Apple iPhone 20 Pro Max release date expectations, price estimates, and upgrades
iPhone 18 Pro Max and Pro for illustrative purposes. | Image by PhoneArena
What's expected to change vs iPhone 18 Pro Max:
- Quad-curved display wrapping all four edges – bezel-free look without distorting screen content
- Pro Max screen growing to around 6.96 inches, Pro to around 6.41 inches
- Dynamic Island shrinking further – punch-hole cutout now more likely than full removal
- Under-display Face ID and front camera expected
- A21 Pro chip on second-gen 2nm process
- Up to 6,000mAh battery on Pro Max – would be the largest ever in an iPhone
- Apple skipping the iPhone 19 name entirely – 2027 marks 20 years of iPhone
- September 2027, consistent with Apple's annual fall launch cadence.
Expected price:
- No leaks yet. The iPhone 18 Pro started at $1,199 – a $100 jump over the 17 Pro. With RAM prices up 70% year-over-year and the most ambitious iPhone redesign in a decade, another price increase is likely.
Jump to:
iPhone 20 Pro Max release date
- No official date – September 2027 expected, consistent with Apple's annual fall cadence
| Device family | Announcement | Market release |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone 20 Pro and Pro Max | September 2027* | September 2027* |
| iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max | September 9, 2026 | September 18, 2026 |
| Apple iPhone 17 family | September 9, 2025 | September 19, 2025 |
| Apple iPhone 16 family | September 9, 2024 | September 20, 2024 |
*Probable dates
Apple is likely skipping the iPhone 19 name entirely. The reason is straightforward: 2027 marks the 20th anniversary of the original iPhone, which Steve Jobs unveiled on January 9, 2007. Apple pulled the same move in 2017, going from iPhone 8 directly to iPhone X – also an anniversary year, and also the year of a radical redesign.
iPhone 20 Pro Max price
- No price leaks yet – increase over iPhone 18 Pro's $1,199 base likely
| iPhone model | Starting price |
|---|---|
| iPhone 20 Pro Max | $1,299 |
| iPhone 20 Pro | $1,199 |
| iPhone 18 Pro Max | $1,299 |
| iPhone 18 Pro | $1,199 |
| iPhone 17 Pro Max | $1,199 |
| iPhone 17 Pro | $1,099 |
*- anticipated prices
The iPhone 18 Pro already went up $100 over the 17 Pro, partly driven by RAM prices rising 70% year-over-year due to AI data center demand eating into supply.
That pressure isn't going away. Add in the complexity of manufacturing a quad-curved, under-display-camera device – and Apple's history of charging a premium on redesign years – and the base price climbing above $1,299 for the Pro is a reasonable expectation.
iPhone 20 Pro Max camera
- No camera specs leaked yet
- Under-display front camera expected – Face ID moving under the screen
- Rear camera system unknown – triple 48MP setup from iPhone 18 Pro the baseline
The most significant camera-related change on the iPhone 20 Pro isn't on the back – it's on the front. Moving Face ID and the front-facing camera under the display is a prerequisite for the quad-curved, bezel-free design.
Apple has been working toward this for years, and the Dynamic Island has been getting progressively smaller with each generation. Whether the punch-hole or full under-display route wins out, the front of the phone will look fundamentally different from anything Apple has shipped before.
iPhone 18 Pro. | Image by PhoneArena
On the rear, no leaks have surfaced yet. The iPhone 18 Pro's triple 48MP system – main with variable aperture, ultra-wide, and 4x periscope telephoto – set a high bar, and the 20 Pro will need to clear it.
In our iPhone 18 Pro review, the variable aperture main camera was the headline upgrade, with the telephoto performing well and the ultra-wide being the relative weak link. Any improvement there would be welcome.
iPhone 18 Pro camera setup (reference):
- 48MP main, variable aperture f/1.5–f/4.0, sensor-shift OIS, 1/1.28" sensor
- 48MP ultra-wide, f/2.2, sensor-shift OIS
- 48MP telephoto, periscope, f/2.8, 4x optical zoom
- 18MP front camera with Face ID
iPhone 20 Pro Max storage
- No storage leaks yet – 256GB / 512GB / 1TB expected; 2TB possible on Pro Max
The iPhone 18 Pro Max introduced a 2TB tier for the first time in iPhone history. Whether that option comes to the standard Pro model on the 20 series is unknown, but the baseline structure of 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB is almost certain to carry over.
