Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro Already Rumored to Have Five New Features

While the iPhone 18 Pro models are still around a year and a half away from launching, there are already some early rumors about the devices.

Below, we recap some key iPhone 18 Pro rumors so far.

Under-Screen Face ID

In April 2023, display industry analyst Ross Young shared a roadmap showing that iPhone 17 Pro models would feature under-display Face ID. In May 2024, however, Young said he heard this change had been delayed until 2026. If so, that means that under-screen Face ID could debut on the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max next year.

Even with under-screen Face ID, it is expected that the Dynamic Island will live on, but it might become smaller. Alternatively, the iPhone 18 Pro models could have only a pinhole at the top of the display for the front camera, similar to Android smartphones like Google's Pixel 9 and Samsung's Galaxy S25. It's too early to know yet.

Variable Aperture

The main 48-megapixel Fusion camera on both iPhone 18 Pro models will offer variable aperture, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

With variable aperture, users would be able to control the amount of light that passes through the camera's lens and reaches the sensor. The main cameras on iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro models have a fixed aperture of ƒ/1.78, and the lens is always fully open and shooting with this widest aperture. With the iPhone 18 Pro models, users would be able to manually change the aperture, according to this rumor.

A variable aperture on iPhone 18 Pro models should provide users with greater control over depth of field, which refers to how sharp a subject appears in the foreground compared to the background. However, given that iPhones have smaller image sensors due to size restraints, it is unclear exactly how meaningful this improvement would be.

Samsung Image Sensor

Samsung is developing a new three-layer stacked camera sensor that Apple is expected to use for iPhone 18 Pro models, according to DigiTimes. This advanced image sensor would make the iPhone 18's camera more responsive, and offer other benefits like reduced noise in photos, increased dynamic range, and more.

The exact technology is called "PD-TR-Logic," according to a leaker known as "Jukanlosreve", and it refers to a camera sensor with three layers of circuitry affixed to it.

Sony has long been the exclusive supplier of image sensors for iPhone cameras, so Samsung entering the fray would be notable.

In July 2024, Kuo said he expected Samsung to begin shipping 48-megapixel Ultra Wide camera sensors to Apple for iPhones as early as 2026, which is when the iPhone 18 Pro models are expected to be released.

C2 Modem

Apple debuted its custom-designed C1 modem in the iPhone 16e last month, as part of a multi-year plan to transition away from Qualcomm modems.

Apple's second-generation C2 modem will debut in the iPhone 18 Pro models next year, according to Jeff Pu, an analyst who covers companies within Apple's supply chain. Unsurprisingly, expect the C2 modem to be faster than the C1, and for it to gain mmWave support in the United States. Further power efficiency improvements are likely too.

A20 Pro Chip With Apple Intelligence Upgrade

Apple's A20 Pro chip for the iPhone 18 Pro models will be manufactured with TSMC's third-generation 3nm process, despite an initial 2nm rumor, according to Pu. That is the same process that is expected to be used for the A19 Pro chip coming in the iPhone 17 Pro models, so the iPhone 18 Pro models could have relatively small overall performance improvements compared to the previous generation.

Pu does expect the A20 Pro chip to have one upgrade that he said will benefit Apple Intelligence capabilities. Specifically, he said the chip will use TSMC's so-called Chip on Wafer on Substrate (CoWoS) packaging technology, which would allow for tighter integration of the chip's processor, unified memory, and Neural Engine.