Apple's upcoming foldable "iPhone Ultra" may see a staggered country-by-country launch over several months, with initial availability limited to the U.S. market, according to an Australian publication.


In a report labeled "exclusive," ChannelNews said today it has been told by local carriers and one major retailer that Apple's first foldable iPhone will be a "no show" when the iPhone 18 Pro models launch in September, despite being unveiled together. Instead, Apple will release the book-style device in the U.S. market first, followed by key markets including China over two or three months.

The staggered launch is said to be due to supply setbacks and "pricing problems." The publication's sources also claim that Apple is "having testing issues with production models that have already been built."

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed last month that Apple would unveil its first foldable iPhone at the same time as the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, but that iPhone Ultra pre-orders would start at a later date than the latter models.

Kuo said manufacturing challenges have limited early production, but this is the first time we have heard that a staggered country rollout could be another consequence of continuing supply issues.

Vision Pro All Over Again?

It wouldn't be the first time Apple has launched a new product in a staggered manner. When the Vision Pro launched in February 2024, it was only available in the U.S. initially. The headset was later launched in China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore in June, followed by Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the UK in July.

The reasons for the Vision Pro's staggered launch came down to low volume production, retail store readiness, and the fact that it was an entirely new category for Apple. All three could arguably apply to the company's first foldable.

Multiple reports have suggested the iPhone Ultra's production has faced hurdles because of the complexity of the device, with the hinge structure and display durability testing having been the principal bottlenecks. However, those issues were thought to have been resolved during trial production at Foxconn, with Apple subsequently raising its order to around 10 million units, up from 7-8 million units for the year, according to Nikkei Asia.

That said, 10 million units amounts to only a third of Kuo's forecast of 20-22 million units for iPhone 18 Pro models this year. Meanwhile, Kuo still believes Apple's supplier will ship only 7-8 million foldable iPhones in 2026. At such a relatively small number, Apple would presumably struggle to stock 40+ countries on launch day.

It's worth bearing in mind that a staggered market launch is a claim made by the report's sources, and remains uncorroborated. Either way, we should know for sure soon enough. The iPhone Ultra's unveiling is only a matter of weeks away, and we're expecting it to feature an inner display of around 7.7 to 7.8 inches, a 5.5-inch cover screen, a thickness of roughly 4.5mm, and a starting price above $2,000. Apple's iPhone event is most likely going to happen on Tuesday, September 8 or Wednesday, September 9.
This article, "'iPhone Ultra' Could Face Staggered Market Rollout, US Only at Launch" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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The base iPhone 18 model that Apple is expected to release by March 2027 will be equipped with 12GB of RAM, up from 8GB in the iPhone 17, according to analyst Jeff Pu.


Pu's latest assessment, if accurate, would see the iPhone 18 gaining the same amount of memory as the iPhone 17 Pro models. Analyst Dan Nystedt claimed the same RAM upgrade for the iPhone 18 back in April.

That said, their predictions conflict with the most recent report on the subject from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who said both the iPhone 18 and iPhone 18e would have only 9GB of RAM. This would prevent the devices from supporting some Apple Intelligence features.

However, Pu agrees with Kuo that the lower-cost iPhone 18e – also coming in the spring – will come with 9GB of RAM, based on his own sources and supply chain information. Both models are expected to be powered by the A20 chip.

Interestingly, Pu additionally believes that the regular iPhone 18 will feature a narrower Dynamic Island. Most of the rumors about a smaller Dynamic Island have pertained to the iPhone 18 Pro models, but Chinese leaker Ice Universe has also claimed the smaller Dynamic Island will be adopted across the iPhone 18 lineup.
This article, "Base iPhone 18 Tipped to Get These Two Pro-Level Upgrades" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Following its username feature rollout, WhatsApp is now letting users save a contact's username when they add their name and phone number. The username field is shown between the first and last name fields and the phone number section.

You can add a new contact in WhatsApp by tapping the + button in the navigation bar of the Chats tab. According to WABetaInfo, when usernames become more widely available, WhatsApp will populate the username field automatically when users create a new contact from the chat info screen.
This article, "WhatsApp Now Lets You Save a Contact's Username" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple's annual Back to School promotion is now live in the United Kingdom and 18 other European countries: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey.


The European launch follows the company's back-to-school promotion rollout in the United States and several other regions and territories last month.

The offer is aimed at college students and educational staff and includes a gift card worth up to £120/€120 with the purchase of an eligible Mac or iPad. Turkey is the exception, where buyers of eligible Macs and iPads can choose a four-pack of AirTags at no additional charge, or they can pay extra for various AirPods models or (when purchasing an iPad) an Apple Pencil Pro.

Note that the MacBook Neo is not an eligible product in any of the countries, and the iPad mini, entry-level iPad, and desktop Macs are excluded too.

The promotion runs through to October 22, 2026.
This article, "Apple's 2026 Back to School Offer is Now Live Across Europe" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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