One notable hardware development that could affect storage performance: leaks suggest Apple is considering High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) for the iPhone 20 Pro – the same vertically stacked DRAM architecture used in AI data center chips.
If true, that would represent a fundamental shift in how iPhone memory is structured, with significant gains in bandwidth and efficiency
Expected iPhone 20 Pro storage options:
- 256GB
- 512GB
- 1TB
- 2TB (Pro Max, possibly Pro)
iPhone 20 Pro Max design
- Quad-curved display wrapping all four edges confirmed by multiple sources
- Bezels moved to the sides – invisible from the front
- Under-display Face ID and front camera expected
- Dynamic Island likely replaced by punch-hole – full removal now considered unlikely
- Solid-state buttons with haptic feedback rumored
This is the most consequential iPhone redesign since the iPhone X. The concept is one Apple has reportedly been pursuing for years: a slab of glass with the display wrapping around all four edges, pushing the bezels to the sides of the device where they become invisible when looking at the front.
iPhone 18 Pro. | Image by PhoneArena
The approach is technically different from Samsung's old Galaxy Edge phones – those curved screens distorted content at the edges. The iPhone 20 Pro's implementation is reportedly engineered specifically to avoid that, keeping screen content accurate all the way to the curve.
Early render of the iPhone 20 Pro potential redesign. | Image by fpt.
The original vision, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, was even more radical – a completely port-free, cutout-free glass slab, the design Steve Jobs and Jony Ive reportedly wanted from the beginning but couldn't execute with the technology available at the time.
That version appears to have been scaled back. Full under-display Face ID and camera remains in the plan, but eliminating the Dynamic Island entirely is now looking less likely – a punch-hole cutout is the more probable outcome.
iPhone 20 Pro Max display
- Pro: around 6.41-inch, around 2686 x 1236 resolution
- Pro Max: around 6.96-inch, 2912 x 1340 resolution
- Quad-curved design – display wraps all four edges
- New 16nm display driver chip in development – more power-efficient than current 28nm
| Device | Screen size | Brightness |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone 20 Pro Max | 6.96 inches* | 3,000 nits* |
| iPhone 20 Pro | 6.41 inches* | 3,000 nits* |
| iPhone 18 Pro Max | 6.9 inches | 3,000 nits |
| iPhone 18 Pro | 6.3 inches | 3,000 nits |
* - anticipated sizes
The display is the story of the iPhone 20 Pro. Multiple well-sourced leakers – Digital Chat Station, Ice Universe, and Bloomberg's Mark Gurman – all point to the same quad-curved design, and ET News reported earlier that Apple's supply chain was actively working on the four-sided bending display technology needed to build it.
What the iPhone 20 Pro's display may look like. | Image by Ice Universe
Both Pro models may get a screen size bump over the 18 series, with the aspect ratio reportedly staying the same – so the phones will grow proportionally rather than just getting taller.
iPhone 20 Pro and Pro Max potential screen specs. | Image by Digital Chat Station
The display driver chip is also reportedly getting a meaningful upgrade, moving from a 28nm to a 16nm manufacturing process. That's not a headline feature, but it matters: a more efficient driver chip means the display draws less power, which contributes directly to battery life.
The iPhone 18 Pro already uses Samsung's M16 OLED material – the best available – so the panel quality baseline is already high. The upgrade story on the 20 Pro is the form, not the underlying panel tech.
iPhone 20 Pro Max battery
- Pro Max: 6,000mAh rumored – largest ever in an iPhone
- Pure silicon battery technology under consideration, replacing current lithium-ion cells
- Apple C3 modem expected – improved efficiency over C2
The iPhone 18 Pro's battery situation is already impressive. A barely-changed 4,288mAh cell delivers significantly better real-world results than the 17 Pro – our review found it stretching to a day and a half of use, something no previous small iPhone had managed – largely thanks to the A20 Pro's 2nm efficiency gains.
