The first GPU benchmark results for Apple's new M5 Ultra and M6 chips have surfaced, ahead of the new Mac Studio and Mac mini models launching on Tuesday. If you are interested in CPU results, we shared those earlier this week.


So far, the M5 Ultra has achieved up to a 59% higher Metal score (366,744) on Geekbench 7 compared to the M3 Ultra's average score of 230,420, and the chip's OpenCL score is roughly in line with NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 4080.

As for the M6 chip, it has so far achieved up to a 34% higher Metal score (93,217) compared to the M5 chip's average score of 69,563.

Chip	Metal Score
M5 Ultra	366,744
M3 Ultra	230,420
M5 Max	225,606
M2 Ultra	201,144
M4 Max	189,301
M1 Ultra	150,098
M3 Max	146,550
M5 Pro	130,896
M2 Max	130,091
M1 Max	107,711
M4 Pro	107,354
M6	93,217
M2 Pro	77,176
M3 Pro	72,637
M5	69,563
M1 Pro	63,531
M4	51,818
M3	46,033
M2	40,529
M1	27,277

As always, real-world performance will vary.
This article, "M5 Ultra and M6 Chip Benchmark Results Reveal Graphics Performance" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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TechInsights has published an iPhone 18 Pro Max teardown that confirms the U.S. version of the device is equipped with Qualcomm's Snapdragon X80 modem.


The device's modem firmware had already pointed towards the Snapdragon X80 modem.

The smaller iPhone 18 Pro and the iPhone Duo use Apple's custom-designed C2 modem worldwide, and the iPhone 18 Pro Max uses the C2 modem in every other country, so the U.S. version of the iPhone 18 Pro Max having a Qualcomm modem is unique.

iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models have the same Snapdragon X80 modem worldwide, although TechInsights noted that the U.S. version of the iPhone 18 Pro Max has a newly-identified mmWave 5G antenna module from Apple.

We will have to wait for C2 vs. Snapdragon X80 performance tests.

Apple has yet to explain why only the U.S. version of the iPhone 18 Pro Max still has a Qualcomm modem, so we can only speculate for now. In 2023, Qualcomm announced that it would supply Apple with smartphone modems through 2026, so perhaps Apple is ensuring that it complies with its contractual obligations in a minimal way.

Apple's C2 modem supports ultra-fast mmWave 5G in the U.S., unlike its previous-generation C1 and C1X modems. Qualcomm modems in the iPhone 12 and newer already supported mmWave 5G in the U.S., so Apple played catch up here. Apple said the C2 delivers "meaningfully faster uploads" compared to the C1X while consuming 15% less energy.
This article, "iPhone 18 Pro Max in U.S. Has Qualcomm's Snapdragon X80 Modem" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today released the first Xcode 27.1 beta. The latest version of the tool adds support for iPhone Duo app development.

Available on Apple silicon Macs running macOS 26.6 or later, Xcode 27.1 includes updated SDKs for the iPhone Duo, and a simulator that supports the device's new poses and orientations.
This article, "Apple Releases Xcode 27.1 Beta With iPhone Duo Support" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Can you use iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max cases with the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, and vice versa?


Apple's official answer is no, according to Daring Fireball's John Gruber. Apple said the camera plateau on the iPhone 18 Pro models is ever so slightly thicker this year. Gruber said the difference is one-tenth of a millimeter: 11.5mm vs. 11.4mm. It is a minor difference, but Apple would obviously prefer to sell you a new case.

In practice, most cases should be interchangeable. In his personal testing, Gruber said his iPhone 17 Pro cases fit the iPhone 18 Pro models perfectly, as did iPhone 18 Pro cases on iPhone 17 Pro models. So, both generations of Apple-branded cases should work with both generations of iPhones, and many third-party cases should be fine too.

Of course, there will probably be the odd third-party case that does not fit, but this is likely to be the rare exception rather than the norm.
This article, "Are iPhone 17 Pro Cases Compatible With iPhone 18 Pro? Here's What Apple Says" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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YouTube channel REWA Technology today shared one of the first iPhone 18 Pro teardown videos, offering a look inside the new device.


iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max feature a smaller Dynamic Island, which Apple achieved by moving Face ID's infrared camera under the display in the top-left corner. The pixels above the infrared camera have a special pattern that lets infrared light pass through, but that area of the screen looks fairly normal at typical viewing angles.

The teardown shows the repositioned infrared camera, plus other changes like the larger 48-megapixel main camera with variable aperture.


The model in the video has a physical SIM card tray, meaning it has a slightly smaller battery compared to eSIM-only models sold in the U.S., Canada, Japan, and select other countries. As expected, this model has a 4,056 mAh battery capacity.

