Apple announced the iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max earlier this month, arriving three years after the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. Three generations of changes make for a substantial upgrade, bringing larger displays, an all-new design, improvements to every camera, significantly longer battery life, and faster charging.


The iPhone 16 Pro introduced larger displays with thinner borders, the Camera Control, a 48-megapixel Ultra Wide camera, and improved video and audio recording. The iPhone 17 Pro replaced the titanium frame and glass back with an aluminum unibody, added vapor chamber cooling and Ceramic Shield 2, and upgraded both the telephoto and front-facing cameras. This year's refresh centers on the A20 Pro chip, a variable-aperture Main camera, a smaller Dynamic Island, and a further increase in battery capacity. For iPhone 15 Pro owners, all three sets of changes accumulate.

The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ starts at $1,199 for 256GB, $200 more than the iPhone 15 Pro's $999 launch price, although the entry storage tier has doubled from 128GB. The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max starts at $1,299, $100 more than the iPhone 15 Pro Max's equivalent starting configuration. Here are the key differences between the iPhone 15 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌:

Design and Display

iPhone 15 Pro (2023)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
Brushed titanium frame with full glass back	Aluminum unibody with partial Ceramic Shield back, improving heat dissipation
Glass rounded square camera bump	Full-width rounded rectangle aluminum camera plateau
iPhone 15 Pro: 6.1-inch display iPhone 15 Pro Max: 6.7-inch display	iPhone 18 Pro: 6.3-inch display iPhone 18 Pro Max: 6.9-inch display
iPhone 15 Pro: 2,556-by-1,179-pixel resolution iPhone 15 Pro Max: 2,796-by-1,290-pixel resolution	iPhone 18 Pro: 2,622-by-1,206-pixel resolution iPhone 18 Pro Max: 2,868-by-1,320-pixel resolution
Wider borders around the display	Thinner borders, with the initial reduction of 30% introduced on the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro
Approximately 2-4 nits minimum display brightness	1 nit minimum display brightness
	More power-efficient display
Ceramic Shield front	Ceramic Shield 2 front, with Apple claiming 3x better scratch resistance than the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro
Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating only	Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating and Apple-designed anti-reflective coating to reduce glare
2,000 nits peak display brightness (outdoor)	3,000 nits peak display brightness (outdoor), a 50% increase
	2x better outdoor contrast, as stated in the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro comparison
‌Dynamic Island‌ supports up to two simultaneous Live Activities	Smaller ‌Dynamic Island‌, supports up to three simultaneous Live Activities
	Camera Control capacitive button with sapphire crystal cover
Available in Black Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium, and Blue Titanium	Available in Silver, Black, Glacier, and Burgundy
99% or more fiber-based packaging	100% fiber-based packaging, suitable for recycling

Dimensions and Weight

	iPhone 15 Pro (2023)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
Height	iPhone 15 Pro: 146.6mm (5.77 inches) iPhone 15 Pro Max: 159.9mm (6.29 inches)	iPhone 18 Pro: 150.0mm (5.91 inches) iPhone 18 Pro Max: 163.4mm (6.43 inches)
Width	iPhone 15 Pro: 70.6mm (2.78 inches) iPhone 15 Pro Max: 76.7mm (3.02 inches)	iPhone 18 Pro: 71.9mm (2.83 inches) iPhone 18 Pro Max: 78.0mm (3.07 inches)
Thickness	8.25mm (0.32 inches)	8.75mm (0.34 inches)
Weight	iPhone 15 Pro: 187 grams (6.60 ounces) iPhone 15 Pro Max: 221 grams (7.81 ounces)	iPhone 18 Pro: 211 grams (7.44 ounces), an increase of 24 grams iPhone 18 Pro Max: 249 grams (8.78 ounces), an increase of 28 grams

Chip, Performance, and Connectivity

iPhone 15 Pro (2023)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
A17 Pro chip	A20 Pro chip
Built with TSMC's N3B process (first-generation 3nm)	Built with TSMC's N2 process (2nm), Apple's first 2nm smartphone chip
6-core CPU with 2 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores	6-core CPU with 2 super cores and 4 efficiency cores
8GB LPDDR5 RAM	12GB LPDDR5X RAM
51.2Gb/s memory bandwidth<	115GB/s memory bandwidth
6-core GPU	7-core GPU with Neural Accelerators
First-generation hardware-accelerated ray tracing	Faster hardware-accelerated ray tracing
16-core Neural Engine	Dual 16-core Neural Engine (32 total cores)
	Vapor chamber cooling with 3x more surface area than the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌
	New chip packaging that places silicon die beside memory, allowing it to attach directly to the vapor chamber
Earlier video encoding hardware	Enhanced video encoding hardware supporting higher-frame-rate recording and additional professional formats
Qualcomm Snapdragon X70 modem	iPhone 18 Pro: Apple C2 modem in all countries iPhone 18 Pro Max: Apple C2 modem in all countries except the U.S., where it uses a Qualcomm modem
Broadcom Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip	Apple N1 chip for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Thread
Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax)	Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be)
Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity	Bluetooth 6 connectivity

Rear Camera

iPhone 15 Pro (2023)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
First-generation quad-pixel sensor	Newer sensor and computational imaging pipeline, building on the faster readout speeds and zero shutter lag introduced with the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro
Fixed ƒ/1.78 aperture on the Main camera	Variable aperture with four stops: ƒ/1.48, ƒ/1.8, ƒ/2.8, and ƒ/4.0, using six laser-cut blades
	API available for developers to control the aperture range within their own apps
Night mode	Faster Night mode, tied to the new variable-aperture lens
	Around 50% better Main camera low-light performance than the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro, with more detail in the back of group photos
	Pro controls in the Camera app: manual lens aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and histogram
12-megapixel Ultra Wide camera	48-megapixel Fusion Ultra Wide camera
12-megapixel Telephoto camera	48-megapixel Fusion Telephoto camera
iPhone 15 Pro: 3x Telephoto camera, with 77mm focal length iPhone 15 Pro Max: 5x Telephoto camera, with 120mm focal length	4x Telephoto camera, with 100mm focal length, also enabling 12-megapixel optical-quality 8x shots at 200mm
iPhone 15 Pro: 0.5x, 1x, 2x, and 3x zoom options, with optical-quality 2x derived from the Main camera iPhone 15 Pro Max: 0.5x, 1x, 2x, and 5x zoom options, with optical-quality 2x derived from the Main camera	0.5x, 1x, 2x, 4x, and 8x zoom options, with optical-quality 2x and 8x derived from the Main and Telephoto cameras
Macro photography	48-megapixel macro photography
	Support for JPEG-XL format
First-generation Photographic Styles	Photographic Styles 3, with tone, color, texture, and grain controls
Depth mapping for AR and portrait photography	Enhanced depth mapping for AR and portrait photography, with more accurate background and subject separation and more realistic bokeh
	Smart focus tracking
	Apple Reference Image (Main camera only)

Camera Control

The iPhone 15 Pro already has an Action button that can launch the camera or Visual Intelligence, but it lacks the dedicated Camera Control introduced with the ‌iPhone 16‌ lineup. The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌'s Camera Control provides the following additional functions:

• Press Camera Control to launch the Camera app


• Press to capture a photo or press and hold to record video


• Light press to lock focus and exposure before reframing


• Slide across the capacitive surface to adjust settings such as zoom, exposure, styles, and tone


• Light-press controls overlay for quick access to camera settings


• Integration with supported third-party camera apps


• Press and hold to activate ‌Visual Intelligence‌

Video Recording

iPhone 15 Pro (2023)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
4K video recording at 24 fps, 25 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps, with Dolby Vision HDR up to 60 fps	4K Dolby Vision video recording at 24 fps, 25 fps, 30 fps, 60 fps, 100 fps (Fusion Main), or 120 fps (Fusion Main)
1080p HD video recording at 25 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps	1080p Dolby Vision video recording at 25 fps, 30 fps, 60 fps, or 120 fps (Fusion Main)
ProRes video recording up to 4K at 60 fps with external recording	ProRes video recording up to 4K at 120 fps with external recording
Slo-mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps	Slo-mo video support for 1080p up to 240 fps and 4K Dolby Vision up to 120 fps (Fusion Main)
Cinematic mode recording up to 4K HDR at 30 fps	Cinematic mode recording up to 4K Dolby Vision at 60 fps
	Cinematic mode effects can be applied after capture to Fusion Main video shot at up to 60 fps
	Pro controls for lens aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and histogram
	Smart focus tracking
	Improved low-light video at 1080p
Time-lapse video recording with stabilization	Time-lapse video recording with stabilization, up to 4K Dolby Vision
QuickTake video	QuickTake video up to 4K Dolby Vision at 60 fps
Apple Log	Apple Log 2
	ProRes RAW capture support
	Genlock support
	Dual Capture up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps

Front Camera

iPhone 15 Pro (2023)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
12-megapixel TrueDepth camera with conventional rectangular sensor	18-megapixel Center Stage camera with square sensor and TrueDepth technology
Tap to zoom	Tap to zoom and rotate, allowing portrait and landscape framing without rotating the iPhone
	Center Stage for photos and video calls
	Ultra-stabilized video
	Dual Capture, recording the front and rear cameras simultaneously at up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps
First-generation Photographic Styles	Photographic Styles 3, with tone, color, texture, and grain controls
	Smart focus tracking, as described in the supplied comparison
	Pro controls for shutter speed, white balance, and histogram
4K video recording at 24 fps, 25 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps, with Dolby Vision HDR up to 60 fps	4K Dolby Vision video recording at 24 fps, 25 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps
1080p HD video recording at 25 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps	1080p Dolby Vision video recording at 25 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps
Cinematic mode up to 4K HDR at 30 fps	Cinematic mode up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps
	Cinematic mode effects can be applied after capture
	Improved low-light video at 1080p
Time-lapse video recording with stabilization	Time-lapse video recording with stabilization, up to 4K Dolby Vision
QuickTake video	QuickTake video up to 4K at 60 fps in Dolby Vision
Apple Log	Apple Log 2
	ProRes RAW capture support

Audio Recording

iPhone 15 Pro (2023)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
Stereo recording	Spatial Audio and stereo recording
	Studio-quality four-mic array
	Wind noise reduction
	Audio Mix with algorithms for higher-quality voices and the ability to isolate music

Battery and Charging

iPhone 15 Pro (2023)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
iPhone 15 Pro: 3,274 mAh battery iPhone 15 Pro Max: 4,422 mAh battery	iPhone 18 Pro: 4,056 mAh battery (SIM-tray models); 4,288 mAh battery (eSIM-only models) iPhone 18 Pro Max: 5,391 mAh battery (SIM-tray models); 5,567 mAh battery (eSIM-only models)
iPhone 15 Pro: Up to 23 hours of video playback iPhone 15 Pro Max: Up to 29 hours of video playback	iPhone 18 Pro: Up to 36 hours of video playback iPhone 18 Pro Max: Up to 45 hours of video playback
iPhone 15 Pro: Up to 20 hours of streamed video playback iPhone 15 Pro Max: Up to 25 hours of streamed video playback	iPhone 18 Pro: Up to 33 hours of streamed video playback iPhone 18 Pro Max: Up to 40 hours of streamed video playback
Up to 50% charge in around 30 minutes with a 20W adapter or higher	Up to 50% charge in around 15 minutes with a 60W-capable adapter or higher supporting Adjustable Voltage Supply
MagSafe wireless charging up to 15W with a 20W adapter or higher	‌MagSafe‌ wireless charging up to 25W, reaching 50% charge in 30 minutes with a 35W adapter or higher
Qi2 wireless charging up to 15W	Qi2 wireless charging up to 25W

Storage and Pricing

iPhone 15 Pro (2023)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
iPhone 15 Pro: Available with 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB storage iPhone 15 Pro Max: Available with 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB storage	Available with 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB storage
iPhone 15 Pro: Launched at $999 (128GB), $1,099 (256GB), $1,299 (512GB), $1,499 (1TB) iPhone 15 Pro Max: Launched at $1,199 (256GB), $1,399 (512GB), $1,599 (1TB)	iPhone 18 Pro: $1,199 (256GB), $1,399 (512GB), $1,799 (1TB), $2,399 (2TB) iPhone 18 Pro Max: $1,299 (256GB), $1,499 (512GB), $1,899 (1TB), $2,499 (2TB)
Now discontinued	Sold directly by Apple
Current purchase prices depend on third-party stock, condition, and warranty	iPhone 18 Pro: From $49.95 a month for 24 months via Apple Upgrade iPhone 18 Pro Max: From $54.12 a month for 24 months via Apple Upgrade

Which to Choose?

For iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max owners considering a replacement, the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ is a worthwhile upgrade. Three generations of changes bring improvements to the display, each camera on the device, battery life, charging, and sustained performance. Battery life is likely to be the strongest argument for most users, particularly if their current device no longer comfortably lasts through the day, while faster wired charging makes brief charging stops more useful.

The camera upgrade is especially compelling for anyone who regularly takes photos or records video. Higher-resolution Ultra Wide and Telephoto cameras expand the options beyond the Main camera, while the variable aperture and Pro controls provide additional creative flexibility. The Camera Control also offers a dedicated way to launch the camera and adjust settings, although its value will depend on whether you prefer physical controls to the touchscreen.

