Apple's iPhone 18 Pro has an A20 Pro chip and smaller Dynamic Island

While all eyes are on Apple's first foldable, the company hasn't forgotten about its most capable mobile lineup, the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max. They look almost exactly like the previous models (save for a new burgundy color option), but they feature a slightly smaller Dynamic Island cutout. The big upgrades this year are the new A20 Pro chip, as well as manual camera aperture controls, which will help creatives fine-tune their focus levels and offer better low-light performance for photos and videos. Apple also claims the iPhone 18 Pro lineup has the longest battery life ever seen on an iPhone, as well as improved vapor chamber cooling.

Apple

It makes sense for the iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max to be slightly boring — Apple likely wants the spotlight on its foldable this year, and these Pro models mainly exist as an upgrade path for people who don't want to jump to an entirely new form factor. The increased focus on the iPhone 18 Pro's cameras also makes them far more useful for pros. From the sample videos and photos Apple showed off during its launch livestream, it looks like these phones will be able to handle complex low-light shots in ways never before possible with Apple's hardware. (As usual, Apple also used its latest phone to film the entire launch event.)

The new variable aperture feature is reserved for the iPhone 18 Pro's 48-megapixel Fusion main camera, so you won't be able to use it on the telephoto or ultra-wide lenses. You'll be able to dial the aperture all the to f/1.8, which can give pictures a soft focus background (or bokeh) and also allow you to shoot videos in very low light. Apple is also introducing a new Reference Image mode that will sign photos taken by the iPhone 18 Pro to confirm their authenticity. You can view them in the Photos app where they work "like a digital negative, to visually compare the two assets and determine if any edits were made," according to Apple.

Thanks to the A20 Pro chip, Apple says the iPhone 18 Pro Max offers 40 percent more sustained performance than the iPhone 17 Pro and twice as much as the 16 Pro. Apple also claims the A18 Pro has 36 hours of battery life, while the 18 Pro Max will run up to 45 hours.

Sadly, Apple hasn't been able to get rid of its front-facing Dynamic Island cutout yet, but this time around it at least takes up less of the screen. The Dynamic Island can also expand to cover three Live Activities at once. Apple is pretty much stuck with the Dynamic Island since it relies on complex sensors for FaceID. Android phones, by comparison, only need a small circular cutout for front-facing cameras.

Design-wise, I'll miss the bright orange from last year's iPhone 17 Pro, which appeared to be a sign that Apple was finally moving towards bolder color options. The new burgundy color looks luxurious, but it certainly doesn't pop as much to the eye.

The Pro lineup has always been the best option for demanding iPhone users — they're thicker and heavier than the standard iPhone, but in exchange you typically get more powerful hardware, multiple cameras and a few exclusive new features. The situation is very different this year, though, as I'd bet many Pro users will be tempted towards the iPhone Duo. It's the most significant change Apple has made to its mobile lineup since the iPhone X launched almost a decade ago in 2017, and it finally lets Apple users get on in the foldable phone trend that Android has offered for years. Personally, I can see myself giving up a few camera features to get the Duo's ability to transform into a mini-tablet.

Apple

You can preorder the iPhone 18 Pro this Saturday, September 12. Thanks to the RAM and storage pricing crunch, both models are also $100 more than before: The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199 and the 18 Pro Max starts at $1,299.