Apple to Skip 'iPhone 19' to Mark 20th Anniversary With 'iPhone 20' [Report]

Apple will reportedly skip the 'iPhone 19' name and jump straight to 'iPhone 20' for its 2027 lineup — a move that would mark the 20th anniversary of the device's debut. The new forecast comes from Omdia senior research analyst Heo Moo-yeol, who detailed the potential shift in Apple's product strategy at a recent conference in Seoul.

If accurate, this would be Apple's boldest branding move since the 'iPhone X' in 2017, when the company used the Roman numeral for ten to celebrate the device's tenth anniversary. The updated naming plan is said to be part of a broader shake-up in Apple's release cycle, which has been the subject of ongoing rumors. Omdia's roadmap suggests Apple is preparing to split its iPhone launches into two waves, aligning with a previously leaked product roadmap. For 2027, the firm predicts an iPhone 18e and the flagship 'iPhone 20' in the spring, followed by an iPhone 20 Air, Pro, Pro Max, and a second-generation foldable in the fall.

For 2026, Omdia expects major changes as well. The forecast indicates Apple will drop the standard iPhone 18 model that year, with the series consisting only of the Air, Pro, and Pro Max versions alongside the company's first foldable iPhone. This aligns with a three-year iPhone plan that also points to a foldable arriving in 2026.


The temporary removal of the standard model is expected to cause a dip in panel demand of about 20 million units in 2026, according to the analyst. Omdia projects that the first foldable iPhone will ship more than 8 million units in its debut year, with panel demand rebounding to over 250 million units annually by 2027 as the new release strategy settles in.

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[via ETNews]