The iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are launching tomorrow, but we were able to get one early to share some initial impressions.
Both the 18 Pro and Pro Max are heavier than the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max models they replace, and it's most noticeable when you pick up the Pro Max. It was a heavy phone to begin with, and now there's more weight (249 grams vs. 233 grams).
If you hated last year's two-tone design with the contrast between the aluminum frame and the glass back, there's good news. Apple is now matching the glass to the frame for a more uniform look.
Our review unit is Apple's new glacier color, which is a light blue that's slightly different from the other light blue shades Apple has used in the past. Unlike some of those blues, the glacier color actually looks blue and not silver. Apple is also offering the iPhone 18 Pro models in burgundy, silver, and black. We have a burgundy model on the way and will share that in the future.
There's a fancy new 2nm A20 Pro chip inside the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, but depending on what you're upgrading from, you might not notice much in the way of performance. iPhones have used wildly fast chips for the last several years, and you're not stressing the processor when browsing the web and scrolling social media sites. What you might notice is the new vapor chamber cooling system. It takes up three times more surface area, so the iPhone stays cooler when you are doing something that takes a little more processing power like playing a game. Battery life has improved, but that's not something we've had time to test yet. Apple says you'll get up to 36 hours of video playback with the 18 Pro and 45 hours with the 18 Pro Max.
If you're in the U.S. and buying an iPhone 18 Pro, it will have Apple's new C2 modem, but if you get the 18 Pro Max, it's going to have a Qualcomm modem. Both models use the C2 outside of the U.S. The C2 modem has mmWave 5G for the first time, plus it's more efficient than Qualcomm modems, so it will be interesting to see some speed tests comparing the two.
Apple slimmed down the Dynamic Island by putting the infrared camera under the display, and that's the most noticeable change on the front of the device. It takes up less space, and Apple also updated it so it can show three Live Activities at once or two in more detail.
There's a new variable aperture Main camera that also has a new sensor, plus Apple tweaked its computational imaging pipeline. With a variable aperture lens, there's more control over lighting and depth of field. If it's super bright outside, the iPhone can automatically adjust the aperture to let in less light. If it's dark, a wider aperture will let in more light. There are four aperture settings in total, and it works behind the scenes so you can just snap photos as usual. You'll probably notice it most in low lighting.
If you want to control the aperture yourself, you can do so with new Pro Controls that also give you the option to adjust shutter speed and white balance. There's a histogram too so you can check exposure levels.
We'll have a full video on the iPhone 18 Pro camera system coming next week.
Pricing on the iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max is priced starting at $1,299. Both new iPhones launch on September 18.
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