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iPhone 18 Pro Max

Unreleased top-tier model in Apple's iPhone 18 lineup, expected to be the largest and most expensive flagship smartphone in the series.

Known aliases

  • 18 Pro Max
  • Apple iPhone 18 Pro Max
  • Pro Max

Current stories

productConfirmed10 publishers

AT&T points iPhone 18 Pro Max owners with failing calls to an Apple update that lists Face ID fixes

AT&T texted iPhone 18 Pro Max owners to install iOS 27.0.1 immediately, warning that some phones may be unable to complete calls, including to 911. Teams managing those phones can install it for the fixes Apple documented while keeping the cellular fault logged as unresolved.

Perspective Coverage

11 publishers
Builder
Builder 18%
Operator
Operator 76%
Investor
Investor 6%

Reality

Evidence68
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+30
Incentives45
Confidence70
productConfirmed9 publishers

iPhone 18 Pro Max owners who lost AT&T service need a new phone, Apple says

Apple says iPhone 18 Pro Max phones that lost service on AT&T must be replaced because software cannot reactivate them. Its iOS 27.0.1 release and a new AT&T carrier settings file are meant only to keep working phones from failing.

Perspective Coverage

9 publishers
Builder
Builder 17%
Operator
Operator 63%
Investor
Investor 20%

Reality

Evidence70
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+10
Incentives60
Confidence72
productOne report1 publisher

AT&T tells iPhone 18 Pro Max owners to install iOS 27.0.1 after phones get stuck in SOS mode

AT&T is texting affected iPhone 18 Pro Max owners to install iOS 27.0.1 because some phones may be unable to complete calls, texts or data, including to 911. Teams issuing the phones should install it before moving any eSIM, the setup step tied to some failures.

Publishers:tomsguide.com

Reality

Evidence50
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap0
Incentives
Not scored
Confidence50
productConfirmed4 publishers

Apple renews its Qualcomm patent license as its own modems replace Qualcomm chips in iPhones

Qualcomm renewed its global patent license with Apple from April 1, 2027, and neither company disclosed the terms. Apple's C-series modems are pushing Qualcomm chips out of iPhones, but the patent payments sit on a separate contract that keeps running.

Perspective Coverage

4 publishers
Builder
Builder 29%
Operator
Operator 31%
Investor
Investor 40%

Reality

Evidence60
Adoption65
Hype gap+10
Incentives
Not scored
Confidence60
productConfirmed3 publishers

The iPhone 18 Pro Max that still arrives on launch day costs $2,499

Apple's iPhone 18 Pro pre-orders and its first foldable sit five weeks apart. Anyone buying handsets in quantity now has two ordering windows to choose between, and the larger phone is already the constrained one.

Perspective Coverage

3 publishers
Builder
Builder 5%
Operator
Operator 75%
Investor
Investor 20%

Reality

Evidence74
Adoption35
Hype gap+20
Incentives55
Confidence70
productConfirmed3 publishers

Trading in an iPhone 18 Pro Max now starts with draining the battery below 20 Wh

Apple's firmware holds the new Pro Max under the 20 Wh single-cell threshold until a buyer activates it, and a Prepare to Ship option in Settings puts the phone back under the limit before a repair, return or trade-in.

Perspective Coverage

3 publishers
Builder
Builder 30%
Operator
Operator 60%
Investor
Investor 10%

Reality

Evidence62
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+15
Incentives40
Confidence60
productOne report1 publisher

iOS 27's Clean Up beat Photoshop on two of three object removals in a six-photo test

9to5Mac ran iOS 27's Clean Up against Photoshop 27.10.0 on the same six photos, and Apple's one-tap tool produced the better result in two of the three object removals. Photoshop won the hard one, and it is also where the reviewer went to fix Apple's miss.

Publishers:9to5mac.com

Reality

Evidence50
Adoption30
Hype gap+12
Incentives45
Confidence52
productOne report1 publisher

Apple asks $200 more for the entry iPhone Pro than it did four generations ago

The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199 for 256GB where the iPhone 14 Pro started at $999 for 128GB. That is 20 percent more money for twice the base storage, before anyone asks which of four generations of features they will use.

Publishers:macrumors.com

Reality

Evidence58
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+12
Incentives45
Confidence56
productOne report1 publisher

The iPhone 18 Pro's manual controls are worth $270 only to people who will shoot manually

Apple put real aperture blades in the Pro and Pro Max and priced them at $1,199 and $1,299. CNET's reviewer loves the camera and still sends most buyers to last year's iPhone 17 at $929.

