About a month before the iPhone 18 Pro premiere, rumors paint it as a rather modest update, except for one thing. Apple is rumored to match the 2018 Galaxy S9 and add a variable aperture lens to the main camera, but with a catch.
Instead of creating every iPhone 18 Pro equal, the company is reportedly going to incorporate the camera upgrade only in the iPhone 18 Pro Max. This will mark the first time since the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max when the two Pro iPhones will differ in more than their size and battery capacity.
Even if the variable aperture upgrade doesn’t sound all that exciting, this could be a great opportunity for Apple to finally align its portfolio with the trends that have been moving the best Android smartphones in recent years. This is the best time for the company to discontinue the Pro Max models and offer something even better.
The iPhone 18 Pro Max shouldn’t exist
If the iPhone 18 Pro Max will be better than the 18 Pro in anything more than size and battery capacity, it needs a different name, and Apple should know this. Consumers have always expected the company’s top models to be practically the same phone, and every time that wasn’t the case, they were mad.
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When the iPhone 12 Pro Max got a 50% larger main camera sensor and a longer telephoto camera, some people felt forced away from the more comfortable iPhone 12 Pro. Then, the iPhone 15 Pro Max got a 5x zoom on the telephoto camera, while the 15 Pro only had triple optical zoom. Many people chose between the two based on the zoom they preferred, not on the display size.
Both times, people felt forced away from the size they liked because they wanted certain camera features. And this is only natural; after all, adding the word “max” doesn’t suggest more than a bigger size. If that’s not the case, the phone isn’t just a “max” anymore, right?
Which name do you think Apple should use?
Crippling the iPhone 18 Pro could be bad for business
The largest iPhone 18 model could get a special camera. | Image by Macworld
What made those two exceptions even more maddening was that Apple didn’t stick with its choices. Just a year later, the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro offered exactly the same specs and features as their Pro Max versions, save for the ones dependent on the size.
Nobody would expect Apple to do something different this time around, which could be a good excuse for many people to skip the 18 Pro and wait for the variable aperture to land on the iPhone 19 Pro. And why wouldn’t they? I know I would wait, because modern phones are good enough to last one extra year without much of an issue.
An iPhone 18 Ultra is what we need
Apple is almost certainly going to launch an Ultra iPhone soon. | Image by TechDroider
Apple’s best solution will be to drop the Pro Max moniker altogether and launch the iPhone 18 Ultra. Not only will this solve the problem, but it’ll also allow the company to face its Chinese competitors better.
Even better for Apple, Vivo and Oppo are rumored to keep the successors of the Vivo X300 Ultra and Oppo Find X9 Ultra exclusive to the Chinese market, while Xiaomi may have cancelled the Xiaomi 18 Ultra altogether. Then there’s the chance to directly face the Galaxy S27 Ultra, and the rumored Galaxy S27 Pro with corresponding iPhone models.
Before you say I forgot about the foldable iPhone, which is rumored to be called the iPhone Ultra, let me remind you of Samsung’s foldables. The company’s preemptive answer to the Apple foldable is called simply the Galaxy Z Fold 8, and then there’s the Z Fold 8 Ultra, which is even better.
If I were Apple, I’d feel embarrassed with my only “ultra” phone being like my main competitor’s basic foldable, while this same competitor has two other Ultra phones, only one of which is foldable. Launching the iPhone 18 Ultra could also be a great excuse for the inevitable price increase we’re getting with this fall’s iPhones.
This could be the new iPhone many people want
Regardless of whether Apple listens to my advice and launches an iPhone 18 Ultra, I’ll still get the smaller iPhone 18 Pro. Variable aperture is a feature that doesn’t make sense on such a small camera, the small phone is getting a great battery life, and I’d like to finally switch to a more compact device.
However, many Apple fans would love to get a phone that feels fresh, even though a new name is not a ground breaking change. Samsung fans may laugh, but if fans are happy and sales get a boost, the iPhone 18 Pro Max should die for the iPhone 18 Ultra to finally reign supreme.
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Ilia, a tech journalist at PhoneArena, has been covering the mobile industry since 2011, with experience at outlets like Forbes Bulgaria. Passionate about smartphones, tablets, and consumer tech, he blends deep industry knowledge with a personal fascination that began with his first Nokia and Sony Ericsson devices. Originally from Bulgaria and now based in Lima, Peru, Ilia balances his tech obsessions with walking his dog, training at the gym, and slowly mastering Spanish.
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