Owners of the smaller iPhone 15 Pro gain more native telephoto reach, moving from 3x to 4x, as well as the optical-quality 8x option. For iPhone 15 Pro Max owners, the camera moves from 5x to 4x, with the higher-resolution sensor enabling the additional 8x crop.

For video creators, the accumulated changes are more consequential still. Higher-frame-rate 4K recording, ProRes RAW, Genlock, Apple Log 2, Dual Capture, and improved audio tools expand the range of work that can be completed on the device. The square front-camera sensor also makes landscape framing easier without rotating the phone, while Center Stage improves flexibility for group photos and video calls.

The A20 Pro and vapor chamber cooling make the strongest performance case for users who play demanding games, record long video clips, or regularly push their device through sustained workloads. More RAM and additional AI processing hardware provide greater headroom for supported on-device tasks. For messaging, browsing, and other everyday activities, the A17 Pro remains capable, and access to iOS 27, Apple Intelligence, or ‌Visual Intelligence‌ alone does not require replacing it.

There are physical trade-offs to consider. Both newer models are larger and thicker, with weight increasing by 24 grams on the Pro and 28 grams on the Pro Max. The aluminum enclosure improves heat flow, but it may show dents and scratches more readily than the titanium frame. Users who chose the iPhone 15 Pro for its relatively compact size and light weight may find those changes less appealing, even with the improvements in screen size and battery life.

If your iPhone 15 Pro still meets your needs and comfortably lasts through the day, there is not am urgent reason to replace it. It is still a capable device with support for ‌iOS 27‌, ‌Apple Intelligence‌, and Siri AI. A battery replacement may be worth considering if reduced health is your main complaint and you would otherwise be happy to keep the device. The upgrade becomes much easier to recommend when battery limitations coincide with a desire for the newer cameras, larger display, or improved performance.

A discounted ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ is another option if your priorities are the aluminum design, higher-resolution telephoto camera, square front-camera sensor, and vapor chamber cooling. Those upgrades arrived before this year's model. Paying more for the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ makes the clearest sense when you also want the variable aperture, Pro controls, A20 Pro, smaller ‌Dynamic Island‌, and further improvements to battery life and charging.

Pre-orders for the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max opened on Saturday, September 12, with availability beginning Friday, September 18.
This article, "iPhone 15 Pro vs. iPhone 18 Pro Buyer's Guide: Should You Upgrade?" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple's new iPhone lineup asks buyers a new and challenging question: Is a foldable display worth feature compromises?


Alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, which start at $1,199 and $1,299 respectively, there is now the iPhone Duo, Apple's first foldable iPhone, which starts at $1,999. All three are brand new, all three feature the same A20 Pro chip, and all three sit at the top end of Apple's lineup.

The Duo is not a Pro model, though, and Apple's own wording makes that clear. For example, its rear camera array is branded the 48-megapixel Dual Fusion system rather than the Pro Fusion system, and the word Pro appears nowhere in its name. The $700 premium over the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max buys a folding 7.6-inch display, not a better camera.

All three models still share a large amount of hardware. The shared features include:

• A20 Pro chip with a 6-core CPU, 7-core GPU with Neural Accelerators, dual 16-core Neural Engine, and hardware-accelerated ray tracing


• Apple C2 modem (except on the Pro Max in the United States), N1 wireless networking chip, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, Thread, and the second-generation Ultra Wideband chip


• Super Retina XDR OLED displays with ProMotion up to 120Hz, Always-On display, Dynamic Island, and 3000 nits of peak outdoor brightness


• Ceramic Shield 2 front with 3x better scratch resistance, Ceramic Shield back, and IP68 water resistance to a depth of 6 meters


• Camera Control, a 48MP Fusion Ultra Wide camera at 13mm and f/2.2, Photographic Styles 3, Dual Capture, smart focus tracking, and 48MP macro photography


• Apple Intelligence and Siri AI in iOS 27


• Emergency SOS, Crash Detection, Roadside Assistance, Messages, and Find My via satellite


• USB-C with USB 3 speeds, MagSafe and Qi2 wireless charging up to 25W, and dual eSIM


• 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB storage options

The comparison below outlines every difference between the Pro models and the Duo:

Display

‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max	‌iPhone Duo‌
iPhone 18 Pro: 6.3-inch display iPhone 18 Pro Max: 6.9-inch display	7.6-inch inner folding display and 5.4-inch outer display
iPhone 18 Pro: 2622-by-1206 resolution at 460 ppi iPhone 18 Pro Max: 2868-by-1320 resolution at 460 ppi	Outer display: 1398-by-2034 at 460 ppi Inner display: 1878-by-2670 at 430 ppi
	Nano-texture finish and wide-angle OLEDs on the inner display
	Supports Apple Pencil with USB-C

Design and Build

‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max	‌iPhone Duo‌
Aluminum unibody	Polished titanium frame with a 3D-printed hinge cover
Action button
Face ID enabled by TrueDepth technology	Touch ID in the side button
Dual ambient light sensors	Four ambient light sensors
Compatible with ‌MagSafe‌ cases, wallets, and wireless chargers	Compatible with ‌MagSafe‌ cases and wireless chargers
Black, Silver, Glacier, and Burgundy options	Night Sky and Star White options
Made with 40% recycled content, including 85% recycled aluminum in the enclosure, 100% recycled rare earth elements in all magnets, 80% recycled steel in the battery enclosure and vapor chamber chassis, and 100% recycled tungsten in the Taptic Engine	Made with 35% recycled content, including 100% recycled aluminum in the internal structural frame, 85% recycled titanium in the enclosure, and 100% recycled titanium in the 3D-printed hinge cover
50% of manufacturing electricity sourced from renewable electricity	60% of manufacturing electricity sourced from renewable electricity

Dimensions and Weight

	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max	‌iPhone Duo‌
Height	5.91 inches (150.0 mm)	6.43 inches (163.4 mm)	4.64 inches (117.8 mm) closed 4.64 inches (117.8 mm) open
Width	2.83 inches (71.9 mm)	3.07 inches (78.0 mm)	3.31 inches (84.1 mm) closed 6.48 inches (164.6 mm) open
Depth	0.34 inch (8.75 mm)	0.34 inch (8.75 mm)	0.44 inch (11.3 mm) closed 0.21 inch (5.2 mm) open
Weight	7.44 ounces (211 grams)	8.78 ounces (249 grams)	8.96 ounces (254 grams)

Rear Cameras

‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max	‌iPhone Duo‌
48MP Pro Fusion camera system	48MP Dual Fusion camera system
48MP Fusion Main camera: 24mm, second-generation sensor-shift OIS, 100% Focus Pixels	48MP Fusion Main camera: 26mm, sensor-shift OIS, Hybrid Focus Pixels
Variable aperture on Main camera: f/1.48, f/1.8, f/2.8, and f/4.0	Fixed f/1.6 aperture on Main camera
12MP optical-quality 2x "telephoto" sensor crop at 48mm from the Main camera	12MP optical-quality 2x "telephoto" sensor crop at 52mm from the Main camera
48MP Fusion Telephoto camera: 100mm (4x), f/2.8, tetraprism, 3D sensor-shift OIS and autofocus
12MP optical-quality 8x Telephoto sensor crop at 200mm, f/2.8, from the Fusion Telephoto camera
LiDAR scanner
0.5x, 1x, 2x, 4x, and 8x optical zoom options	0.5x, 1x, and 2x optical zoom options
8x optical-quality zoom in, 2x optical zoom out, for a 16x optical-quality zoom range	2x optical-quality zoom in, 2x optical zoom out, for a 4x optical-quality zoom range
Digital zoom up to 40x for photos and up to 24x for video	Digital zoom up to 10x for photos and up to 6x for video
Adaptive True Tone flash	True Tone flash
Four studio-quality mics
	Smart Take and Duo Preview

Pro Capture Features and Formats

‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max	‌iPhone Duo‌
Pro controls for lens aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and viewing histogram
ProRAW
Apple Reference Image (Fusion Main camera only)
Spatial photos
Spatial video recording at 1080p at 30 fps
ProRes video recording up to 4K at 120 fps with external recording
ProRes RAW video recording
Apple Log 2
Academy Color Encoding System (ACES)
Genlock
Image formats captured: HEIF, JPEG, and DNG	Image formats captured: HEIF and JPEG
Video formats recorded: HEVC, H.264, ProRes, and ProRes RAW	Video formats recorded: HEVC and H.264
Video playback formats include HEVC, H.264, AV1, and ProRes	Video playback formats include HEVC, H.264, and AV1

Front Cameras

‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max	‌iPhone Duo‌
18MP Center Stage front camera, f/1.9	12MP Center Stage outer camera, f/2.2
Autofocus with Focus Pixels on the front camera
Front camera Pro controls, ProRAW, ProRes, ProRes RAW, Apple Log 2, and Academy Color Encoding System
	Kid Cue on the front camera
	Under-display FaceTime camera on the inner display, f/1.8, limited to 1080p video at 30 or 60 fps with no Night mode, portraits, or Photographic Styles
	Duo ‌FaceTime‌
Optical zoom with the rear camera in ‌FaceTime‌	Zoom with the rear camera in ‌FaceTime‌

Battery and Charging

‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max	‌iPhone Duo‌
Built-in rechargeable battery	Dual built-in rechargeable batteries
iPhone 18 Pro: Up to 24 hours typical use iPhone 18 Pro Max: Up to 30 hours typical use	Up to 24 hours typical use
iPhone 18 Pro: Up to 36 hours video playback iPhone 18 Pro Max: Up to 45 hours video playback	Up to 44 hours using the outer display, up to 31 hours using the inner display
iPhone 18 Pro: Up to 33 hours streamed video playback iPhone 18 Pro Max: Up to 40 hours streamed video playback	Up to 37 hours streamed using the outer display, up to 26 hours using the inner display
50% charge in around 15 minutes	50% charge in around 20 minutes

Price

	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max	‌iPhone Duo‌
256GB	$1,199	$1,299	$1,999
512GB	$1,399	$1,499	$2,199
1TB	$1,799	$1,899	$2,599
2TB	$2,399	$2,499	$3,199

For most buyers, the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ or ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max is the better choice. They offer the same A20 Pro chip as the Duo, a more versatile camera system, and a lower price. Choose the Pro if you prefer a smaller, lighter phone, or pay $100 more for the Pro Max if you want a larger screen and longer battery life.

The camera system is the clearest reason to choose an ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ over the ‌iPhone Duo‌. Alongside a more advanced Main camera, the Pro models offer a variable aperture for greater control over depth of field and a dedicated Telephoto camera for subjects you cannot get close to. These advantages matter even if you never use professional capture formats: The Pro gives you more flexibility both when framing a shot and when controlling how it looks. If photography or videography is a priority, choose the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌. Buyers who also use ProRAW, ProRes, or manual controls have even more reason to do so.

The ‌iPhone Duo‌ is worth considering if you frequently wish your phone had a larger screen for reading, documents, taking notes, or watching video. Its 7.6-inch folding display and ‌Apple Pencil‌ support are unique in the iPhone lineup and could reduce the need to carry a separate tablet. If you would unfold it several times a day for those sorts of tasks, the benefit may outweigh the camera compromises and higher price. If most of your use involves messaging, social media, and taking photos, there is less reason to pay extra for the ‌iPhone Duo‌.

The compromises also extend beyond the rear cameras. Both of its front-facing cameras are also inferior. The ‌iPhone Duo‌ also replaces ‌Face ID‌ with ‌Touch ID‌ and drops the Action button, so buyers will need to adjust. It also lacks the Pro models' LiDAR Scanner, adaptive True Tone flash, four studio-quality microphones, and spatial photo and video recording.

You also need to be comfortable with the Duo when it is closed. Despite its smaller outer screen, it is wider and thicker than either Pro model and slightly heavier than the Pro Max. Battery life is another reason to favor the Pro Max: The Duo matches the smaller Pro's rated typical-use battery life, and using its inner display reduces its video playback time substantially.

The price gap remains significant at every storage tier. A 1TB ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max is only $100 cheaper than the entry-level ‌iPhone Duo‌, but that Duo has just 256GB of storage. At the same capacity, you pay $700 more than the Pro Max or $800 more than the Pro. That premium needs to be justified by how much you would use the folding screen and how much you care about some of the device's compromises.

Buy the Duo if you have a clear idea of the things you would regularly unfold it to do, or if experiencing Apple's first foldable and a radically new kind of iPhone is itself worth the premium to you. If you are unsure how the larger screen would fit into your routine, the Pro models remain the stronger purchase with their traditional "slab" form factor and host of superior specifications.

The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max are available to pre-order now. ‌iPhone Duo‌ pre-orders open on October 16 ahead of an October 23 release.
This article, "iPhone 18 Pro vs. iPhone Duo Buyer's Guide: Which Should You Choose?" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple memory supplier SK Hynix is in exploratory talks with Intel about manufacturing memory chips in the United States for the first time, according to Reuters.


One option would see the South Korean chipmaker lease part of Intel's planned manufacturing complex in Ohio. Another would involve a joint venture with Intel and major cloud providers seeking to secure memory supplies, people familiar with the discussions said. No decisions have been made, and other arrangements remain possible.

SK Hynix supplies Apple with memory alongside Samsung and Micron. The discussions come as AI infrastructure spending puts pressure on the supply of memory for consumer devices, including iPhones and Macs. Chipmakers have been directing more production capacity toward high-bandwidth memory (HBM) for AI processors, leaving smartphone and computer manufacturers competing for available supplies.

In February, Apple reportedly agreed to pay Samsung twice as much for memory chips needed for iPhone 17 production. More recently, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said Apple was reducing its 2026 hardware shipment plans because of DRAM shortages, with supply constraints also affecting the Mac Studio, Mac mini, and MacBook Air.

It remains unclear which types of memory SK Hynix would manufacture under a potential agreement with Intel. Its products include DRAM used in smartphones, computers, and servers, NAND flash storage, and HBM for AI processors. The report does not mention whether a U.S. facility would produce memory for Apple devices.

SK Hynix already has an advanced packaging facility under construction in West Lafayette, Indiana. That project will package DRAM wafers manufactured in South Korea into HBM chips, rather than fabricate the wafers domestically.
This article, "Apple Memory Supplier Explores U.S. Manufacturing With Intel" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today announced "What Holds Us," a photography exhibition featuring work shot exclusively on the iPhone 18 Pro by Alex Prager, Jack Davison, and Jimmy Chin. Curated by Kathy Ryan, the exhibition explores human connection through crowd scenes, portraits involving clay, and mountain photography.

The exhibition will be on display in New York City from September 18 to 20, before traveling to London and Shanghai over the coming months. You can see many of the exhibition's images in Apple's Newsroom post.
This article, "Apple Announces iPhone 18 Pro Photography Exhibition" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple is considering offering an AI server built around "M8" series chips and has discussed incorporating Nvidia networking hardware, The Information reports.



The system would be sold to outside customers, potentially bringing Apple back into a business it left behind when it discontinued Xserve in 2011. Apple is reportedly targeting companies that want to run AI models on their own equipment, with a particular focus on inference and generating responses from trained models.

One option under consideration is Nvidia's NVLink Fusion, which provides hardware and software for exchanging data between chips. Apple could use the platform to link its M8 processors, although neither the Nvidia arrangement nor the server itself is finalized. The report places a potential release date in 2029, but it could be canceled before then.

Apple CEO John Ternus reportedly supported the initiative when work on it began approximately a year ago, during his tenure as the company's hardware engineering chief. The project follows growing interest in Apple hardware among AI businesses, which have been buying Mac mini and Mac Studio systems in large quantities.

Apple already produces server hardware for Private Cloud Compute, the infrastructure that handles Apple Intelligence tasks requiring processing beyond a user's device. According to the report, scaling Apple's existing connections between chips would present cost and speed problems, which is why it is considering Nvidia's technology. Apple has also declined partners' requests to use those Private Cloud Compute servers.

An agreement would give Nvidia a role in an Apple product that could compete with its own AI systems. NVLink Fusion allows Nvidia to supply networking technology to companies building alternative processors, expanding its business beyond customers using Nvidia chips.

The discussions also suggest a closer working relationship between Apple and Nvidia following their longstanding disputes. Apple has already announced plans to extend Private Cloud Compute to Google Cloud using Nvidia GPUs. The companies have reportedly explored additional ways to work together on AI, including the use of Nvidia's open-source models.

The project still faces challenges beyond developing the hardware. There is still said to be a need for stronger support for business customers and more software resources for AI developers, including further investment in its MLX framework.
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The Apple Watch Ultra 4 is now available for pre-order, bringing a new health sensing system, more memory, and longer battery life over its predecessor. Here's everything that's new.


Last year, the Apple Watch Ultra 3 introduced a larger, more efficient display, satellite connectivity, 5G, and improved battery life. The Ultra 4 retains the same basic design and display, but focuses on more detailed health and fitness insights, new Audio Intelligence features, and further battery life improvements.

It launches on Friday, September 18, at the same $799 starting price as the Ultra 3. The comparison below outlines the differences between the two generations:

Apple Watch Ultra 3	Apple Watch Ultra 4
S10 chip (2024)	S11 chip (2026)
2GB RAM	4GB RAM
Electrical heart sensor	"Health Sensing System" with second-generation electrical heart sensor
Third-generation optical heart sensor	Always-on optical heart sensor
Background heart rate tracking	High-frequency background heart rate tracking every five seconds, 60x more frequently
HRV	Recovery HRV and overall HRV, measured up to 24x more often
Vitals app with heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature, and sleep duration	Vitals app heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature, sleep duration, HRV, and a daytime vitals view
	Readiness app
	Real-time heart rate complication
Step tracking	More accurate step tracking and indoor workout distance measurements
	Steps complication
	Audio Intelligence (Live Rewind, Siri Recap, Sound Recognition, and automatic music identification with Shazam)
Up to 42 hours of normal use	Up to 50 hours of normal use
Up to 72 hours in Low Power Mode	Up to 84 hours in Low Power Mode
Up to 14 hours of outdoor workout tracking with full GPS and heart rate readings	Up to 18 hours of standard outdoor workout tracking
Up to 20 hours of outdoor workout tracking in Low Power Mode with full GPS and heart rate readings	Up to 25 hours in Extended Workout mode with full GPS and heart rate readings
Up to 35 hours of outdoor workout tracking in Low Power Mode with Fewer GPS and Heart Rate Readings enabled	Up to 45 hours in Max Extended Workout mode, retaining GPS readings every second
15 minutes of charging for up to 12 hours of normal use	15 minutes of charging for up to 18 hours of normal use
5 minutes of charging for up to 8 hours of sleep tracking	5 minutes of charging for up to 10 hours of sleep tracking
Natural titanium: 61.6 grams Black titanium: 61.8 grams	Natural titanium: 63.0 grams Black titanium: 63.1 grams
GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, and BeiDou	GPS, Galileo, QZSS, and BeiDou
40% recycled content	45% recycled content
Now discontinued	From $799

Is It Worth Upgrading From Ultra 3 to Ultra 4?

For the vast majority of Apple Watch Ultra 3 owners, the Ultra 4 is not worth upgrading to. The Ultra 3 already offers all of the headline display, durability, satellite connectivity, and established health features. If it comfortably lasts between your usual charging sessions and records your longest workouts, the new model is unlikely to meaningfully change how you use your watch.

The strongest reason to upgrade is if you want recovery tracking to play a larger role in your training. The Ultra 4's more frequent measurements feed into Readiness and Recovery HRV, making it easier to assess when to push harder or take a lighter day. These features are more compelling if you will regularly use them to adjust your training, rather than simply check another set of health metrics.

Battery life is a more practical reason for endurance athletes. If you currently change settings to finish long events or recharge during an extended outing, the Ultra 4 gives you a little more flexibility. For shorter daily workouts, however, the improvement mainly means less frequent charging, which is difficult to justify replacing a year-old $799 watch for.

Audio Intelligence may also justify upgrading for specific users, particularly deaf or hard of hearing users who would benefit from Sound Recognition on their wrist. Live Rewind and Siri Recap are less convincing reasons to upgrade immediately, since they arrive in beta later this year and require a compatible newer iPhone.

Should You Buy Ultra 3 or Ultra 4?

For new buyers, the Ultra 4 should be the default choice when the price difference is modest. If you plan to wear it for several years, paying a little more for the new chip, more memory, better battery life, and health tracking enhancements is easier to justify than replacing an Ultra 3 you already own.

The Ultra 3 becomes the better value when it is heavily discounted. If you mainly want a "rugged"-style Apple Watch with a large screen, satellite connectivity, and enough battery life for everyday use and regular workouts, it delivers much of the same experience. Buyers interested in Readiness and recovery insights, or who regularly record very long activities, have a stronger reason to pay more for the Apple Watch Ultra 4.

For used or refurbished Ultra 3 models, factor battery condition and warranty coverage into the saving. A cheaper watch with a degraded battery is less appealing if endurance is your main reason for buying an Ultra.
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Apple last week announced the iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, arriving two years after the iPhone 16 Pro and ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro Max. Skipping a generation means makes for a bigger upgrade, with more than 50 differences between the 2024 and 2026 models.


Most of the visible change arrived in between, with the iPhone 17 Pro replacing the titanium frame and glass back with an aluminum unibody and Ceramic Shield 2, adding vapor chamber cooling, and upgrading both the telephoto and front cameras. This year's update is largely focused on internal changes, centering on the A20 Pro chip, a variable-aperture Main camera, a smaller Dynamic Island, and a battery capacity increase that delivers the largest jump in battery life in the iPhone's history. For ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro owners, the two sets of changes stack on top of each other.

The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ starts at $1,199 for 256GB, $200 more than the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro's $999 launch price, although the entry storage tier has doubled from 128GB. Apple no longer sells the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro directly, so any comparison now involves either a device you already own or a third-party listing. Here's everything that differs between the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌:

Design and Display

‌iPhone 16‌ Pro (2024)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
Titanium frame with full glass back	Aluminum unibody with partial Ceramic Shield back
8.25mm thickness	8.75mm thickness
Glass rounded square camera bump	Full-width rounded rectangle aluminum camera plateau
Ceramic Shield front	Ceramic Shield 2 front with 3x better scratch resistance
Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating only	Apple-designed anti-reflective display coating to reduce glare
2,000 nits peak display brightness (outdoor)	3,000 nits peak display brightness (outdoor)
	2x better outdoor contrast
‌Dynamic Island‌ supports up to two simultaneous Live Activities	Smaller ‌Dynamic Island‌, supports up to three simultaneous Live Activities
iPhone 16 Pro: Weighs 7.03 ounces (199 grams) iPhone 16 Pro Max: Weighs 7.99 ounces (227 grams)	iPhone 18 Pro: Weighs 7.44 ounces (211 grams) iPhone 18 Pro Max: Weighs 8.78 ounces (249 grams)
Available in White, Black, Natural, and Desert	Available in Silver, Black, Glacier, and Burgundy

Chip, Performance, and Connectivity

‌iPhone 16‌ Pro (2024)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
A18 Pro chip	A20 Pro chip
Built with TSMC's N3E process (3nm)	Built with TSMC's N2 process (2nm), Apple's first 2nm smartphone chip
6-core CPU with 2 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores	6-core CPU with 2 super cores and 4 efficiency cores
60GB/s memory bandwidth	~115GB/s memory bandwidth
8GB RAM	12GB RAM
6-core GPU	7-core GPU with Neural Accelerators
16-core Neural Engine	Dual 16-core Neural Engine (32 total cores)
	Vapor chamber cooling with 3x more surface area than the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌
	New chip packaging that places silicon die beside memory, allowing it to attach directly to the vapor chamber
Qualcomm Snapdragon X71 modem	iPhone 18 Pro: Apple C2 modem in all countries iPhone 18 Pro Max: Apple C2 modem in all countries except the U.S., where it uses a Qualcomm modem
Broadcom Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip	Apple N1 chip for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Thread
Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity	Bluetooth 6 connectivity

Rear Camera

‌iPhone 16‌ Pro (2024)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
12-megapixel Telephoto camera	48-megapixel Fusion Telephoto camera
0.5x, 1x, 2x, and 5x optical zoom options	0.5x, 1x, 2x, 4x, and 8x optical zoom options
Fixed ƒ/1.78 aperture on the 48-megapixel Fusion Main camera	Variable-aperture 48-megapixel Fusion Main camera with four stops: ƒ/1.48, ƒ/1.8, ƒ/2.8, and ƒ/4.0, using six laser-cut blades
	API available for developers to control the aperture range within their own apps
	Faster Night mode, tied to the new variable-aperture lens
	Pro controls in the Camera app: manual lens aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and histogram
	New sensor and computational imaging pipeline on the Fusion Main camera, delivering around 50% better low-light performance and more detail in the back of group photos
Photographic Styles 2, adjusting tone and color	Photographic Styles 3, adding texture and grain controls alongside tone and color
	Smart focus tracking
Cinematic mode recording up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps	Cinematic mode recording up to 4K Dolby Vision at 60 fps
	Cinematic mode effects can be applied after capture, on video shot at up to 60 fps
	Improved low-light video
	Time-lapse video recording with stabilization, up to 4K Dolby Vision
	Apple Reference Image (Main camera only)
Audio Mix	Audio Mix with new algorithms for higher-quality voices, and the ability to isolate music
	ProRes RAW capture support
	Genlock support

Front Camera

‌iPhone 16‌ Pro (2024)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
12-megapixel TrueDepth camera	18-megapixel TrueDepth camera
Tap to zoom	Tap to zoom and rotate
	Center Stage
	Ultra-stabilized video
	Dual Capture (up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps)
Photographic Styles 2, adjusting tone and color	Photographic Styles 3, adding texture and grain controls alongside tone and color
	Smart focus tracking
	Cinematic mode effects can be applied after capture
	Improved low-light video
	Time-lapse video recording with stabilization, up to 4K Dolby Vision

Battery and Charging

‌iPhone 16‌ Pro (2024)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
iPhone 16 Pro: 3,582 mAh battery iPhone 16 Pro Max: 4,685 mAh battery	iPhone 18 Pro: 4,056 mAh battery iPhone 18 Pro Max: 5,391 mAh battery
iPhone 16 Pro: Up to 27 hours of video playback iPhone 16 Pro Max: Up to 33 hours of video playback	iPhone 18 Pro: Up to 36 hours of video playback iPhone 18 Pro Max: Up to 45 hours of video playback
iPhone 16 Pro: Up to 50% charge in 30 minutes with a 20W adapter or higher iPhone 16 Pro Max: Up to 50% charge in 35 minutes with a 20W adapter or higher	Up to 50% charge in around 15 minutes with a 60W-capable adapter
iPhone 16 Pro: MagSafe wireless charging up to 22W with a 30W adapter or higher iPhone 16 Pro Max: ‌MagSafe‌ wireless charging up to 25W with a 30W adapter or higher	‌MagSafe‌ wireless charging up to 25W, reaching 50% charge in 30 minutes with a 35W adapter or higher

Storage and Pricing

‌iPhone 16‌ Pro (2024)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
iPhone 16 Pro: Available with 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB storage iPhone 16 Pro Max: Available with 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB storage	Available with 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB storage
iPhone 16 Pro: Launched at $999 (128GB), $1,099 (256GB), $1,299 (512GB), $1,499 (1TB) iPhone 16 Pro Max: Launched at $1,199 (256GB), $1,399 (512GB), $1,599 (1TB)	iPhone 18 Pro: $1,199 (256GB), $1,399 (512GB), $1,799 (1TB), $2,399 (2TB) iPhone 18 Pro Max: $1,299 (256GB), $1,499 (512GB), $1,899 (1TB), $2,499 (2TB)
Now discontinued, only available via third-parties	iPhone 18 Pro: Sold directly by Apple, from $49.95 a month for 24 months via Apple Upgrade iPhone 18 Pro Max: Sold directly by Apple, from $54.12 a month for 24 months via Apple Upgrade

Which to Choose?

For ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro and ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro Max owners, the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ is a worthwhile upgrade, and a far easier recommendation than it is for anyone coming from last year's model. Two generations of changes accumulate, touching almost every part of the device: an all-new aluminum unibody with Ceramic Shield 2 and three times better scratch resistance, a display that is 50% brighter outdoors at 3,000 nits and features an anti-reflective coating the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro lacks entirely, and a battery that runs for 36 hours rather than 27, rising from 33 hours to 45 hours on the Pro Max. Charging has changed most dramatically of all, dropping from 50% in 30 minutes to 50% in around 15 minutes.

The camera differences are also major. The telephoto camera moves from 12 megapixels at 5x to 48 megapixels with 4x and 8x optical options, the front camera jumps from 12 megapixels to 18 megapixels and gains Center Stage and ultra-stabilized video, and the Main camera trades its fixed ƒ/1.78 aperture for a four-stop variable aperture ranging from ƒ/1.48 to ƒ/4.0. Add ProRes RAW, Genlock, Dual Capture, Cinematic mode at 60 fps, and manual Pro controls, and the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ is a substantially different camera system.

Performance is the other argument for upgrading, particularly if you have noticed your ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro throttling. The A20 Pro moves to a 2nm process, gains a seventh GPU core with Neural Accelerators, and doubles the Neural Engine to 32 cores, while the vapor chamber that the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro lacks entirely is now in its second generation. If you play demanding games, shoot long video clips, or expect to lean on on-device Apple Intelligence features for several more years, the extra 4GB of RAM and the doubled Neural Engine make the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ the more future-proof purchase.

That being said, the price has moved against you. The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ costs $200 more than the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro did at launch, even accounting for the doubled 256GB entry tier, and the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max is $100 more than its equivalent. The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max is also 22 grams heavier than the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro Max, which is noticeable in the hand, although it buys you the largest battery gain Apple has ever delivered on an iPhone and the option of a 2TB device.

A notable exception arises if you are upgrading primarily for the design, the telephoto camera, or the battery. Almost all of those enhancements arrived with the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ rather than this year's model, so an ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ bought from a third-party retailer at a heavy discount will get you most of the way there for meaningfully less money. The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌'s genuine exclusives over that model are the variable aperture and Pro controls, the C2 modem, the smaller ‌Dynamic Island‌, and roughly three extra hours of battery life. If none of those matter to you, last year's model is the better value.

Pre-orders for the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max opened on Saturday, September 12, with availability beginning Friday, September 18.
This article, "iPhone 16 Pro vs. iPhone 18 Pro Buyer's Guide: Worth Upgrading?" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple has updated its U.S. trade-in estimates, cutting values for every eligible iPhone while raising them across the iPad and Mac lineups.


The refresh follows the announcement of the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo. Their predecessors now appear on Apple's trade-in list for the first time, led by the iPhone 17 Pro Max at up to $885. The iPhone Air is valued at $585, exactly the same as the standard iPhone 17, despite having launched at a $200 higher price:

• iPhone 17 Pro Max: $885


• iPhone 17 Pro: $785


• iPhone Air: $585


• iPhone 17: $585

The update is also the first to run under Apple's new condition grading system, which is now live. Devices with minor cosmetic defects such as small chips in the display glass were previously treated much like those with far more serious damage, resulting in a similarly steep cut to their value. As we reported last week, Apple now applies more granular tiers that better reflect a device's actual condition, and no device receives less than it would have under the old system.

Every other iPhone on the list lost value. The iPhone 16 Pro saw the steepest cut in percentage terms at 19%, while the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro Max lost the most in absolute terms, falling $110 barely a month after Apple raised it to $720:

• iPhone 16 Pro Max: $720 to $610


• iPhone 16 Pro: $630 to $510


• iPhone 16 Plus: $485 to $430


• iPhone 16: $480 to $430


• iPhone 16e: $310 to $270


• iPhone 15 Pro Max: $530 to $455


• iPhone 15 Pro: $420 to $370


• iPhone 15 Plus: $340 to $315


• iPhone 15: $335 to $305


• iPhone 14 Pro Max: $405 to $360


• iPhone 14 Pro: $335 to $285


• iPhone 14 Plus: $235 to $210


• iPhone 14: $235 to $195


• iPhone SE (3rd generation): $85 to $75


• iPhone 13 Pro Max: $340 to $320


• iPhone 13 Pro: $285 to $255


• iPhone 13: $205 to $175


• iPhone 13 mini: $155 to $145


• iPhone 12 Pro Max: $240 to $210


• iPhone 12 Pro: $195 to $165


• iPhone 12: $135 to $120


• iPhone 12 mini: $90 to $80


• iPhone SE (2nd generation): $45 to $40


• iPhone 11 Pro Max: $160 to $140


• iPhone 11 Pro: $145 to $125


• iPhone 11: $110 to $100


• iPhone XS Max: $95 to $85


• iPhone XS: $70 to $60


• iPhone XR: $90 to $75


• iPhone X: $60 to $50


• iPhone 8 Plus: $40 to $35

The Apple Watch followed the same pattern. The Apple Watch Ultra 3 joins at $430, well clear of any other watch Apple accepts, with the Apple Watch Series 11 at $200 and the Apple Watch SE (3rd generation) at $115. Only the two older Apple Watch SE models held their value, at $60 and $30 respectively:

• Apple Watch Ultra 2: $305 to $265


• Apple Watch Ultra: $205 to $190


• Apple Watch Series 10: $165 to $150


• Apple Watch Series 9: $135 to $115


• Apple Watch Series 8: $95 to $90


• Apple Watch Series 7: $70 to $65


• Apple Watch Series 6: $45 to $40

The ‌iPad‌ and the Mac moved decisively the other way, with every model gaining value. The iPad Pro climbed almost 26%:

• iPad Pro: $720 to $905


• iPad Air: $490 to $510


• iPad mini: $300 to $320


• iPad: $260 to $280

The Mac saw the largest increases anywhere in the update, continuing a run that has nearly doubled some trade-in estimates since the spring. The MacBook Pro has risen from $690 in May to $1,315 today, while the Mac mini is up 65% over the same period of time:

• MacBook Pro: $855 to $1,315


• MacBook Air: $580 to $705


• Mac mini: $480 to $620


• Mac Studio: $1,305 to $1,460


• iMac Pro: $315 to $340


• iMac: $380 to $385

The Mac Pro was the only Mac left untouched, holding at $2,195 and keeping the top of Apple's trade-in range where it has sat since August.

Android estimates were largely static, with four small reductions and a single increase for the Google Pixel 7:

• Google Pixel 9 Pro XL: $315 to $290


• Google Pixel 9 Pro: $305 to $275


• Google Pixel 9: $210 to $200


• Google Pixel 8 Pro: $155 to $150


• Samsung Galaxy S22+ 5G: $85 to $80


• Samsung Galaxy S22 5G: $85 to $80


• Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G: $75 to $70


• Google Pixel 7: $60 to $65

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G, Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, Samsung Galaxy S21 5G, Google Pixel 8, Google Pixel 8a, Google Pixel 7 Pro, OnePlus 13, OnePlus 13R, OnePlus 12, and OnePlus 12R all held at the same trade-in prices.

As always, Apple's listed values are estimates, with the company noting that final offers can vary based on a device's condition and configuration, and that not all devices are eligible for trade-in credit.
This article, "Apple Cuts iPhone Trade-In Values While Raising Mac and iPad" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple announced the AirPods 5 earlier this month, giving its entry-level earbuds Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) as standard for the first time. The AirPods 5 start at $129, a $149 model adds a Wireless Charging Case, and both versions arrive in stores on Friday, September 18.


The launch also resets the way Apple tiers its cheapest earbuds. With the AirPods 4, the $50 step up from $129 to $179 bought ANC along with a wireless charging case. With the ‌AirPods 5‌, noise cancellation comes at the entry price and now there is only a $20 step up to the next tier.

Apple has stopped selling both versions of the AirPods 4 directly, but they remain widely available from third-party retailers, where the standard model has already dropped to $99 and the ANC model to $149.

Here's everything that differs between the AirPods 4 and the ‌AirPods 5‌:

AirPods 4 (2024)	AirPods 4 With ANC (2024)	‌AirPods 5‌ (2026)	‌AirPods 5‌ With Wireless Charging Case (2026)
	Active Noise Cancellation	Active Noise Cancellation that removes up to 50% more external noise	Active Noise Cancellation that removes up to 50% more external noise
	Transparency mode	Improved Transparency mode	Improved Transparency mode
	Adaptive Audio	Adaptive Audio	Adaptive Audio
	Conversation Awareness	Conversation Awareness	Conversation Awareness
Adaptive EQ	Adaptive EQ	Redesigned acoustic architecture and updated Adaptive EQ	Redesigned acoustic architecture and updated Adaptive EQ
		Studio-quality audio recording	Studio-quality audio recording
	Live Translation	Live Translation	Live Translation
Force sensor	Force sensor	Force sensor	Force sensor with swipe volume controls
Up to five hours of listening time on a single charge	Up to four hours of listening time on a single charge with Active Noise Cancellation enabled (up to five hours with noise control off)	Up to four hours of battery life on a single charge with Active Noise Cancellation enabled (up to six hours with noise control off)	Up to five hours of battery life on a single charge with Active Noise Cancellation enabled (up to seven hours with noise control off)
Up to 30 hours of listening time with the charging case	Up to 20 hours of listening time with the charging case with Active Noise Cancellation enabled (up to 30 hours with noise control off)	Up to 20 hours of battery life with the charging case with Active Noise Cancellation enabled	Up to 22 hours of battery life with the charging case with Active Noise Cancellation enabled
Charging Case (USB-C)	Wireless Charging Case (USB-C) with support for the Apple Watch charger and Qi-certified chargers	Charging Case (USB-C)	Wireless Charging Case (USB-C) with support for the Apple Watch charger and Qi-certified chargers
	Speaker for Find My		Speaker for ‌Find My‌
Dust, sweat, and water resistant (IP54)	Dust, sweat, and water resistant (IP54)	Dust, sweat, and water resistant (IP57)	Dust, sweat, and water resistant (IP57)
Previously $129, now discontinued	Previously $179, now discontinued	$129	$149

How Big Is the Upgrade?

The ‌AirPods 5‌ retain the H2 chip that debuted in the AirPods Pro 2 back in 2022, rather than the new headphone chip that had been rumored, and they retain Bluetooth 5.3, the same open-ear design, the same custom high-excursion driver and high dynamic range amplifier, and identical dimensions and weight down to the gram. Personalized Spatial Audio, Adaptive EQ, Voice Isolation, Personalized Volume, and Siri Interactions all came to the AirPods 4 two years ago.

Noise cancellation is the headline upgrade, and now included regardless of which 2026 model you choose. Apple says the ‌AirPods 5‌ remove up to 50% more external noise than the AirPods 4 with ANC, which it attributes to a redesigned acoustic architecture, and the same architecture underpins the claims of richer sound and a more natural Transparency mode. Durability improves from IP54 to IP57, so the earbuds and case are now rated for immersion rather than just splashes. Studio-quality audio recording is also new.

Should You Upgrade?

If you already own the AirPods 4 with ANC, there is not a strong case to upgrade. You already have Adaptive Audio, Transparency mode, Conversation Awareness, Live Translation, a wireless charging case with a ‌Find My‌ speaker, and the same H2 chip, so the $149 model would give you stronger noise cancellation, a higher IP rating, an extra hour of listening time, and swipe volume controls.

The case is stronger if you own the standard AirPods 4. Noise cancellation, Transparency mode, Adaptive Audio, Conversation Awareness, and Live Translation are all missing from that model, and the ‌AirPods 5‌ add every one of them at the same $129 you paid two years ago. The same goes for anyone still using the AirPods 3 or AirPods 2, where the jump also brings the newer fit, the H2 chip, USB-C, and Personalized Spatial Audio.

For new buyers, the ‌AirPods 5‌ are the clear default choice. The AirPods 4 are the better value option only when heavily discounted.

The open-ear fit remains the real dividing line in the lineup. If you want genuine isolation, want to use hearing health features, or want heart rate sensing during workouts, the $249 AirPods Pro 3 are still the earbuds to buy. By contrast, if in-ear tips irritate you or you want to stay more aware of your environment, the ‌AirPods 5‌ now offer a far more capable version of the design you will prefer.

Both ‌AirPods 5‌ models are available to pre-order now ahead of their release on Friday, September 18. AirPods frequently see hefty discounts on Amazon and other third-party retailers, so it is always worth seeking the best price using our Deals roundup.

Which AirPods 5 Model to Buy?

The difference between the two ‌AirPods 5‌ models is significant despite the $20 gap. The Wireless Charging Case works with Qi chargers and the Apple Watch charger, contains a speaker that makes it much easier to find in the ‌Find My‌ app, and comes with an extra hour of listening time on a charge and two extra hours across the case.

The $149 model is clearly the one to buy for most people, unless the AirPods are a secondary device or one that isn't going to be used often. Jumping up to the higher-end model only costs $20, which is a relatively small amount of money for the number of enhancements.
This article, "AirPods 4 vs. AirPods 5 Buyer's Guide" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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iOS 27 code reveals a wave of new Hermès MagSafe wallet designs featuring Find My support, alongside a dedicated attachment animation for the accessories.


The code sleuth known as "pdfu" shared the findings on X, revealing new bandana print card holders in purple, brown, and orange, new tartan stitched designs in purple and brown, plain leather versions in navy and burgundy, a crocodile embossed style, and more. This represents a major expansion of Hermès' ‌MagSafe‌ wallet selection.



Alongside the new designs, pdfu said that the ‌iOS 27‌ release candidate adds an animation specifically for Hermès ‌MagSafe‌ wallets, distinct from the standard Apple ‌MagSafe‌ accessory animation that plays for other wallets. The leaker's post shows how the animation appears when a wallet is attached.

Hermès currently sells around half a dozen ‌MagSafe‌ card holder designs through its online store, including the silk Bandana Eperon d'Or, Jean patch, Pencils, and Chaine d'Ancre styles, alongside the Swift calfskin Lad print, with pricing ranging from $510 for the silk designs up to $1,025 for Lad.

‌Find My‌ support enables owners to locate the wallet in the ‌Find My‌ app and get a notification if it has been left behind.

Apple's own FineWoven Wallet with ‌MagSafe‌ and ‌Find My‌ costs $59. The company recently introduced new color options, and other than the switch from leather to its FineWoven material, the design of the accessory has remained the same since 2020.
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Cultured Code today released Things 3.24, adding integration with iOS 27's new Siri AI and system-wide Spotlight search.


The most significant addition is full support for ‌Siri‌ AI, allowing users to create to-dos by speaking naturally to add tasks. Once a to-do is created, users can continue the conversation to append notes, start dates, and alerts without opening the app.

Things 3.24 also indexes a user's entire database in Spotlight, allowing to-dos and projects to be surfaced through system-wide search. ‌Siri‌ AI can draw on that same Spotlight index to fulfill requests. Users who would prefer to keep their task data out of system search can turn the feature off in Things' settings.

The update brings a wider range of snooze intervals for notifications, adding 15 minute, one hour, and three hour options alongside a new "snooze until tomorrow" choice.

Cultured Code also adds an XL Portrait widget, giving users a way to view longer lists directly from the Home Screen. The update includes various other compatibility improvements for the new operating system.

Things 3.24 arrives alongside iOS 27, which Apple launches later today.
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Apple is working on a sweeping retail overhaul that would bring back dedicated Genius Bars to its stores, carve out new spaces for order pickup and Today at Apple classes, and do away with oversized video walls, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.


In this week's "Power On" newsletter, Gurman said that Apple intends to speed up store renovations over the coming years. Apple plans to rework the "Avenue," its term for the side sections of a store where accessories and services are displayed, reinstate standalone Genius Bars, and remove the large video screens installed in many locations.

Pickup and Today at Apple, which typically share a counter and a seating area today, will each get their own compact section along the Avenue, described internally as a "bay" and measuring about 10 feet across.

For pickup, Gurman described plans for an all-wood bay with a faint Apple logo worked into the upper section, with lockable drawers underneath for holding customer orders, fronted by a counter where staff can hand items over. The Today at Apple bay will feature a similar look, topped by a display similar to a large television, with drawers below for stashing iPads, laptops, and other class equipment, plus a fixed instructor table and stools nearby.

The video walls being phased out trace back to the retail vision pursued under former retail chief Angela Ahrendts, who treated Apple stores as public gathering places rather than purely transactional spaces. Gurman frames the current shift as a move away from that toward stores built primarily around service, fulfillment, and everyday shopping needs.

Where those screens come down, most stores will gain a wood finished Genius Bar built to echo the design Apple used before it introduced the open plan "Genius Grove." It includes counters set at two different heights for accessibility, backed by a wall of storage drawers and large product imagery. Gurman added that both the new bars and the Avenue bays are meant to look as though they always belonged in the store, rather than as visible retrofits, and that many renovated locations will also see their break rooms and other back-of-house areas refurbished.

Elements of the redesign are already live in a small number of stores around the world. Gurman expects the fuller version of the proposed store overhaul to reach most newly opened and renovated stores gradually, with the international rollout continuing over several years.

Separately, Gurman reports that Apple has tightened expectations for staff during pre-opening meetings, with employees to be more firmly required to stay on their feet, put away phones and drinks, and remain attentive. Once doors open to customers, timed for five minutes ahead of the posted hour, every staff member on site is expected to applaud as the first shoppers walk in.
This article, "Apple Stores Said to Lose Video Walls, Regain Dedicated Genius Bars" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple recently unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, featuring a new Main camera with a variable aperture, new Pro camera controls, the A20 Pro chip, and more. With the foldable iPhone Duo now sitting above them in the lineup, the two Pro models are no longer the most expensive iPhones Apple sells, but they remain the most fully-featured traditional iPhones available.


The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ starts at $1,199 and the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max starts at $1,299. Both see a $100 increase over the equivalent iPhone 17 Pro models, and the increases grow steeper further up the storage ladder, with a 1TB ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ now costing $300 more than a 1TB ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ did last year.

Both phones have the same OLED Super Retina XDR always-on display with ProMotion and the Dynamic Island, the A20 Pro chip, 5G connectivity, a 48 megapixel Pro Fusion camera system, and the same four color options. Both are also offered in the same four storage tiers, including a 2TB option that is available on the smaller Pro model for the first time. Although the two phones share the vast majority of features, there are eight differences between the devices.

Our guide highlights the crucial differences between the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, and helps to answer the question of how to decide which of these two iPhone models is best for you. Both models share the same thickness of 0.34 inches (8.75 mm), but otherwise have very different sizes and weights.

	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max
Height	5.91 inches (150.0 mm)	6.43 inches (163.4 mm)
Width	2.83 inches (71.9 mm)	3.07 inches (78.0 mm)
Weight	7.44 ounces (211 grams)	8.78 ounces (249 grams)

Other differences essentially come down to display size and battery life. As was the case last year, there are no camera differences between the two devices at all for this generation, with the variable aperture Fusion Main camera and the new manual Pro controls appearing on both models.

‌iPhone 18 Pro‌	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max
6.3-inch display	6.9-inch display
2622-by-1206-pixel resolution	2868-by-1320-pixel resolution
4,056 mAh battery	5,391 mAh battery
Up to 36-hour video playback	Up to 45-hour video playback
Up to 33-hour streamed video playback	Up to 40-hour streamed video playback
Apple C2 modem in all countries	Apple C2 modem outside the U.S., Qualcomm modem in the U.S.

Apple does not advertise battery capacities on its product pages, but energy labels published in Europe confirm the exact figures for models that retain a SIM card tray. The capacities above apply to those models. eSIM-only versions, including all iPhones sold in the United States, have slightly larger cells because there is no tray taking up internal space, and Apple has not yet disclosed those figures.

Apple lists its own C2 modem in the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ in every country, but the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max only uses the C2 outside the United States. U.S. units of the larger model instead contain a Qualcomm modem, and iOS code seen points to the same radio used in last year's ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ models, which would make it the Snapdragon X80.

The C2 supports both sub-6GHz and mmWave 5G, as the Qualcomm part does, and Apple says it is faster and more energy efficient than the C1X while adding AI-driven improvements to cellular quality and reliability. Real-world comparisons will not be possible until reviewers test both radios on the same networks. The clearest hint that the hardware genuinely differs is in the band listings, where the U.S. ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ supports LTE Band 106 and the U.S. ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max does not.

Pricing is also a key area of difference, with the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max reaching $2,499 when configured with 2TB of storage.

	256GB	512GB	1TB	2TB
‌iPhone 18 Pro‌	$1,199	$1,399	$1,799	$2,399
‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max	$1,299	$1,499	$1,899	$2,499

The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max represents the most you can get out of a traditional iPhone with the best possible battery life, but that does not necessarily translate into a worthwhile purchase for all users. At 8.78 ounces (249 grams), it is heavier than any iPhone Pro Max that came before it, and with a 6.9-inch display it is a large and hefty device.

Some may find the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max's size excessive or uncomfortably large to hold, while others will love the larger display for consuming media. Screen size is ultimately a matter of personal preference, and since the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max share all of their other features, it comes down to individual taste.

Battery life is the one area where the gap between the two models has widened meaningfully this year. The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max gained six additional hours of video playback over the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max, while the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ gained three. The result is a nine-hour advantage for the larger model, up from six hours in the previous generation. If getting through a long day without reaching for a charger is your priority, the case for the Pro Max is more persuasive than it has been for some time.

The added $100 in price for the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max seems fair for its additional display area and battery life, but it is important to weigh up these factors in your personal use-case. That $100 premium holds at every storage tier, so the larger model never becomes proportionally more expensive as capacity rises. Both devices become costly quickly with added storage, though, and the 1TB and 2TB tiers now carry surcharges that are considerably steeper than in previous years.

U.S. buyers have one extra factor to bear in mind. Choosing the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max in the United States means giving up Apple's own modem, and while the day-to-day difference is likely to be very small, it is an unusual position for the more expensive device to be in. If you specifically want the C2 and you are buying in the U.S., the smaller model is the only way to get it.

The most important decision point when choosing between the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max is undoubtedly screen size, but comfort, pocketability, weight, battery life, and now the modem are also important considerations that will depend based on your preferences. If you are hesitant about the size and weight of the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, it may be better to stick with the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌, which no longer forces you to give up the largest storage option to get the smaller body. If size is not a concern, the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max is otherwise unlikely to disappoint, especially if price is not an issue.
This article, "iPhone 18 Pro vs. iPhone 18 Pro Max Buyer's Guide" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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The Apple Watch Series 12 is now available for pre-order, and unlike last year's model, it brings a substantial list of changes over its predecessor. Here's everything that's new.


Last year, the Series 11 introduced just four changes over the Series 10, making it perhaps the smallest generational upgrade in the device's history. The Series 12 is a far more meaningful refresh, even though it essentially retains the same design for a third consecutive year.

It launches on Friday, September 18, at the same $399 starting price as the Series 11, which Apple has now discontinued. This guide lists all of the differences between the Series 11 and Series 12 models to help you understand the changes:

Apple Watch Series 11	Apple Watch Series 12
S10 chip (2024)	S11 chip (2026)
2GB RAM	4GB RAM
Electrical heart sensor	"Health Sensing System" with second-generation electrical heart sensor
Third-generation optical heart sensor	Fourth-generation, always-on optical heart sensor
Heart rate tracking	High-frequency background heart rate tracking (every five seconds)
HRV	Recovery HRV and overall HRV (measured up to 24x more often)
Vitals app with heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature, and sleep duration	Vitals app with heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature, sleep duration, and HRV, plus daytime vitals view
	Readiness app
	More accurate step tracking
	Steps complication
	Audio Intelligence (Live Rewind, Siri Recap, Sound Recognition, and Shazam)
Ion-X glass with 2x scratch resistance (aluminum models)	Ceramic Shield 2, 60% tougher than Ion-X (aluminum models)
Metal and sapphire crystal back	Aluminum or titanium and zirconia back
Aluminum or titanium case	Aluminum, titanium, or ceramic case
Aluminum: Jet Black, Rose Gold, Silver, and Space Gray	Aluminum: Dark Bronze, Light Gold, Black, and Space Gray
Titanium: Slate, Gold, and Natural	Titanium: Radiant Gold and Natural
	Ceramic: Pearl White and Night Blue
Hermès: Silver titanium	Hermès: Silver and Radiant Gold titanium
15 minutes of charging for up to 8 hours of normal use	15 minutes of charging for up to 12 hours of normal use
5 minutes of charging for up to 8 hours of sleep tracking	5 minutes of charging for up to 10 hours of sleep tracking
Now discontinued	From $399

The new ceramic case marks the first ceramic Apple Watch since the Series 5 Edition in 2019, but it is slightly larger than the other models and weighs up to 52.9 grams in its 46mm Night Blue configuration. Even the aluminum and titanium models are now 1mm wider and around 2 grams heavier than their predecessors.

