It depends on where you're located, but it's September 18 and that means one thing and one thing only: the iPhone 18 Pro Max and the 18 Pro are here! It's going to be a while before the iPhone Duo, Apple's first-ever foldable iPhone, arrives (that's to happen in late October), but the successors to the iPhone 17 Pro Max and the 17 Pro are here in the flesh.
Apple fanatics around the world are lining up in queues in front of their local Apple Store and, as usual, emotions get red hot.
Chaos in Sydney, Australia
Will NY follow suit? | Image by Apple
Because of its location, Australia is among the first countries to welcome a new calendar day. It's an "early" country, if you will. And those in Sydney who wanted the new iPhone 18 Pro Max are early birds, too.
An Australian news outlet reports that chaos has erupted in front of a Sydney Apple Store. A man, walking out of the building, proudly raised the iPhone 18 Pro Max above his head and smiled for the cameras. Then, a man rushed through the frame and started yelling that he was the first to get the new phone. Of course, curses were heard, too and the security had to drive him away.
Per the report, Lachlan Collyer, 20, arrived hours before opening at Apple's flagship George Street store in Sydney to secure the first spot in line. He eventually walked out with the new Glacier Ice Blue iPhone 18 Pro.
Collyer wasn't particularly bothered by the interruption you see in the video and instead focused on what he had just bought, calling it an exciting moment for Apple's product lineup and its first 2nm chipset.
He said he was especially interested in seeing where Apple takes its technology over the coming years. Despite the brief bit of chaos outside the store, both Apple staff and other people in the queue reportedly recognized Collyer as the legitimate first customer.
Are you that passionate?
It's important to follow your dreams and passions, but have you ever spent a night in front of an Apple Store? I've personally never done that, but maybe you have.
I mean, I understand being excited about a new gadget and even camping outside an Apple Store for hours if that's your thing. But getting into a shouting match because someone else might have technically been the first person on Earth to buy the same phone… this phone will be sold in the millions, don't sweat it.
Still, I suppose this is what should and must happen when you get obsessed with a ~$1,300 slab of glass and silicon. The tendency is to push it as far as you can.
Congratulations to the real first buyer, whoever that is. May their iPhone 18 Pro enjoy a long and peaceful life!
Mint Mobile is now allowing you to get whichever plan you like for either three, six, or 12 months for just $15/mo. If you go for the six-month unlimited service, for instance, you'll now have to pay just $90 upfront instead of $210.
Sebastian is one of PhoneArena’s senior opinionators. A veteran news writer with almost 20 years of experience in media and technology, he not only covers all the hot news about Galaxies and iPhones, but often provides hot takes on industry trends. He’s fascinated with camera-focused flagships from the likes of Oppo and Vivo, as well as foldable phones.
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: