Apple is set to break 15 years of tradition this September, launching only its priciest iPhone 18 Pro, Pro Max, and a foldable while delaying the cheaper standard iPhone 18 to spring 2027, forcing US buyers to pay up or wait.
A New Launch Calendar
Taiwanese supplier Pegatron indirectly confirmed the shift on its second-quarter earnings call, telling investors that a major smartphone client would change its usual shipment schedule, comments widely read as pointing to Apple.
The company is expected to introduce the 6.3-inch iPhone 18 Pro, the 6.9-inch Pro Max, and its first foldable, reportedly called the iPhone Ultra, in September. Every standard iPhone from the 11 to the 17 arrived alongside its Pro siblings, making the delay the biggest change to Apple's release calendar in years.
The standard iPhone 18, a lower-cost iPhone 18e, and a second iPhone Air are now tipped for around March 2027. Supply-chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo and camera-lens maker Largan Precision had flagged the same plan earlier this year. References inside the iOS 27 beta list six unreleased models, supporting a staggered rollout.
September Date Under a New Chief
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports the launch event will likely fall on Wednesday, 9 September, matching Apple's habit of avoiding the day after Labor Day. Pre-orders are expected to move to Friday, 11 September, as standard retail logistics mean Apple avoids weekend-delayed transaction windows.
The keynote carries extra weight. It will be the first major launch led by John Ternus, Apple's hardware engineering chief, who takes over as chief executive from Tim Cook on 1 September. Cook, who announced the handover in April, stays on as executive chairman.
Why the Cheaper Model Slipped
Two forces sit behind the split. Apple's move to a new chip-packaging method for the A20 Pro processor bonds memory directly to the silicon during production, and a global shortage of that memory has choked the process. Prioritising the high-margin Pro line also protects revenue through the holiday quarter.
Gurman expects those pressures to push prices up by $100 to $200 (£74 to £148) across the range. That could lift the cheapest Pro Max from $1,099 (£811) to as much as $1,299 (£959), while the foldable is tipped to start at $2,000 (£1,476) or more, dearer than Samsung's rival.
What Buyers Get for the Money
The Pro models are expected to carry Apple's first 2-nanometre chip, promising faster performance and longer battery life, plus 12GB of memory that reports say is needed for the advanced Siri and Apple Intelligence features in iOS 27. The standard iPhone 18 may ship with less, leaving spring buyers short of the full artificial intelligence suite.
Other rumoured upgrades include a variable-aperture 48-megapixel main camera on both Pro models, a smaller Dynamic Island, and a new deep cherry-red finish. US models may use a Qualcomm modem rather than Apple's own.
Apple has confirmed none of this, and its newsroom still lists only the iPhone 17 range. For anyone whose contract ends this autumn or who wants a new handset as a holiday gift, the maths is now stark. Buy Pro at flagship money in September, settle for an older model, or wait until spring for the cheaper iPhone 18.