At the same time, the display appears to have shrunk slightly, even though its resolution is unchanged. Apple lists the 46mm Series 12 with 1,196 sq mm of display area, 2% less than the 1,220 sq mm of the Series 11, while the 42mm model drops 1.9% from 989 sq mm to 970 sq mm.

A marginally smaller screen in a wider case means thicker borders, and Apple also appears to have pulled the case back slightly around a larger front glass, which could make them look even more prominent. The Series 10 went through a similar change in 2024, when its visible aluminum edge shrank compared to the Series 9 but its overall bezel, including the black border under the glass, actually grew. The shift is less dramatic this time around, since the Series 12 keeps the same basic case design. Here's how the two generations compare in size, weight, and display area:

46mm	Apple Watch Series 11	Apple Watch Series 12
Dimensions	46mm x 39mm x 9.7mm	46mm x 40mm x 9.7mm
Display area	1,220 sq mm	1,196 sq mm
Aluminum (GPS)	37.8 grams	39.5 grams
Aluminum (Cellular)	36.9 grams	38.6 grams
Titanium	43.1 grams	44.9 grams

42mm	Apple Watch Series 11	Apple Watch Series 12
Dimensions	42mm x 36mm x 9.7mm	42mm x 37mm x 9.7mm
Display area	989 sq mm	970 sq mm
Aluminum (GPS)	30.3 grams	32.2 grams
Aluminum (Cellular)	29.7 grams	31.5 grams
Titanium	34.6 grams	36.5 grams

The new ceramic models, which have no Series 11 equivalent, are larger and considerably heavier still:

Ceramic	46mm	42mm
Dimensions	47mm x 41mm x 9.85mm	43mm x 37mm x 9.85mm
Pearl White	51.3 grams	41.7 grams
Night Blue	52.9 grams	42.8 grams

The most significant upgrade between the two devices is the new Health Sensing System. It uses a larger electrode surface for better skin contact during ECG readings, redesigned photodiodes laid out in a ring for more efficient light capture, and bigger, more power-efficient green LEDs. The result is that the Series 12 measures heart rate every five seconds throughout the day, 60 times more frequently than before, and samples HRV up to 24 times more often. Apple claims this gives the Series 12 the most accurate heart rate sensing of any wearable.

That higher-frequency data powers several new health features that are exclusive to the Series 12. The Readiness app weighs up your recent activity, training load, vitals, and sleep score to produce a single daily score out of 10, alongside a recommendation ranging from "Recover" to "Go For It." There is also a separate Recovery HRV metric, a daytime view in the Vitals app, and new watch face complications for real-time heart rate and step count. Apple has also rebuilt its pedometer model and says the Series 12 now offers the most accurate step tracking of any smartwatch.

The Series 12 is the first model in two years to get a new chip, with the S11 replacing the S10 that powered both the Series 10 and Series 11, which itself was almost identical to the S9 chip from 2023. The new model also has twice as much RAM, with 4GB compared to 2GB in the Series 11.

The S11 chip enables Audio Intelligence, a new set of features exclusive to the Series 12 and Ultra 4. Live Rewind displays a transcript of the last 15 seconds of conversation with a double press of the Digital Crown, ‌Siri‌ Recap generates summaries of conversations, Sound Recognition alerts deaf or hard of hearing users to sounds like sirens and doorbells, and Shazam can automatically identify music playing nearby. According to Apple, audio is processed in a hardware-isolated Secure Exclave on the S11 chip and is never recorded.

Everyday battery life is unchanged at up to 24 hours, or up to 38 hours in Low Power Mode. The improvements instead focus on workouts and charging. The Series 12 offers up to 10 hours of battery life during an outdoor workout, which Apple says is 25% more than the Series 11, and 15 minutes of charging now delivers up to 12 hours of use rather than eight.

All other aspects, such as display resolution and brightness, 64GB of storage, 5G connectivity, and water and dust resistance all carry over from the Series 11 unchanged.

Is It Worth Upgrading?

For new buyers, the Series 12 is the obvious choice. It costs the same $399 that the Series 11 did at launch, while adding a more capable health sensing system, double the RAM, and a considerable list of exclusive features. With a new chip and more memory, it is also likely to be better placed for future Apple Intelligence features. The Series 11 is the better value option only when it can be found heavily discounted, which is likely as third-party retailers clear their remaining stock.

Last year, we concluded that virtually no users should upgrade from a Series 10 to a Series 11. This year, the picture is more nuanced. For most Series 11 owners, there is still no general-purpose reason to upgrade, since many key features are unchanged and ‌Siri‌ AI is coming to the Series 11 anyway. However, the Series 12 is worth considering if you rely on your Apple Watch for training and recovery insights, since continuous heart rate tracking, Recovery HRV, and Readiness are all exclusive to the new model. Deaf and hard of hearing users may find Sound Recognition a compelling reason to upgrade on its own, and some users will simply want the new ceramic finish.

Series 11 owners who are happy to wait may prefer to hold out for next year's "Series 13," which is rumored to bring the first major redesign since the Series 10, including a new band attachment system.

By contrast, upgrading is much easier to justify if you have a Series 9 or older. Series 10 owners would gain a new, thinner design with a wider screen, a tougher display on aluminum models, and a longer battery life in addition to all of this year's changes.
This article, "Apple Watch Series 11 vs. Series 12 Buyer's Guide: 25+ Upgrades Compared" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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The wait is over; Apple has now announced the iPhone 18 Pro and its first foldable, the iPhone Duo. We talk through our reactions to the range of new products on this week's episode of The MacRumors Show.


The iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max gain a smaller Dynamic Island, new Glacier, Burgundy, and Black color options, and the 2nm A20 Pro chip, which delivers up to 40% faster sustained performance with help from a vapor chamber three times larger than before. The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ now matches the iPhone 17 Pro Max with up to 24 hours of typical use, according to Apple, while the Pro Max gets up to 30 hours in what the company calls its biggest generational battery life leap ever.

Both models have a 48-megapixel main camera with variable aperture from ƒ/1.48 to ƒ/4.0, new Pro Controls for manual aperture, shutter speed, and white balance, texture and grain controls in Photographic Styles, and Apple Reference Image, which signs photo data at capture to verify authenticity. Pricing starts at $1,199 and $1,299, $100 more than last year, while higher storage tiers rose by as much as $500, and pre-orders begin Saturday, September 12 ahead of a September 18 launch.

The Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 introduce a new "Health Sensing System" that measures heart rate every five seconds and HRV as often as every five minutes, feeding a new daily Readiness score, and Apple claims it offers the most accurate heart rate sensing of any wearable. A new S11 chip with twice the RAM powers Audio Intelligence features including Sound Recognition, Live Rewind, which transcribes the last 15 seconds of speech, and Siri Recap, which summarizes conversation.

Aluminum models now have Ceramic Shield for 60% tougher displays, titanium models come in polished Radiant Gold and Natural, and ceramic returns for the first time since the Series 5 in Pearl White and Night Blue, with cases that are slightly larger and heavier. The Apple Watch Series 12 starts at $399 for 42mm, while the 46mm model rose $20 to $449, titanium starts at $699, and ceramic starts at $899, with orders open now ahead of launch on September 18.

The AirPods 5 retain their open-ear design but gain Active Noise Cancellation as standard, with Apple claiming up to 50% more noise reduction than AirPods 4 with ANC, plus a new multiport acoustic architecture and next-generation Adaptive EQ. The $129 model offers over four hours of listening with ANC and 20 hours total with the case, while a $149 model adds stem volume control, up to five hours with ANC, and a wireless charging case. Both models are available to order now.

The iPhone Duo is a book-style foldable with a 7.6-inch inner display and a 5.4-inch outer display that share the same aspect ratio, and Apple says it is the thinnest iPhone ever when unfolded. The inner screen has a nano-texture finish to reduce glare and crease visibility, while the device features a titanium frame, an IP68 rating, Touch ID in the side button, the A20 Pro chip, Apple's new C2 modem, MagSafe, and a dual-battery design rated for up to 44 hours of video playback on the outer display.

There is no Face ID, Action button or Telephoto camera. Apple Pencil support arrives later this year, limited to the USB-C ‌Apple Pencil‌. The ‌iPhone Duo‌ comes in Star White and Night Sky and starts at $1,999 with 256GB of storage, reaching $3,199 for 2TB, with pre-orders beginning October 16 ahead of an October 23 launch, shipping with iOS 27.1.

Apple also introduced AppleCare One Family, which covers every eligible device across up to six Family Sharing members in the U.S. for $49.99 per month. Alongside the new models, Apple raised prices on the iPhone 16, iPhone 17e, iPhone 17, and iPhone Air by $100 each to $799, $699, $899, and $1,099, respectively, and discontinued the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max. Apple also revealed that it is extending free satellite access by another year for iPhone 14, iPhone 15, and ‌iPhone 16‌ users.

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Subscribe to ‌The MacRumors Show‌ for new episodes every week, where we discuss some of the topical news breaking here on MacRumors, often joined by interesting guests such as Michael Fisher, Kayci Lacob, Kevin Nether, John Gruber, Mark Gurman, Jon Prosser, Luke Miani, Matthew Cassinelli, Brian Tong, Quinn Nelson, Jared Nelson, Eli Hodapp, Mike Bell, Sara Dietschy, iJustine, Jon Rettinger, Andru Edwards, Arnold Kim, Ben Sullins, Marcus Kane, Christopher Lawley, Frank McShan, David Lewis, Tyler Stalman, Sam Kohl, Federico Viticci, Thomas Frank, Jonathan Morrison, Ross Young, Ian Zelbo, and Rene Ritchie.

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Apple Watch Series 12 models with a ceramic case are physically larger than the same model in aluminum or titanium, according to Apple's own tech specs.


At 46mm, Apple's tech specs page lists the aluminum and titanium case at 46mm by 40mm by 9.7mm, while the ceramic case sold under the same 46mm name measures 47mm by 41mm by 9.85mm, a millimeter taller, a millimeter wider, and 0.15mm thicker. The 42mm size follows the same pattern: 42mm by 37mm by 9.7mm for aluminum and titanium, versus 43mm by 37mm by 9.85mm for ceramic, a millimeter taller and 0.15mm thicker, with the width unchanged.

The display is unaffected. Apple lists the same 1,196 sq mm display area at 46mm and 970 sq mm at 42mm across all three materials, meaning the extra size is entirely case, not screen.

The ceramic models are also heavier. At 46mm, the Pearl White ceramic case weighs 51.3 grams and Night Blue weighs 52.9 grams, against 39.5 grams for the equivalent aluminum model and 44.9 grams for titanium, up to 34% heavier than aluminum and 18% heavier than titanium. The 42mm ceramic models weigh 41.7 grams in Pearl White and 42.8 grams in Night Blue, against 32.2 grams for aluminum and 36.5 grams for titanium, up to 33% heavier than aluminum and 17% heavier than titanium.

This appears to be the first time Apple has sold different physical case dimensions under the same nominal watch size. The increased size is presumably a design compromise owing to the entirely different material, although the earlier ceramic Apple Watch Edition models used identical case dimensions across materials at a given size, with only the weight changing between them.

Ceramic returns to the Apple Watch lineup with the Series 12 after a six-year absence, having last been offered on Series 5 in 2019 before Apple dropped it for Series 6 in 2020.

Apple Watch Series 12 in ceramic starts at $899, compared with $399 for aluminum and $699 for titanium, in Pearl White or Night Blue finishes. It launches on September 18.
This article, "Ceramic Apple Watch Series 12 Is Bigger and Heavier Than Other Models" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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The Apple Watch Series 12 pairs a smaller display with a wider case than Series 10 and Series 11, even though the pixel resolution hasn't changed, according to Apple's own tech specs.


For the 46mm Series 12, Apple's tech specs page lists the display area at 1,196 sq mm, down 2% from 1,220 sq mm on Series 10 and Series 11. The 42mm size shows a similar 1.9% drop, from 989 sq mm to 970 sq mm. Pixel counts are identical across all three generations: 416 by 496 at 46mm, and 374 by 446 at 42mm.

The case grows as the screen shrinks. Apple's Series 12 tech specs list the 46mm case at 46mm by 40mm by 9.7mm, a millimeter wider than the 46mm by 39mm by 9.7mm case on Series 10 and Series 11, a roughly 2.6% increase in case footprint. The 42mm case grew from 42mm by 36mm to 42mm by 37mm over the same span, about 2.8%, with depth unchanged at 9.7mm for both sizes.

A smaller display combined with a bigger casing means bigger borders around the display, and it looks like Apple has also tweaked the design of the Series 12 to recede the casing and expand the front glass, which makes the borders look even larger.

