Apple introduced the iPhone 18 Pro: variable aperture, record battery life, and A20 Pro

Apple introduced the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. According to the company, it is ‘the most advanced professional camera in an iPhone’ and a ‘huge leap’ in battery life and performance. The smartphones will be available in four colors: black, silver, glacier, and the new burgundy. Pre-orders begin September 12, sales on September 18.

The main innovation is the 48-megapixel Fusion main camera with a variable aperture. For the first time in an iPhone, users can control depth of field directly in the Camera app. Six laser-cut aperture blades smoothly switch between four values: from ƒ/1.48 for low-light shooting to ƒ/4 for a sharp background in group shots. Apple also added a new computational image processing pipeline, improved photographic styles, and the Apple Reference Image feature for verifying photo authenticity.

The new model introduces Pro controls — a customizable interface in the Camera app that allows manual adjustment of aperture, shutter speed, and white balance. Video capabilities have been expanded: cinematic effects can now be applied after shooting to video at up to 60 frames per second, and Time-lapse mode supports 4K and Dolby Vision HDR.

The heart of iPhone 18 Pro is the A20 Pro chip, manufactured on a 2-nm process. According to Apple, the 6-core CPU is faster than competitors, and the 7-core GPU is up to 40% more productive than its predecessor A19 Pro. A dual neural engine with 32 cores doubles AI processing power. A new cooling system with a larger vapor chamber provides up to 40% increase in sustained performance.

Apple claims impressive battery life: eSIM models provide up to 36 hours (Pro) and 45 hours (Pro Max) of video playback. Wired charging replenishes 50% of the battery in about 15 minutes. Under the new usage model, iPhone 18 Pro Max lasts up to 30 hours on a full charge.

iPhone 18 Pro models run iOS 27 with Apple Intelligence and the new Siri AI voice assistant, which will be released in beta. Other features include a smaller Dynamic Island that can display up to three Live Activities simultaneously, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 support, and a new C2 modem with improved download speeds and reduced power consumption.

The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199, and the iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at $1,299. Options with 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB of storage are available. The models are made with 40% recycled materials, including 100% recycled cobalt in the battery.

Original publication on Telegram ↗

Translation editors: Соловьев В., Пеков А.