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12 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 18 Pro

For years we keep getting promised the under screen Touch ID is coming and the Dynamic Island is going away so we'll have no obstructions on the screen. Every year, it doesn't happen. Every year the pro models get updates nobody really cares for instead. If Apple made an iPhone Air with all the bells and whistles of the pro model, I'd wait up all night to place an order.
 
17 Pro Max still seems like a good buy. Next year will be iterative and everything shown at WWDC this year ran on it, which is all I want.

We'll see what happens around second or third generation Fold and what they do for the anniversary.
 
Spooner83 said:
For years we keep getting promised the under screen Touch ID is coming and the Dynamic Island is going away so we'll have no obstructions on the screen. Every year, it doesn't happen. Every year the pro models get updates nobody really cares for instead. If Apple made an iPhone Air with all the bells and whistles of the pro model, I'd wait up all night to place an order.
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I doubt we'll ever see under screen Touch ID. It just doesn't work well, the technology to do it doesn't exist. Everyone on Android I know that has it hates it. And I don't think Apple has the motivation to try to make a better version.

Theoretically possible to remove the visible hole punch but I still don't think Apple will do that for a while. They embraced the notch, they embraced the hole punch.

The notch / hole punch is awful on a Mac but not much of an issue on the phone due to the aspect ratio. That space isn't used for much.
 
MacRumors said:
According to a report by The Information, Apple plans to add support for 5G networks that operate via satellites rather than Earth-based towers as early as next year. This advancement would allow future iPhones to gain full internet connectivity through satellite, not just limited emergency features.

If Apple meets the 2026 target, the first devices to feature 5G satellite internet would likely be the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and the long-rumored foldable iPhone. ...
Click to expand...

I would actually much rather wait until the series 19/Anniversary models in 2027... but I have a problem that may force my hand. All of the rest of the features are mildly interesting and all... but my biggest frustration on a day-to-day basis is losing connectivity during my commute, as I have to travel through multiple cellular dead zones before reaching work/home. Having full 5G over satellite would absolutely be a great solution to that -- but I worry just a bit that the first phones to support that feature are likely to struggle at getting the implementation just right.

Still... who am I kidding? The single most significant factor in my own upgrade cycle is always the "wife factor". If she decides she wants to upgrade her phone, I'm going to have to upgrade mine as well. The notion of "keeping up with the Jones's" has nothing at all on "keeping up with the wife." 🤷‍♂️
 
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How are some of these reasons to wait?

Overall Design - If it's the same design as the 17 Pro why would I want to wait for it to be the same?
Battery Life - The battery may be increasing on the Max from 5088 to 5100 mAH? That's less than 1%.
Simplified Camera Control - Removing optional functionality to make it cheaper. Yeah, that's worth waiting for.
iOS 27 - The will also be coming to the 17 Pro. Again, not a reason to wait.

This is just lazy writing. Make it a list of 8 reasons and cut the crap.
 
I honestly wish Apple still provided yearly updates I actually cared about. The 17 Pro Max's cooling hardware was super impressive, but the jump from the 15 to the 16 was pretty negligible. You can't even tell the 17's and 15's cameras apart until you start zooming in on stuff (which is admittedly impressive).

But now we get... basically no real new features, negligible performance enhancements, a downgrade on the camera button, and a higher price. Yay.
 
I hope the trade in value for my 17 pro max also gets adjusted with the price increase of the new phones.. the memory in my phone should worth as much as the memory in the new phones.
 
MacRumors said:


We're only three months out from the launch of Apple's premium next-generation smartphone lineup, and while we're not expecting a sea change in terms of functionality, there are still several enhancements rumored to be coming to the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.

Dynamic-Island-iPhone-18-Pro-Feature.jpg

One thing worth noting is that Apple is reportedly planning a major change to its iPhone release cycle this year, adopting a two-phase rollout starting with the iPhone 18 series. That means the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and the long-rumored foldable iPhone ("iPhone Ultra") will be released in September 2026, followed by the iPhone 18, iPhone Air 2, and iPhone 18e in spring 2027.

Overall Design
iPhone 17 Pro Style
Rumors suggest the iPhone 18 Pro lineup will largely retain the same design as the iPhone 17 Pro models. Most rumors suggest the rear camera system will look identical to the current generation, featuring a raised "plateau" with three lenses arranged in a triangle – although recent dummies indicate a possible thickening of the plateau and the protrusion of individual lenses. Display sizes are also expected to remain unchanged, with the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max continuing to use 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch panels, respectively (the same dimensions introduced with the iPhone 16 Pro series). iPhone 18 Pro models could drop the current two-tone look of the rear casing found on the iPhone 17 Pro in favor of a more seamless aesthetic, while Apple has apparently updated the back-glass "replacement process" to minimize the color difference between the Ceramic Shield 2 glass and the aluminum frame, resulting in a more unified appearance.