We are still waiting for a teardown of the U.S. version of the iPhone 18 Pro Max, which is expected to have a Qualcomm cellular modem, such as the Snapdragon X80 or the Snapdragon X85. The smaller iPhone 18 Pro uses Apple's C2 modem worldwide, as does the iPhone 18 Pro Max in all other countries beyond the U.S., according to Apple.
This article, "iPhone 18 Pro Teardown Reveals How Apple Shrunk the Dynamic Island" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Starting today, many if not all Apple Stores around the world have received a new "hello" decoration somewhere in the store for the purposes of testing iPhone camera zoom.

Like the iPhone 17 Pro models, the new iPhone 18 Pro models that launched today offer up to 8× optical zoom.
This article, "Apple Stores Have a New 'Hello' Easter Egg, Here's Why" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple Fifth Avenue in New York is ready for iPhone 18 Pro launch day.

The store's iconic glass cube entrance has received a colorful makeover that matches the iPhone 18 Pro's new Burgundy and Glacier finishes. "So excited for tomorrow," said Apple CEO John Ternus, who will likely be at the store for the launch tomorrow.
This article, "Apple CEO John Ternus Teases iPhone 18 Pro Launch Day" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple has agreed to pay Samsung even higher prices for RAM and storage chips starting in the first quarter of 2027, according to a DigiTimes report this week citing an earlier report from Chinese publication Jiemian News.


Apple has reportedly agreed to pay nearly $2 per Gb of DRAM and $0.33 per Gb of NAND storage. This is a 30% to 40% increase in pricing for these chips compared to what Apple is paying in the third quarter of 2026, according to DigiTimes.

It is unclear if this reported agreement will lead Apple to further raise prices on products like iPhones, iPads, and Macs, or if the company has already factored in the more expensive components in early 2027 into its current 2026 prices.

AI companies have been building out massive data centers, leading to a memory chip shortage that has driven up the prices of RAM and NAND storage chips. Apple has raised prices on a wide range of products since June, with former CEO Tim Cook calling the increases "unavoidable" due to the chip shortage, which he likened to a "100-year flood."

In June, Apple raised prices on all Macs and iPads, as well as the Apple TV, HomePod, HomePod mini, and Vision Pro, with many of the increases ranging from $100 to $300. In addition, iPhone 18 Pro starting prices are $100 higher in the U.S. compared to the iPhone 17 Pro models, and older iPhones have gone up in price too.
This article, "Apple Reportedly Accepts Even Higher RAM and Storage Prices in 2027" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple last week unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. While the devices look very similar to the iPhone 17 Pro models, there are still quite a few new features and incremental changes compared to the previous generation.


Below, we have recapped 10 new features coming with the iPhone 18 Pro models, which have been available to pre-order since Saturday, September 12 and will begin arriving to customers and launch in stores this Friday, September 18.

• A20 Pro chip, the first 2nm chip in an iPhone. It has a 6-core CPU, a 7-core GPU, and a 32-core Neural Engine. Apple says the chip delivers up to 20% faster CPU performance and up to 40% faster graphics performance compared to the A19 Pro chip in the iPhone 17 Pro. Apple also says sustained performance is up to 40% faster.



• Three new color options: Burgundy, Black, and Glacier. Orange is no longer an option. The rear aluminum and Ceramic Shield glass area are now more color matched.



• A smaller Dynamic Island with support for up to three Live Activities at once.



• The main 48-megapixel Fusion camera on both the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max has variable aperture, allowing you to adjust the amount of light that reaches the image sensor for greater control over depth of field. Apple says this upgrade will allow for improved low-light photography and crisper details in the back of group photos. Aperture options include ƒ/1.48, ƒ/1.8, ƒ/2.8, and ƒ/4.0.



• In the Camera app on iPhone 18 Pro models, new Pro controls allow you to manually control or adjust shutter speed, white balance, and aperture, and there is an option to use a histogram.



• iPhone 18 Pro models can record time-lapse videos in 4K and Dolby Vision HDR.



• Both of the iPhone 18 Pro models have longer battery life compared to the previous generation — especially the iPhone 18 Pro Max. If we go by Apple's offline video playback metric, the iPhone 18 Pro Max has up to 15% longer battery life compared to the iPhone 17 Pro Max. Fast charging to 50% now takes 15 minutes, down from 20 minutes.



• The revamped vapor chamber cooling system in the iPhone 18 Pro models has three times more surface area than the one in the iPhone 17 Pro models, for even better heat dissipation.



• iPhone 18 Pro models worldwide are equipped with Apple's second-generation C2 cellular modem for 5G and LTE, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max has it in every country except for the U.S., where it has a Qualcomm modem. Apple says the C2 chip has "AI-powered improvements" to cellular quality and reliability, delivering "meaningfully faster uploads when compared to its previous C1X modem while consuming 15% less energy. In the U.S., the chip supports mmWave 5G.



• There is now a 2TB storage capacity for both the Pro and Pro Max models — it was previously exclusive to the iPhone 17 Pro Max.

This article, "iPhone 18 Pro Launching Tomorrow With These 10 New Features" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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