8 for portraits, or narrow to f/4 to keep more of a group in focus. A new computational imaging pipeline is intended to produce sharper detail, while Photographic Styles adds texture and grain controls.





A customizable Pro controls interface provides direct access to aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and a histogram. On the video side, Cinematic effects can now be applied after capture to footage recorded at up to 60 fps. Time-lapse gains 4K Dolby Vision HDR recording, and revised Audio Mix algorithms can isolate music as well as improve voice quality.

Apple Reference Image

A new opt-in feature called Apple Reference Image uses signed sensor data from the Main camera to create an unalterable reference through Private Cloud Compute. The reference appears beside the edited photo in the Photos app, allowing the two versions to be compared. Apple is providing APIs in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27 so third-party apps can display the reference images.



Reference Image capture will not be available in China at launch. In the European Union, iPhone 18 Pro models will not initially capture reference images, although devices running iOS 27, iPadOS 27, or macOS 27 will be able to develop and view them. Apple also plans to add SynthID support later this year for most AI-edited images.

Smaller Dynamic Island

The redesigned Dynamic Island occupies less display space and can show as many as three Live Activities at once. Face ID continues to operate through the same area for unlocking the phone, authenticating purchases, and signing in to apps.

A20 Pro Performance and Connectivity

A20 Pro is manufactured on a 2-nanometer process and combines a 6-core CPU with integrated Neural Accelerators, a 7-core GPU, and a Dual 16-core Neural Engine. Apple says the chip has 50 percent more memory bandwidth than A19 Pro, up to 40 percent faster graphics, and 32 Neural Engine cores that provide twice the AI processing power of A19 Pro.



The chip uses packaging that places its die beside the memory, taking the memory out of the chip's thermal path and allowing the die to connect directly to a redesigned vapor chamber. The chamber has three times the surface area of the one in the iPhone 17 Pro, which Apple says enables up to 40 percent higher sustained performance.



An Apple-designed N1 wireless chip supports Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread. The new C2 cellular modem consumes 15 percent less energy than C1X, offers faster uploads, and adds mmWave support in the United States.

Battery and Charging

eSIM-only versions are rated for up to 36 hours of video playback on the iPhone 18 Pro and 45 hours on the iPhone 18 Pro Max. Those models gain two hours of playback by using the space previously occupied by the physical SIM tray for a larger battery.



The iPhone 18 Pro can reach a 50 percent charge in about 15 minutes over a wired connection or 30 minutes with MagSafe. Wired fast charging requires a 60W-capable USB-C cable and a USB PD 3.1 or newer adapter with Adjustable Voltage Supply; MagSafe fast charging requires a 35W or higher adapter. Apple also says five minutes of wired charging gives the iPhone 18 Pro Max about seven hours of video playback, while its new real-world usage estimate reaches up to 30 hours per charge.

iOS 27, Apple Intelligence, and Siri AI

The phones ship with iOS 27, which will be released as a free update on Monday, September 14. The release includes additional Liquid Glass customization, new parental controls, and iPhone Handoff, a feature that lets customers move between two iPhones sharing the same phone number. iPhone Handoff will initially work with T-Mobile in the United States and Telekom Germany.

Siri AI will begin rolling out in beta with iOS 27 on September 14. It can use personal context from messages, email, photos, and other content, act on information shown onscreen, accept typed requests, and analyze objects through a Siri mode in the Camera app. Other Apple Intelligence changes include Spatial Reframing, Extend, an updated Clean Up tool, photorealistic Image Playground output, and a Safari Notify Me feature for monitoring webpage changes.



Siri AI will support English first, with French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish following in October. It will not initially be available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, or watchOS, and it is unavailable to users under 13. Apple says features that depend on server-side models will be subject to daily usage limits, with expanded access offered for a fee in the future.

Apple Intelligence on iOS 27 supports Chinese (simplified and traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, and Vietnamese when both Siri and the device are set to a supported language. Availability varies by language and region.

eSIM Availability

eSIM-only iPhone 18 Pro models will be sold in Bahrain, Canada, Guam, Japan, Kuwait, Mexico, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Apple says eSIM is supported by more than 500 carriers worldwide, although service still requires a compatible carrier and plan.

Cases and Straps

Apple introduced new Silicone and TechWoven cases, FineWoven Wallets, and wrist and crossbody straps for the Pro models. The revised Clear Case works with both the Wrist Strap and Crossbody Strap, while the magnetic Wrist Strap can also carry AirPods Pro 2 or AirPods Pro 3.





The $59 TechWoven Case with MagSafe comes in black, chambray blue, taupe, olive, mulberry, and burgundy. Clear and Silicone MagSafe cases cost $49; the Silicone Case is offered in black, navy blue, crisp blue, olive, burgundy, and magenta. The $59 FineWoven Wallet comes in black, navy blue, wildflower blue, olive, magenta, and burgundy.

The Wrist Strap costs $29 and comes in black, taupe, olive, crisp blue, magenta, and burgundy. The $59 Crossbody Strap is available in black, navy blue, taupe, sand, olive, crisp blue, magenta, burgundy, and light gray.

Pricing and Availability

The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199 and the iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at $1,299 in the United States. Apple lists 24-month Apple Card Monthly Installment prices of $49.95 and $54.12 per month, respectively. Apple Upgrade, a separate U.S. leasing program provided by Klarna, offers 12- and 24-month terms, with 24-month iPhone 18 Pro leases starting at $34.99 per month for qualified customers.

Apple Trade In credits range from $175 to $885 for an iPhone 13 or newer, depending on the device and its condition. Separate carrier offers provide up to $1,200 in credits with the trade-in of an iPhone 14 or newer, including devices in any condition, subject to eligibility requirements.

Pre-orders begin September 12 in more than 65 countries and regions, including the United States, Canada, China, India, Japan, the United Kingdom, and much of Europe, with the phones reaching customers and stores on September 18. Availability expands to 20 additional countries and regions on September 25.

The iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max contain 40 percent recycled material by weight, including 100 percent recycled cobalt in the battery and 85 percent recycled aluminum in the enclosure. Apple says 50 percent of the energy used to manufacture the phones comes from renewable sources, and the retail packaging is entirely fiber-based.