There's recent precedent for a change like this translating into a visibly thicker bezel. Series 10 went through a similar shift when it replaced Series 9 in 2024, growing the case around the display. The Series 10's visible aluminum edge had actually shrunk by around 33% versus Series 9, while the total bezel, including the black glass border, had grown by about 17%, even though the case and display figures looked like an improvement on paper.

It looks like the Series 12 repeats that pattern, although to a less extreme extent. Unlike the Series 9 to Series 10 change, which was a full case redesign, Series 10, Series 11, and Series 12 all share the same approximate case design. The Apple Watch Series 12 starts at $399 and launches on September 18.
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Apple's tech specs suggest the iPhone Duo's Main camera sensor is seemingly a match for the iPhone 17e's, not the standard iPhone 17's.


According to Apple's tech specs page for the iPhone Duo, the Main camera is a 26mm, ƒ/1.6 sensor with sensor-shift optical image stabilization and Hybrid Focus Pixels, also enabling a 12MP 2x Telephoto crop from the same sensor. The iPhone 17e's tech specs page lists an identical 26mm, ƒ/1.6 Main camera with Hybrid Focus Pixels, the same autofocus terminology Apple uses for the ‌iPhone Duo‌.

The match is not total, though. The ‌iPhone 17e‌'s tech specs describes plain "optical image stabilization" with no "sensor-shift" qualifier, while the ‌iPhone Duo‌'s does include it. That detail instead lines up with the standard iPhone 17's tech specs page, which pairs sensor-shift OIS with a different autofocus term, "100% Focus Pixels," the wording iPhone 18 Pro's tech specs page also uses but Duo and 17e do not.

This suggests that the Main camera of the ‌iPhone Duo‌ realistically falls somewhere between the ‌iPhone 17e‌ and ‌iPhone 17‌, possessing the sensor-shift optical image stabilization of the ‌iPhone 17‌, but with an iPhone 17e-style sensor that uses Hybrid Focus Pixels.

The overlapping Focus Pixels wording with the 17e is fueling speculation online that the two devices share a sensor. Apple has not published a sensor size or pixel pitch for the ‌iPhone Duo‌'s Main camera, leaving the matching Focus Pixels wording as the only official link to the 17e for now.

The ‌iPhone Duo‌ starts at $1,999, with pre-orders opening October 16 ahead of an October 23 release.
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Apple yesterday announced the iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, succeeding the iPhone 17 Pro that launched last September. The new models are built around the A20 Pro chip, a 48-megapixel Fusion Main camera with variable aperture, a redesigned vapor chamber, and a smaller Dynamic Island.


Last year's ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ brought one of the biggest design changes to the lineup in years, switching from a titanium frame and glass back to an aluminum unibody with Ceramic Shield 2. With that overhaul out of the way, this year's update is more about what's inside the phone than a new look, focused on the chip, camera, and battery rather than another redesign. The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, which shares nearly all of these changes, also gets a battery capacity increase of its own, delivering the largest jump in battery life in the iPhone's history.

The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ starts at $1,199 for 256GB, up from the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌'s $1,099 starting price. Our guide breaks down every difference between the two generations to help you decide whether the upgrade is worth it. Here's everything that differs between the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌:

Chip, Performance, and Connectivity

‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ (2025)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
A19 Pro chip	A20 Pro chip
Built with TSMC's N3P process (3nm)	Built with TSMC's N2 process (2nm), Apple's first 2nm smartphone chip
6-core CPU with 2 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores	6-core CPU with 2 super cores and 4 efficiency cores
	50% more memory bandwidth than A19 Pro
6-core GPU with Neural Accelerators	7-core GPU with Neural Accelerators, up to 40% faster than A19 Pro
16-core Neural Engine	Dual 16-core Neural Engine (32 total cores)
Vapor chamber cooling	Next-generation vapor chamber with 3x more surface area than ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌'s, up to 40% higher sustained performance
	New chip packaging that places silicon die beside memory, allowing it to attach directly to the vapor chamber
Qualcomm X80 modem	Apple C2 modem

Rear Camera

‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ (2025)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
Fixed ƒ/1.78 aperture on the 48-megapixel Fusion Main camera	Variable-aperture 48-megapixel Fusion Main camera with four stops: ƒ/1.48, ƒ/1.8, ƒ/2.8, and ƒ/4.0, using six laser-cut blades
	API available for developers to control the aperture range within their own apps
	Faster Night mode, tied to the new variable-aperture lens
	Pro controls in the Camera app: manual lens aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and histogram
	New sensor and computational imaging pipeline on the Fusion Main camera, delivering around 50% better low-light performance and more detail in the back of group photos
Photographic Styles 2, adjusting tone and color	Photographic Styles 3, adding texture and grain controls alongside tone and color
	Smart focus tracking
Cinematic mode recording up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps	Cinematic mode recording up to 4K Dolby Vision at 60 fps
	Cinematic mode effects can be applied after capture, on video shot at up to 60 fps
	Improved low-light video
	Time-lapse video recording with stabilization, up to 4K Dolby Vision
	Apple Reference Image (Fusion Main only), an opt-in feature that signs sensor data so a photo's authenticity can later be verified
Audio Mix	Audio Mix with new algorithms for higher-quality voices, and the ability to isolate music

Front Camera

‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ (2025)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
Photographic Styles 2, adjusting tone and color	Photographic Styles 3, adding texture and grain controls alongside tone and color
	Smart focus tracking
	Cinematic mode effects can be applied after capture
	Improved low-light video
	Time-lapse video recording with stabilization, up to 4K Dolby Vision

Weight and Design

‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ (2025)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
iPhone 17 Pro: Weighs 7.27 ounces (206 grams) iPhone 17 Pro Max: Weighs 8.22 ounces (233 grams)	iPhone 18 Pro: Weighs 7.44 ounces (211 grams) iPhone 18 Pro Max: Weighs 8.78 ounces (249 grams)
‌Dynamic Island‌ supports up to two simultaneous Live Activities	Smaller ‌Dynamic Island‌, supports up to three simultaneous Live Activities
Available in Silver, Deep Blue, and Cosmic Orange	Available in Silver, Black, Glacier, and Burgundy

Battery and Charging

‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ (2025)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
iPhone 17 Pro: Up to 33 hours of video playback, up to 30 hours streamed iPhone 17 Pro Max: Up to 39 hours of video playback, up to 35 hours streamed	iPhone 18 Pro: Up to 36 hours of video playback, up to 33 hours streamed iPhone 18 Pro Max: Up to 45 hours of video playback, up to 40 hours streamed
Up to 50% charge in 20 minutes with a 40W adapter or higher	Up to 50% charge in around 15 minutes with a 60W-capable adapter with Adjustable Voltage Supply
Up to 50% charge in 30 minutes with a 30W adapter or higher, paired with a MagSafe Charger	Up to 50% charge in 30 minutes with a 35W adapter or higher, paired with a ‌MagSafe‌ Charger

Storage and Pricing

‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ (2025)	‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ (2026)
iPhone 17 Pro: Available with 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB storage iPhone 17 Pro Max: Available with 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB storage	Available with 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB storage
iPhone 17 Pro: Launched at $1,099 (256GB) iPhone 17 Pro Max: Launched at $1,199 (256GB)	iPhone 18 Pro: $1,199 (256GB), $1,399 (512GB), $1,799 (1TB), $2,399 (2TB) iPhone 18 Pro Max: $1,299 (256GB), $1,499 (512GB), $1,899 (1TB), $2,499 (2TB)
Discontinued and no longer sold directly by Apple, now only available via third-parties	iPhone 18 Pro: Sold directly by Apple, from $49.95 a month for 24 months via Apple Upgrade iPhone 18 Pro Max: Sold directly by Apple, from $54.12 a month for 24 months via Apple Upgrade

Apple's redesigned vapor chamber and the A20 Pro's move to TSMC's 2nm process are among the most important updates under the hood this year, and together they raise sustained performance and unlock longer battery life. Battery life rises from 33 hours on the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ to 36 hours, and from 39 to 45 hours on the Pro Max, which is the largest battery gain Apple has delivered on an iPhone. Charging is faster too, reaching 50% in around 15 minutes with a 60W-capable adapter, down from 20 minutes last year.

The ‌Dynamic Island‌ sees the most visible external change, shrinking in size while expanding from two simultaneous Live Activities to three, letting users track a flight, a Maps route, and a timer at once without switching apps.

The most significant leap is the Main camera. It trades its fixed ƒ/1.78 aperture on the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ for a four-stop variable aperture ranging from ƒ/1.48 to ƒ/4.0, delivering around 50% better low-light performance and giving photographers optical control over depth of field that the iPhone has never offered before. Paired with new Pro controls for manual aperture, shutter speed, and white balance, Photographic Styles 3's added texture and grain sliders, and Apple Reference Image for verifying a photo's authenticity, the camera system does more to justify the Pro name than anything else in this update.

The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ is clearly aimed at photographers and creators, but the longer battery life, faster charging, and more capable ‌Dynamic Island‌ give casual users real reasons to notice the difference too. Compared with last year's aluminum unibody overhaul, this is a more targeted upgrade rather than a wholesale reinvention, but between the chip, the camera, and the battery gains.

For existing ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ or ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max owners, there is no general-purpose reason to upgrade to either new model. The core design, display sizes, and everyday camera experience carry over largely unchanged, and both new models cost $100 more than their ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ equivalent. The upgrade is worth it if you specifically want variable aperture and manual Pro controls for photography, or if you rely on sustained performance for gaming or on-device AI tasks where the A20 Pro's cooling and Neural Engine gains will be most noticeable, but realistically this will only encompass a minority of users.

For new buyers coming from an iPhone 16 Pro or older, the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ is the better long-term purchase given the newer chip and camera system. That being said, if you can get an ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ at a substantially lower price, it is probably worth buying last year's model instead.

Pre-orders for the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max open Saturday, September 12, with availability beginning Friday, September 18.
This article, "iPhone 17 Pro vs. iPhone 18 Pro: 35+ Upgrades Compared" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple may be exploring a way to let search providers show sponsored results inside Visual Intelligence, according to code uncovered in iOS 27.



The find comes from MacRumors' Aaron Perris, who said in a post on X that the code points to Apple allowing search providers to insert their own sponsored results into ‌Visual Intelligence‌, rather than Apple selling the ad space itself. He compared it to the sponsored product listings already seen on Amazon and Google. It is not clear whether Apple would take a cut of ad revenue.

The feature would let third party search providers, such as Google, insert items such as sponsored product images alongside the organic results ‌Visual Intelligence‌ already returns when a user points their camera at an item to shop for it. That would set it apart from the advertising pushes Apple has driven directly in its own apps over the past year.

Apple has been steadily expanding its advertising business across the App Store and Maps. The company began showing additional sponsored slots in ‌App Store‌ search results in March, and ads went live in Apple Maps in the United States and Canada last month.

‌Visual Intelligence‌ already routes shopping queries to services like Google Image Search and retailers such as Etsy, Amazon, and Anthropologie, so ad supported results from those partners would build on functionality that already exists in ‌iOS 27‌.
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Apple has detailed how iOS 27 was rebuilt to adapt in real time to the iPhone Duo, the company's first foldable iPhone, reshaping the interface as the device folds, unfolds, and switches between its two displays.


Lock Screen controls, the Dock, and app navigation elements now sit along the side of the display instead of across the bottom, freeing up vertical space for content. When open, the ‌iPhone Duo‌ shows two Home Screen pages. The status bar is now a circular, flexible system that fits into the corner of the screen, and the Dynamic Island runs vertically along the side of the outer display.


The interface also changes based on the device's angle. It reorients when the phone is turned on its side and switches to the appropriate display when flipped over. Apple said building this required changing how individual apps lay out content as the screen changes shape, including moving the Dock to a vertical orientation. Controls stay anchored to the side of the screen throughout, and the Lock Screen moves its buttons aside to give more room for the wallpaper.


The ‌iPhone Duo‌ supports side-by-side multitasking, which is a first for the iPhone. Split View lets users run two apps at once, and it's possible to open two windows of the same app, such as Safari, or use Siri AI on one side of the screen while viewing content on the other. Users can swipe up from the bottom to switch apps or save a pair of apps to return to later.


The software also adjusts to how the phone is angled rather than just whether it's open or closed. Content shifts away from the crease when the device is partially folded, where taps are harder to register, and audio tuning algorithms account for the changing distance between the speakers as the phone moves through different positions. When laid flat on a table, iOS uses sensors in each half of the device to let users view content without a stand.


Setting the ‌iPhone Duo‌ down triggers StandBy on whichever display faces up, even when the phone isn't charging, turning it into a photo frame, widget hub, or clock. New Calendar and Weather faces join the existing Clock and Modular options, the Photos face now shows Shared Albums, and each face supports additional colors, fonts, and complications.


Apple has built new APIs for developers to adapt their apps to the dual-display design, and the ‌iPhone Duo‌ support is coming to Device Hub in Xcode. Netflix, Zoom, and Slack have already updated their apps to make use of the larger inner display.


The folding design also enables four camera features not available on other iPhone models. Smart Take uses on-device AI running on the A20 Pro's Neural Engine to analyze a scene and automatically capture a photo when its subjects are posing.

