i Phone 18 rumored release schedule explained — why there (probably) won’t be an i Phone 18 this year, and when to expect the i Phone 18 Pro, i Phone Air 2, and more | Tech Radar
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i Phone 18 rumored release schedule explained — why there (probably) won’t be an i Phone 18 this year, and when to expect the i Phone 18 Pro, i Phone Air 2, and more
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News flash: there probably won’t be an i Phone 18 this year. Well, sort of.
If the latest rumors are true, Apple will release new i Phones in September, as it does every year. But for the first time since 2016 — when the original i Phone SE and i Phone 7 debuted at separate in-person events — it looks like the tech giant will be hosting two distinct launch events for its next smartphone lineup.
The first, in September, will likely be focused on the i Phone 18 Pro, i Phone 18 Pro Max, and foldable i Phone Ultra, while the second could take place sometime in spring 2027 — or between March and April, for our Australian readers — and looks set to focus on the regular i Phone 18 and i Phone 18e.
The i Phone Fold again rumored to be launching alongside the i Phone 18 Pro
I have a theory about the i Phone 4 — and it might explain Apple’s entire i Phone release schedule
From now on, then, Apple could essentially be splitting its i Phone launches into premium and affordable categories, with the pricier Pro and Ultra models arriving six months before the cheaper base and e models in any given year.
That strategy does get a bit muddled by the potential addition of the i Phone Air 2, which, if it does ever get released, is rumored to drop alongside the i Phone 18 and 18e at next year's spring event. I personally hope the i Phone Air 2 does see the light of day, though the rumors surrounding its existence aren’t conclusive — and if indeed it is in Apple’s plans, I think it makes more sense to have it launch in September, not spring.
But regardless of what happens with the i Phone Air 2, the fact remains that we’re likely to see September reserved for Apple’s Pro and foldable models moving forward, with everything else coming the following year.
What happened to 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'?
In his time as Apple CEO, Tim Cook has stuck to a fairly rigid i Phone release schedule (Image credit: Getty Images)
As for why Apple could be about to rip up its tried-and-tested release playbook — which, it's worth noting, has yielded market-leading phone sales for the best part of a decade — we don’t have any official answers. But we can, of course, speculate as to the reasons for the change.
Firstly, almost every other smartphone manufacturer already staggers its smartphone launches. Samsung, for instance, has long hosted separate launch events for its Galaxy S and Z series phones, just as Google regularly launches its A-series Pixel phones around six months after its mainline models.
Having two separate i Phone launch events means Apple can keep momentum for its i Phones going throughout the year, rather than enjoying one big splash of publicity every September. It can also more effectively steal attention away from Android-focused events like MWC in March and those annual releases from Samsung and Xiaomi, which typically happen in the same spring period (I single out those two brands because they're Apple's two biggest competitors).
Two future i Phones may be ‘largely unchanged in appearance,’ leaker claims
The Xiaomi 17T and 17T Pro could land in May — and be serious i Phone 18 rivals
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What's more, a biannual i Phone launch strategy means Apple can target two different types of consumers more effectively, which it clearly hopes to do if it plans to bundle its premium models into one event, and its more affordable models into another.
The i Phone 17 was announced alongside the i Phone 17 Pro, i Phone 17 Pro Max, and i Phone Air in September 2025 (Image credit: Future)
Secondly, the base i Phone 17 is selling very, very well. According to Counterpoint, Apple’s latest base model is the best-selling phone of 2026 so far, and with rumors swirling that Apple could downgrade the i Phone 18 to cut costs, it makes sense to extend the shelf life of the i Phone 17 as much as possible.
That cost-cutting strategy is also key to understanding why Apple could be about to mix up its release schedule.
Prolific i Phone leaker Fixed Focus Digital suggests Apple will bring "certain manufacturing downgrades" to the i Phone 18 to better align it with the i Phone 18e from a supply chain level. In other words, the i Phone 18 could be a worse phone than the i Phone 17 — or at least a largely similar one, which isn't something you'd expect from a successor — but only because Apple might deliberately reposition its base model as a stablemate of the e line rather than the Pro line.
Why? Because the i Phone 17's
John Ternus will succeed Tim Cook as Apple CEO in September (Image credit: Apple)
It also makes sense that all of this could kick off under the tenure of new CEO John Ternus, who will succeed Tim Cook as the head of Apple from September.
Apple has, in all likelihood, been planning an i Phone strategy shake-up for some time now, but it's fitting that Ternus should be the one to introduce both a new i Phone category in the foldable i Phone Ultra and a new type of base model in the i Phone 18.
Will this new strategy pay off? It's true that, in being the world's biggest smartphone manufacturer, Apple has a lot to lose by messing with its golden goose product. But the Mac Book Neo showed that Ternus and co. value budget-focused buyers as much as Apple's traditional target market, so to me, it makes sense that the i Phone should receive the same segmented treatment.
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Axel is Tech Radar's Phones Editor, reporting on everything from the latest Apple developments to newest AI breakthroughs as part of the site's Mobile Computing vertical. Having previously written for publications including Esquire and Four Four Two, Axel is well-versed in the applications of technology beyond the desktop, and his coverage extends from general reporting and analysis to in-depth interviews and opinion.
Axel studied for a degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick before joining Tech Radar in 2020, where he earned an NCTJ qualification as part of the company’s inaugural digital training scheme.
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