The 18 Pro Max pushes further still, with Apple claiming 45 hours of video playback.
The iPhone 20 Pro Max is rumored to take battery capacity to around 6,000mAh, which would be the largest cell Apple has ever put in an iPhone.
Combined with the A21 Pro on a second-generation 2nm node, the Apple C3 modem, and the possibility of a pure silicon cell – which holds more energy than standard lithium-ion – battery life on the Pro Max could be genuinely class-leading. The standard Pro's battery size hasn't leaked yet.
Keep in mind that Apple doesn't officially publish battery capacities in mAh – all figures here come from testing or leaks and should be treated as estimates, rather than confirmed specs.
Charging on the iPhone 18 Pro moved to 60W wired and 25W MagSafe wireless. We'd expect at least those speeds to carry over, with wireless charging becoming the primary method if the port-free design rumors have any basis – though a Lightning or USB-C port is still expected on most current leaks.
iPhone 20 Pro Max features and software
- No software leaks yet – iOS 28 expected at launch
- Apple currently offers 6-7 years of iOS updates on iPhones
The iPhone 18 Pro shipped with iOS 27, which our reviewer Vic called Apple at its best – faster, more stable, and with a rebuilt Siri that finally works as advertised (in markets where it's available, EU users were excluded at launch due to regulatory issues). By September 2027, iOS 28 is the natural expectation.
Apple Intelligence will almost certainly expand further. The iPhone 18 Pro's on-device AI processing – routing heavier tasks to Private Cloud Compute when needed – established a clear framework, and the A21 Pro's rumored HBM memory architecture would give on-device AI significantly more bandwidth to work with.
What specific iOS 28 features look like is anyone's guess at this point.
iPhone 20 Pro Max hardware and specs
- A21 Pro chip (second-gen 2nm) expected
- RAM: 12-16GB, with HBM under consideration
- Pro Max battery: 6,000mAh rumored
- Apple C3 modem expected
- No charging speed leaks yet
The A21 Pro is expected to be Apple's first chip on a second-generation 2nm process – a refinement of the same node used for the A20 Pro, which already set performance records in our testing.
In benchmarks, the A20 Pro's single-core score of 4,030 and GPU performance were well ahead of any Android competitor. The A21 Pro on a more established 2nm process should extend that lead, particularly in sustained performance where Apple's thermal management has historically been an advantage over Android flagships.
The HBM memory story is potentially the most significant hardware development. High Bandwidth Memory uses a vertically stacked DRAM architecture that delivers dramatically higher bandwidth than standard LPDDR5X – the same reason data centers use it for AI workloads.
If Apple makes it work in a phone, the on-device AI performance gains could be substantial. The challenge is cost and heat, which is why it remains speculation rather than confirmed.
Should I wait for the iPhone 20 Pro Max?
- You should wait for the iPhone 20 Pro Max if design matters to you more than any single spec upgrade. The quad-curved, near-bezel-free form factor is the most visually ambitious iPhone Apple has attempted recently. If you're on an iPhone 17 Pro or earlier and care about owning something genuinely new-looking, this is the one to hold out for. The under-display camera, punch-hole or otherwise, also closes the last remaining gap between iPhone and the cleanest-looking Android flagships.
- You should not wait for the iPhone 20 Pro Max if you need a phone now, or if curved-edge displays give you pause. Community reaction to the quad-curved design has been mixed – grip, accidental touches, and case compatibility are all legitimate concerns that won't be answered until hands-on time with the device. The iPhone 18 Pro Max is already an excellent phone by any measure – better battery life than any previous iPhone, the best chip available for a smartphone, and an excellent camera system. That's a hard phone to talk yourself out of.
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