Next-Level Battery Life
Thicker Chassis
The iPhone 18 Pro Max will feature a bigger battery for continued best-in-class battery life, claims a Chinese leaker. The Weibo user known as "Digital Chat Station" said that the ‌iPhone 18‌ Pro Max will have a battery capacity of 5,100 to 5,200 mAh. (The iPhone 17 Pro Max has the biggest ‌iPhone‌ battery to date at 5,088 mAh. Apple says it has a battery life of up to 39 hours.) According to another rumor, the body of the iPhone 18 Pro Max will be slightly thicker than the iPhone 17 Pro Max, raising the device's weight to around 243 grams. That would make the iPhone 18 Pro Max approximately 3 grams more than the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which is currently the heaviest model Apple has produced. A larger battery is the most likely cause.

Smaller Dynamic Island
Under-Screen Face ID?
Rumors continue to circulate about whether the iPhone 18 Pro models will introduce under-display Face ID, but reports remain divided on when the technology will actually arrive. The feature would move the TrueDepth camera system beneath the display, eliminating the need for the current Dynamic Island cutout.

According to Wayne Ma of The Information, Apple is targeting a design without a Dynamic Island, replacing it with a single pinhole camera in the upper-left corner of the screen. However, other sources dispute that claim. Display analyst Ross Young believes under-display Face ID is possible for the iPhone 18 Pro, but says a smaller Dynamic Island will still be present. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has echoed this view, reporting that the new models will feature a slimmed-down Dynamic Island rather than removing it entirely. Apple is also said to be testing new camera miniaturization technology to reduce the size of the front-facing camera currently located within the Dynamic Island.

The Weibo leaker "Ice Universe" has claimed the Dynamic Island cutout on the iPhone 18 Pro models will be approximately 35% narrower than it is on the iPhone 17 Pro models. Specifically, they said it will have a width of around 13.5mm, down from around 20.7mm.

Meanwhile, Chinese leaker Instant Digital has offered yet another version of events, saying the Dynamic Island will shrink in size, but that under-display Face ID and camera technology won't debut this year. The latest word on the subject is that Apple is weighing two options for the iPhone 18 Pro's Dynamic Island, and a final decision has yet to be made. One option apparently retains the existing screen mold from the iPhone 17 Pro, while the other introduces a significantly smaller "Mini ‌Dynamic Island‌" enabled by moving the Face ID receiver and transmitter components beneath the display.

Upgraded Display
LTPO+
The iPhone 18 Pro models will reportedly use LTPO+ display technology, which should be more power efficient than the current LTPO technology in the iPhone 17 series. Such an upgrade could also contribute to longer battery life (see above), since LPTO+ enables finer control of OLED light emission, potentially allowing the display to optimize its operation based on environmental conditions. In other words, it will know better when to up screen brightness or reduce it, depending on surrounding light sources. The panels are reportedly being supplied by Samsung Display and LG Display.

A20 Pro Chip... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: 12 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 18 Pro
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The article title is in stark contrast with its content. This feature-list is uninspiring. I'm asked to pay more for a device that looks identical to the 17P, with an iterative improvement in camera and battery life. Not a great sales pitch. But hey, you get to stand out with new colorways!
 
iaynnu said:
I hope the trade in value for my 17 pro max also gets adjusted with the price increase of the new phones.. the memory in my phone should worth as much as the memory in the new phones.
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Why trade in? you will get more money if you just sell it. Used 17 pro maxes are going for $800-$1000+ on eBay. That said I wouldn't sell it on eBay they take a huge chunk (I just check eBay to see what the market value is). Id sell it on OfferUp or Facebook Marketplace or something like that - you will end up better off.
 
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mukiex said:
I honestly wish Apple still provided yearly updates I actually cared about. The 17 Pro Max's cooling hardware was super impressive, but the jump from the 15 to the 16 was pretty negligible. You can't even tell the 17's and 15's cameras apart until you start zooming in on stuff (which is admittedly impressive).

But now we get... basically no real new features, negligible performance enhancements, a downgrade on the camera button, and a higher price. Yay.
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Along with larger battery, variable aperture and newer/multiple camera sensors for additional sharpness and dynamic range, isn't Apple also switching thew chipset from Qualcomm to their own radio chipset for greater control? The A20 SoC should also yield ~15% performance increase and 30% better energy efficiency. Incremental, evolutionary, but still pretty decent. Is it possible that current iPhone wireless issues might be due to the code optimized for the upcoming new architecture but ported down to the older ones?

Obviously, more RAM is out of the question due to price, but iOS is more efficient out of the gate. (or I've yet to run into memory management or related problems, but YMMV...)
 
macvicta said:
You had me at A20. The rest was unnecessary. Can’t wait to go from my 14 Pro Max to the 18 Pro Max.
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My 14 Pro needs replacing (I tend to upgrade every four years). Everyone else is saying not to upgrade because they’re making another next year and it’ll be more expensive. Yeah. That happens every year.
 
aUniqueName said:
Why trade in? you will get more money if you just sell it. Used 17 pro maxes are going for $800-$1000+ on eBay. That said I wouldn't sell it on eBay they take a huge chunk (I just check eBay to see what the market value is). Id sell it on OfferUp or Facebook Marketplace or something like that - you will end up better off.
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Selling expensive electronics on eBay is the wild, wild west. It’s gambling with fate, could get scammed and get nothing for it all, eBay will rarely side with the seller and even if they do you’ll maybe get half of the value as a refund.

Commercial trade in programs, whether from Apple or other stores, offer much lower value in exchange for the guarantee of payment, convenience and speed of the transaction.

I think these trade offs are usually worthwhile.
 
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It has been said that we can expect the C2 modem to be twice as fast as the C1 modem and include mmWave reception. Fine. But how will it compare to the Qualcomm X85 and recently-announced X105?
 
My 13 PM is still doing well with good battery life ~86% despite its age. A newer battery is more cost effective to extend its life as the device meets my needs.. no gaming or media creation. iOS 18.x still works relatively well.
Maybe upgrade to iOS 27 after its release Only after people uses it to see how it functions on older devices or just stay on 18.

Would like Apple to release a new Plus model with similar screen dimensions to the PM model considering that ProMotion is now on all models, for now.
That will be great for battery life & especially for those with aging eyes who need the bigger screen. 😊
 
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TheSynchronizer said:
Selling expensive electronics on eBay is the wild, wild west. It’s gambling with fate, could get scammed and get nothing for it all, eBay will rarely side with the seller and even if they do you’ll maybe get half of the value as a refund.

Commercial trade in programs, whether from Apple or other stores, offer much lower value in exchange for the guarantee of payment, convenience and speed of the transaction.

I think these trade offs are usually worthwhile.
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I guess you didn't read my entire post? I said I would NOT sell it on eBay, I just use eBay to check market value... I always sell locally using OfferUp or Facebook Marketplace for cash (never accept cash app, PayPal, etc )
 
I upgraded my iPhone 14 Pro to the 17 Pro this past February due to the news about the chip shortage/price increases and also the bombing of that LNG plant in the middle east that supplies a significant percentage of the world’s helium, much of which is used in chip manufacturing. I also wanted the full new Siri capabilities (which also pushed me to upgrade my M1 Mac Mini and Intel Macbook Pro. I’m at 4K Apple TV’s in the family room and the alternate TV watching room. Not gonna update my various homepods any time soon.

My spouse upgraded her iPhone SE to a 17. I’d love it if she’d give up her Windows laptop and switch to Apple. I told her several years ago, my Windows skills have atrophied and, not only that, I have anger management issues when addressing tech issues on Windows machines. They irk me so.

At 67 yo, I won’t say this is my LAST pass at upgrading my Apple ecosystem, but, barring the singularity, getting close.
 
DottySr said:
At 67 yo, I won’t say this is my LAST pass at upgrading my Apple ecosystem, but, barring the singularity, getting close.
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I hear you. I upgraded my iPads and laptops this year. Next up (assuming prices don’t get too crazy): my Mac Studio desktop and iPhone. I’ll try to run this gear for as long as I can - likely until they aren’t updated by Apple any longer. After that, I expect that I’ll own far fewer Apple devices and those that I do own will be from a lower tier in any given line of Apple gear. That would be a MacBook Air rather than a Pro, a base iPad or Air instead of a Pro, a base iPhone instead of a Pro… and maybe a Mac Mini or iMac instead of a Studio - or maybe no desktop at all.
 
A good reason to wait is that when it's released, hopefully you'll be able to get the 17 P/PM models for cheaper via 3rd party resellers, as the 18 models are going to be more expensive for not much more.
 
I guess I am that person this year, but I have been a yearly upgrader for quite some time and this is the least differentiating feature list from the previous year’s model as any I can remember.
 
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