Apple has finally launched the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max at its “Surprise and Shine” event. While the overall design remains close to last year’s iPhone 17 Pro, Apple has made several changes to the cameras, chipset, cooling system, connectivity, battery, and software.
The biggest addition is a variable aperture main camera, which is appearing on an iPhone for the first time. The phones also feature Apple’s new 2nm A20 Pro chip, a much larger vapor chamber, Apple’s N1 wireless chip and C2 modem, and the long-awaited Siri AI with iOS 27.
Both models retain the same display sizes as their predecessors, with a 6.3-inch panel on the iPhone 18 Pro and a 6.9-inch panel on the iPhone 18 Pro Max. Let’s take a detailed look at the pricing and specifications.
iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max: Specifications
Display
The iPhone 18 Pro has a 6.3-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with a 2622 x 1206 resolution at 460ppi, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max has a 6.9-inch OLED display with a 2868 x 1320 resolution at 460ppi. Both screens support ProMotion with adaptive refresh rates up to 120Hz, Always-On display, HDR, True Tone, P3 wide colour, and Haptic Touch.
The redesigned Dynamic Island can display up to three Live Activities simultaneously.
Apple rates the displays at 1,000 nits typical brightness, 1,600 nits peak HDR brightness, and 3,000 nits peak outdoor brightness, with a minimum brightness of 1 nit. They also have a 20,00,000:1 contrast ratio, fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating, and an anti-reflective coating.
The iPhone 18 Pro measures 150.0 x 71.9 x 8.75mm and weighs 211g, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max measures 163.4 x 78.0 x 8.75mm and weighs 249g (heaviest slab iPhone ever).
Both use an aluminium unibody design with Ceramic Shield 2 on the front and Ceramic Shield on the back. They are also rated IP68 for water and dust resistance, with testing covering up to 6 metres of water for 30 minutes.
A20 Pro and Performance
Both phones are powered by the new A20 Pro, Apple’s first smartphone chip built on a 2nm process. It has a six-core CPU with two new desktop-class performance cores and four efficiency cores. Apple says the performance cores are up to 20% faster.
The chip also has a seven-core GPU with new neural accelerators. Apple claims up to 40% faster graphics performance, while the new neural accelerators deliver 2x the FP8 performance of the previous generation.
The Neural Engine has also been upgraded to a dual 16-core design, giving the chip 32 Neural Engine cores in total. Apple says it delivers 2x the compute of the outgoing chip and now supports 8-bit floating-point math.
Memory bandwidth is up by 50% compared with the A19 Pro, giving the A20 Pro Apple’s widest memory interface yet on an iPhone.
Apple has also changed the chip packaging, separating the memory from the chip’s thermal path in a design inspired by Apple’s M-series chips. This is paired with a vapor chamber that is three times larger than the one in the iPhone 17 Pro.
Apple claims up to 40% higher sustained performance compared with the A19 Pro and up to 2x the performance of the A18 Pro used in the iPhone 16 Pro.
Apple hasn’t officially disclosed the RAM, although it’s safe to assume it’s 12GB. Storage options are 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB, with the 2TB option being a first for the Pro lineup.
Cameras
The biggest camera change is the new 48MP Fusion Main camera with a mechanical variable aperture, marking the first time an iPhone has offered an adjustable physical aperture.
The system uses six laser-cut blades to change the aperture. f/1.8 is the default aperture, while there are four aperture settings to choose from (f/1.48, f/1.8, f/2.8, and f/4.0). The aperture can open as wide as f/1.48 for low-light photography and narrow to around f/4 when users want greater depth of field, such as in group shots.
Apple is also adding manual controls for aperture, shutter speed, and white balance through its new Pro Controls interface. A histogram is available for checking exposure while shooting.
The computational photography pipeline has been upgraded for sharper detail, while Photographic Styles now include additional controls for texture and grain.
For video, Cinematic effects can now be applied after recording to footage captured at up to 60fps. Time-lapse mode now supports 4K and Dolby Vision HDR, while Audio Mix can isolate music.
Apple is also introducing Apple Reference Image, which signs captured image data so users can later verify whether a photo has been edited. The information can be viewed side-by-side in the Photos app, essentially giving users a digital negative for verification.
Connectivity
The iPhone 18 Pro series introduces Apple’s N1 wireless chip, which handles Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread connectivity.
Apple is also using its new C2 modem, which delivers faster upload speeds than the C1X while consuming 15% less power. The modem also adds mmWave support in the US.
Apple will sell eSIM-only versions in select markets, including the US, Canada, Japan, and UAE, among others. Removing the physical SIM tray frees up internal space for a larger battery.
Battery and Charging
The iPhone 18 Pro is rated for up to 24 hours of usage, matching last year’s iPhone 17 Pro Max. The iPhone 18 Pro Max reaches up to 30 hours of usage, which Apple calls its biggest generational battery improvement yet.
Both models now support 60W fast charging, reaching 50% in around 15 minutes with a 60W adapter or higher. Using a MagSafe Charger with a 35W adapter or higher takes around 30 minutes to reach 50%. MagSafe and Qi2 wireless charging support goes up to 25W.
iOS 27 and Siri AI
Both phones ship with iOS 27, including Apple Intelligence and the long-awaited Siri AI.
The new Siri is designed to be more personal and conversational, using context from messages, emails, and photos. It can also understand what’s on the screen and perform actions across supported apps, including working inside the Camera app.
Apple has also added Spatial Reframing and an upgraded Clean Up tool for photos. Image Playground now produces more photorealistic images, while Safari gets Notify Me, which can alert users when something on a webpage changes, such as when a product comes back in stock.
Another new feature is iPhone Handoff, which lets supported carrier users switch between two iPhones while keeping the same phone number.
Colours
The iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are available in Black, Silver, Glacier, and Burgundy. Burgundy is the new hero colour for this generation.
Price and Availability
The iPhone 18 Pro starts at ₹1,64,900 in India for the 256GB model. The 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB variants are priced at ₹1,89,900, ₹2,39,900, and ₹3,14,900, respectively.
The iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at ₹1,79,900 for 256GB. The 512GB model costs ₹2,04,900, while the 1TB and 2TB variants are priced at ₹2,54,900 and ₹3,29,900, respectively.
The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199 in the US, with Apple also offering it for $49.95 per month for 24 months. The iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at $1,299, or $54.12 per month for 24 months.
Apple will open pre-orders on Saturday, September 12, at 5:30 p.m. IST, with both phones going on sale from Friday, September 18 in more than 65 countries and regions, including India. Another 20 markets will get them from September 25.
Apple will roll out iOS 27 as a free update on Monday, September 14, with Apple Intelligence also arriving the same day for supported languages.
You can follow Smartprix on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Google News. Visit smartprix.com for the latest tech and auto news, reviews, and guides.