Publishers:cnet.com

Reality

Evidence58
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap−10
Incentives50
Confidence62
productOne report1 publisher

Apple prices the folding iPhone $700 above the Pro Max for screen size alone

The iPhone Duo starts at $1,999 with the same A20 Pro chip as the iPhone 18 Pro, a rear camera Apple branded Dual Fusion instead of Pro Fusion, Touch ID in place of Face ID, and a 7.6-inch inner display no other iPhone has.

Publishers:macrumors.com

Reality

Evidence55
Adoption5
Hype gap+12
Incentives50
Confidence52
productOne report1 publisher

Battery life is the only reason to pay $100 more for the iPhone 18 Pro Max

PCMag's review gives both iPhone 18 Pro models the same A20 Pro chip, vapor chamber and camera hardware, and separates them only on battery life and pocketability, with the Max keeping the Editors' Choice.

Publishers:pcmag.com

Reality

Evidence42
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+34
Incentives55
Confidence48
productOne report1 publisher

Apple puts the whole iPhone 18 Pro Max upgrade inside a chassis fleets already have cases for

PCMag's week with the $1,299 phone found no outward change beyond new colours and an unchanged 6.43 by 3.07 by 0.34 inch body. The weight went up by half an ounce, and US models take eSIM only.

Publishers:pcmag.com

Reality

Evidence45
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+35
Incentives60
Confidence55
productOne report1 publisher

Mashable's iPhone 18 Pro Max finished an AI image prompt in the same time as last year's phone

Apple doubled the Neural Engine in the A20 Pro. In the one head-to-head Mashable ran, the new Pro Max and last year's model produced the same image in exactly the same time. That leaves battery and cooling as the upgrade case.

Publishers:mashable.com

Reality

Evidence42
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+22
Incentives55
Confidence38
productOne report1 publisher

iPhone 18 Pro review: $100 pricier, with a variable-aperture camera that rewards manual shooters

TechRadar puts the generation's biggest gain in the camera, where four selectable apertures and Pro controls pay off for anyone who takes charge of a shot, while the new chip felt level with last year's.

Publishers:techradar.com

Reality

Evidence46
Adoption18
Hype gap+12
Incentives60
Confidence50
productOne report1 publisher

Apple prices the 1TB iPhone 18 Pro $300 above last year's model

The base iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max each went up $100, but the increase steepens up the storage ladder, and the fleet buyer specifying next year's refresh is now buying a phone that no longer sits at the top of Apple's range.

Publishers:macrumors.com

Reality

Evidence62
Adoption20
Hype gap+8
Incentives55
Confidence58
productOne report1 publisher

EU energy labels put the Pro Max battery gain at eight times the iPhone 18 Pro's

Apple does not always publish full spec sheets, so the battery capacities for this year's iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max became public on European energy labels, and the two models did not gain the same amount.

Publishers:techradar.com

Reality

Evidence58
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+22
Incentives55
Confidence60
productOne report1 publisher

Apple ships one iPhone 18 Pro Max name with two different modems

Apple's updated spec pages give the C2 modem to every iPhone 18 Pro and to Pro Max units outside the US, where iOS 27 code points to Qualcomm silicon instead. Apple has yet to explain the split, and both parts list US mmWave 5G.

Publishers:macrumors.com

Reality

Evidence60
Adoption70
Hype gap+10
Incentives45
Confidence58
investOne report1 publisher

A leaked $250 panel price gives Samsung 12.5% of every $1,999 iPhone Duo

The $250 comes from a Weibo leaker, not a filing, and it covers only the inner folding screen of a phone Apple reportedly could not get built by LG Display or BOE. The supply term is three years.

Reality

Evidence20
Adoption32
Hype gap+45
Incentives65
Confidence28
productOne report1 publisher

Apple builds its first foldable to feel like a regular iPhone in the hand

MobileSyrup's hands-on with the iPhone Duo describes a phone thicker folded than its rivals and still familiar to hold, with the interesting decisions sitting in iOS layout rules rather than in the hinge. Review units are not out.

Publishers:mobilesyrup.com

Reality

Evidence34
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+15
Incentives58
Confidence45
productOne report1 publisher

Apple splits the iPhone 18 launch, and autumn 2026 becomes a Pro-only quarter

MacRumors reports the standard iPhone 18 slips to spring 2027, leaving September 2026 with three of Apple's most expensive phones and no volume model to sell.

Publishers:macrumors.com

Reality

Evidence28
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+24
Incentives62
Confidence38

Earlier coverage