Duo Preview shows a live camera preview on the outer display so a subject can check their framing before taking a shot. Kid Cue plays Peanuts animations on the outer display to get a child's attention. Duo FaceTime lets people standing near the person on a call join in through the outer display.


There are a host of other features such as video playback controls and a keyboard that appear on the lower half of the display when set flat, a split keyboard when the display is partly folded, and more.

Pre-orders for ‌iPhone Duo‌ open at 5 a.m. Pacific on Friday, October 16, with availability beginning Friday, October 23.
This article, "Apple Details How iOS 27 Adapts to iPhone Duo's Displays" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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The Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 feature a refreshed band lineup for the fall, adding new colors and materials.



Here's a breakdown of what's new across the band lineup:

• Sport Band: New Navy Blue, Magenta, Olive, Burgundy, Wildflower Blue, Pale Succulent, Sand, and Black colors for Apple Watch Series 12.


• Sport Band (ceramic hardware): Sand and Navy Blue to match the new ceramic Apple Watch Series 12 models; not available as a standalone purchase.


• Sport Loop: New Olive, Burgundy, Limestone, Magenta, and Chambray Blue colors, plus a new inkjet-printed plaid pattern in Burgundy and Light Umber.


• Nike Sport Band and Nike Sport Loop: Five new colors; Essential White, Chalk Calm, Pavement Grey, After Dark Black, and Green Spark.


• Milanese Loop: New Radiant Gold and Natural colors to match the titanium case, plus a new Dark Bronze option, priced at $99.


• Link Bracelet: A new stainless steel bracelet in Radiant Gold and Natural, priced at $349.


• Modern Buckle: New woven material with flecks of color, in Mulberry, Camel, Sage, and Navy Blue, now available with gold hardware for the first time alongside natural hardware, priced at $199 (42mm only).


• Magnetic Link: Available in Wildflower Blue, Burgundy, Camel, and Midnight, priced at $99.


• Solo Loop: New Wildflower Blue, Burgundy, Olive, and Navy Blue colors, priced at $49.


• Braided Solo Loop: New Olive, Magenta, Wildflower Blue, Burgundy, Navy Blue, and Black colors, priced at $99.


• Trail Loop: New Dark Umber, Sand, and Burgundy colors for the Apple Watch Ultra 4, priced at $99 (49mm only).


• Alpine Loop: New Desert, Dark Olive, and Burgundy colors for the Ultra 4, priced at $99 (49mm only).


• Ocean Band: Now made from a translucent silicone material, offered in Translucent Gray, Translucent Kelp, and Translucent Black, priced at $99 (49mm only).


• Hermès Noir Satin Clou de Selle: A new band with a gold-finish clasp and saddle stud, exclusively paired with the new Hermès radiant gold titanium case, priced at $499.


• Hermès Rocabar Club: A new knitted H pattern band inspired by horse-jumping competitions, in four Bleu Nuit colorways paired with Gris Titane, Orange, Bleu Brighton, and Vert accents, priced at $499.


• Hermès En Mer: A new water-resistant knit band for the Apple Watch Ultra 4 with a pillowed stripe and titanium buckle, in Argile, Bordeaux, Bleu Nuit, and Orange colorways, priced at $549 (49mm only).


• Hermès Scub'H Diving: A new rubber band for the Ultra 4 with circular porthole-like cutouts, in Vert Vertigo, Gris Titane, and Bleu De Malte colorways, priced at $549 (49mm only).


• Hermès Grand H Titane: A new titanium version of the Grand H bracelet for the Apple Watch Ultra 4, priced at $2,199 (49mm only).


• Hermès Kilim Single Tour: Bleu De Malte, Cuivre, and Béton colorways, priced at $499.

The new Apple Watch bands are available to order today, with availability in stores beginning Friday, September 18.
This article, "Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 Get Wave of New Bands" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple Watch Series 12 comes in a refreshed selection of case finishes and materials, including ceramic.



Here's a breakdown of the case types, finishes, and pricing across the new Apple Watch lineup:

• Apple Watch Series 12 (aluminum): Available in space gray, black, light gold, and dark bronze (starts at $399).


• Apple Watch Series 12 (titanium): Available in radiant gold and natural (starts at $699).


• Apple Watch Series 12 (ceramic): Available in pearl white and night blue (starts at $899).


• Apple Watch Ultra 4 (titanium): Available in natural and black finishes (starts at $799).


• Apple Watch Hermès Series 12 (titanium): Available in radiant gold and silver (starts at $1,399).
• Apple Watch Hermès Ultra 4 (titanium): Available in natural titanium (starts at $1,499).

The ceramic finish returns with the Series 12 this year, pairing with sand and navy blue Sport Bands that feature a ceramic pin-and-tuck closure to match the case.

Pre-orders for both Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 are open today, with availability beginning Friday, September 18.
This article, "Apple Watch Series 12 Comes in New Finishes, Including Ceramic" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today announced "Audio Intelligence," a new suite of Apple Intelligence-powered features for the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 that use the built-in microphone to help users catch missed moments in conversation and stay aware of important sounds.


The Apple Watch's Audio Intelligence comprises four features:

• Siri Recap: Uses ambient listening to generate high-level notes from conversations, such as takeaways from a team meeting or a parent-teacher conference, producing an Apple Intelligence-generated title, summary, and key points reviewable in the Siri app.


• Live Rewind: Lets users "go back in time for 15 seconds," transcribing and displaying what was just said in a conversation with a double press of the Digital Crown.


• Shazam: Automatically identifies music playing nearby and surfaces the song title and artist on the Music Recognition widget in the Smart Stack.


• Sound Recognition: Brings sound alerts to Apple Watch for users who are deaf or hard of hearing, listening for sirens, alarms, doorbells, a baby crying, and more, even when their iPhone isn't nearby.

Apple emphasized that ‌Siri‌ Recap is opt-in and configurable, telling users they "control if and when ‌Siri‌ Recap takes notes." Users can set it to always listen or schedule it for specific contexts, such as only at work or never at night, and can toggle it on or off at any time from Control Center. Apple reiterated that none of the Audio Intelligence features create or store audio recordings, with raw audio processed in an isolated Secure Exclave on the S11 chip and deleted immediately after use.

Audio Intelligence and ‌Siri‌ AI both require an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone, with Live Rewind and ‌Siri‌ Recap limited to the iPhone 16 or later (excluding the iPhone 16e).

The features arrive in beta later this year, starting in English, with additional languages to follow, and will not initially be available in the EU.
This article, "Three All-New 'Audio Intelligence' Features Arrive With Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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The Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 offer a range of new health and fitness features. Here's everything that's new.


Apple today revealed the following features for the two new devices:

• New "Health Sensing System": A redesigned sensor architecture with three main improvements, including increased electrode surface area for better ECG skin contact, photodiodes arranged in a ring for more efficient light capture, and larger, more power-efficient green LEDs for accurate heart rate readings during motion.


• Continuous heart rate sensing: Heart rate is now measured every five seconds throughout the day, 60 times more frequently than before, viewable via a new watch face complication.


• Higher-frequency HRV: Heart rate variability is sampled up to 24 times more often, with separate recovery and overall HRV values shown in a new section of the Heart Rate app.


• Daytime vitals view: A new toggle lets users switch between overnight and daytime vitals, potentially catching shifts in metrics before they show up in overnight readings.


• VO2 Max test: A new test has users set up their iPhone to watch them perform a series of exercises, delivering results immediately alongside data from their Apple Watch.


• Most accurate step tracking: A redesigned pedometer model with new machine learning algorithms improves distance accuracy for indoor workouts and all-day step counts.


• Steps complication: A brand-new watch face complication, enabled by the S11 chip, lets users track their step count in real time.


• Longer workout battery life: Up to 10 hours during an outdoor workout, 25% more than the previous model, with 15 minutes of charging now delivering up to 12 hours of extra battery. The Apple Watch Ultra 4 goes further, with up to 50 hours of everyday battery life, 84 hours in Low Power Mode, and a new Max Extended Workout mode rated for up to 45 hours of outdoor tracking; 15 minutes of charging adds up to 18 hours of battery.

The Apple Watch Series 12 starts at $399 and the Apple Watch Ultra 4 starts at $799, with pre-orders for both open today and availability beginning Friday, September 18.
This article, "Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 Offer These Eight New Health and Fitness Features" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple no longer charges extra for Active Noise Cancellation on AirPods, folding it into the $129 AirPods 5 instead of reserving it for the higher-end model.


Apple today announced the AirPods 5. ANC now comes standard on the base model rather than being exclusive to its pricier variant, as it was with the outgoing AirPods 4, which cost $129 without ANC and $179 with it.

There is still a pricier version of the AirPods 5, called "AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case." This model starts at $149 and includes a force sensor with swiping volume controls, an hour of additional battery life with ANC enabled, and wireless charging. The ‌AirPods 4‌ with ANC were priced at $179.

AirPods 5 are available for pre-order starting today, with both the $129 and $149 models arriving in stores on Friday, September 18.
This article, "AirPods 5 Include ANC as Standard, Pricier Variant Now Gatekeeps Wireless Charging Instead" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today announced AppleCare One Family, a new option for U.S. customers that extends ‌AppleCare‌ coverage to every eligible device across an Apple Family Sharing group of up to six people for one fixed monthly price.


‌AppleCare‌ One Family costs $49.99 per month and includes all of the same benefits as ‌AppleCare‌+, such as coverage for accidental damage like drops and spills, battery replacement service, and priority support from Apple Experts. It also includes theft and loss protection for eligible iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch models, and allows six total claims per year across the group.

Once a subscriber signs up, they can add devices from their iPhone, ‌iPad‌, or Mac, including "most devices less than four years old and in good working condition." Newly purchased devices are added automatically at no extra cost, and the price stays the same regardless of how many eligible products end up being covered.

To use the new plan, customers must set up Family Sharing in the Settings app on their iPhone, ‌iPad‌, or Mac and invite up to five other people to join. Any eligible devices those family members already own can then be covered under the same subscription, eliminating the need to buy and manage a separate ‌AppleCare‌ plan for each person.

‌AppleCare‌ One Family builds on AppleCare One, the multi-device subscription Apple introduced in the U.S. in July 2025 at $19.99 per month for up to three products. That plan has since expanded to Australia, France, Germany, and the UK, and today's announcement gives U.S. customers with larger households a way to consolidate coverage under a single subscription rather than juggling individual plans.

‌AppleCare‌ One Family will be available in the United States starting September 14. More details are available on Apple's AppleCare webpage.
This article, "Apple Adds AppleCare One Family Plan for Up to Six People" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today announced a redesigned thermal system for iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, built around a next-generation vapor chamber with three times the surface area of the one in iPhone 17 Pro.


The new vapor chamber constantly cycles deionized water throughout the system for significantly improved cooling performance, allowing the A20 Pro chip to sustain higher performance for longer under heavy workloads.

Apple redesigned the silicon packaging with "custom packaging inspired by our M-series chips," placing the silicon die and memory side by side rather than stacked, which removes the memory from the chip's thermal path and lets the A20 Pro connect directly to the vapor chamber.

According to Apple, the combination of the new packaging, new thermal materials, and the larger vapor chamber delivers up to a 40% gain in sustained performance over the previous generation, which the company calls the highest sustained performance yet in an iPhone.
This article, "iPhone 18 Pro's Redesigned Vapor Chamber Triples Cooling Surface Area" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today announced Apple Reference Image, a new opt-in feature for the iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max that helps users to prove a photo hasn't been altered since it was taken.



Apple Reference Image is powered by a new sensor in the Main camera that signs sensor data at the pixel level at the moment of capture. When a photo is taken in the new Reference mode, that signed data is sent to Private Cloud Compute, which develops it into what Apple calls an unalterable reference image, "like having a digital negative."

Reference images appear in the Photos app alongside the corresponding photo, letting users visually compare the two to check whether any edits were made. Apple is also opening APIs in iOS, iPadOS, and macOS 27 so third-party apps can display these reference images.

Apple positioned the feature as one part of a broader push on image authenticity, alongside existing image metadata and upcoming support for the SynthID standard, which will help identify images that were generated or edited with AI. Apple said SynthID support will arrive in a software update later this year and will be included with most edited images, depending on which edits were applied.

Apple Reference Image will not be available at launch in China due to regulatory requirements. In the EU, Apple Reference Image capture also won't be available at launch on the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ models, but users running iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27 will still be able to develop and view reference images.
This article, "iPhone 18 Pro Introduces 'Apple Reference Image' to Verify Photo Authenticity" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today announced new texture and grain controls for Photographic Styles with the iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max.


Photographic Styles are tone presets that adjust the color and warmth of a photo as it is captured, rather than as a filter applied afterward, while preserving skin tones.

The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max gain a redesigned computational imaging pipeline for the 48-megapixel Fusion Main camera that Apple says produces sharper, more detailed shots. The new texture and grain controls build on that pipeline, allowing users to further dial in their desired appearance for more creative control over their photos.

It is not clear if older iPhone models such as the iPhone 17 Pro, which otherwise support the latest version of Photographic Styles, will receive the feature via a software update.
This article, "New Texture and Grain Controls Coming to Photographic Styles With iPhone 18 Pro" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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