The iPhone Duo comes in two colors, Night Sky and Star White. And, though Apple brought back a black color option for the iPhone 18 Pro Max this year, I feel like there’s a clear winner when you put the two phones side by side.
Night Sky vs Black
Does the iPhone Duo do it better than the iPhone 18 Pro Max? | Image by Yeux1122
The iPhone 18 Pro Max doesn’t get a fancy name for its black color option, that honor falls to the “Glacier” offering this year. But when you put the iPhone Duo and the iPhone 18 Pro Max next to each other, the Duo appears (translated source) darker, despite a hint of blue in there as well.
Which phone comes with a better dark color?
9 Votes
iPhone Duo vs iPhone 18 Pro Max
A black color option was sorely missed last year on the iPhone 17 Pro models and the internet made sure that Apple knew that. There’s no trick here with the iPhone 18 Pro phones, no dark blue or dark gray options, just real black. The standout color for this year, however, is the fantastic Burgundy.
Meanwhile, the iPhone Duo only comes in two colors, but Apple made the Night Sky shade darker than the black option on the iPhone 18 Pro. The iPhone 18 Pro is objectively blacker like previous black Pro models, but it might not be precisely what some had been hoping for.
Comparison is the thief of joy
On its own, the black color option for the iPhone 18 Pro looks fantastic. | Image by PhoneArena
Had the Night Sky iPhone Duo not been announced, the black iPhone 18 Pro would have seemed perfect. Most people still seem okay with it, but many have complained about the problem of highly visible fingerprints and scratches on the aluminum chassis.
Recommended For You
The black iPhone 18 Pro is susceptible to fingerprints and smudges. | Image by Reddit
Personally, I know which one I would have picked were I switching to iPhone this year.
The iPhone Duo wins
Even when it appears blue, the iPhone Duo is still a more pleasant darker tone, in my opinion. | Image by PhoneArena
For me, Night Sky on the iPhone Duo is the clear winner when compared to the black iPhone 18 Pro. Yes, the latter is more representative of the actual color but the Duo’s shade is darker and thus much more appealing in my opinion.
But it doesn’t ultimately matter that much to me because Burgundy is the first time that a smartphone has picked up a color that appeals to me more than the black option. I’m just undecided on whether I want the super-fun Galaxy Z Fold 8 or the stunningly pretty Burgundy iPhone 18 Pro Max, which would also mean a complete switch to another ecosystem.
Abdullah loves smartphones, Virtual Reality, and audio gear. Though he covers a wide range of news his favorite is always when he gets to talk about the newest VR venture or when Apple sets the industry ablaze with another phenomenal release.
A discussion is a place, where people can voice their opinion, no matter if it
is positive, neutral or negative. However, when posting, one must stay true to the topic, and not just share some
random thoughts, which are not directly related to the matter.
Things that are NOT allowed:
Off-topic talk - you must stick to the subject of discussion
Offensive, hate speech - if you want to say something, say it politely
Spam/Advertisements - these posts are deleted
Multiple accounts - one person can have only one account
Impersonations and offensive nicknames - these accounts get banned
To help keep our community safe and free from spam, we apply temporary limits to newly created accounts:
New accounts created within the last 24 hours may experience restrictions on how frequently they can
post or comment.
These limits are in place as a precaution and will automatically lift.
Moderation is done by humans. We try to be as objective as possible and moderate with zero bias. If you think a
post should be moderated - please, report it.
Have a question about the rules or why you have been moderated/limited/banned? Please,
contact us.
Things that are NOT allowed:
To help keep our community safe and free from spam, we apply temporary limits to newly created accounts: