Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro series has got everyone excited for all the right reasons – until now. According to reports, the price of the iPhone 18 Pro may be a lot higher than last year’s series, making fans take a cautious approach to its upcoming launch later next year in 2026.
Rising chip prices may be to blame
Analysts believe the price surge is due to Apple shifting to a brand-new chipset for the iPhone 18 series. Leaks have pegged the iPhone 18 Pro family as being powered by a chip codenamed the A20 Pro, which would be built on an advanced 2nm fabrication process.
Such a chipset would bring about benefits in performance, power efficiency, and artificial intelligence capabilities, but will also significantly increase the production cost. Supply-chain sources suggest the silicon wafers on which the 2nm chips are etched have a price of around $30,000 (approx. ₹25 lakh) each at present. This is up from around $20,000 earlier, when 3nm chips featuring in last year’s iPhones were in production.
Analysts predict this increase could lead to a cost of around $280 (₹25,000+) per A20 or A20 Pro chip, which would be an 80% increase over the costs for components seen in last year’s iPhone 17 series. This has raised the question of whether Apple will choose to cut its margins and eat this cost, or pass a part of the price increase to consumers by charging higher retail prices.
Increasing signs Apple may raise prices
Some recent reports have started to indicate that the latter is more likely, with Apple set to increase retail prices for at least some models in its iPhone 18 Pro series. These reports highlight Apple has limited room to maneuver when faced with such significant increases, and thus more likely to factor a portion of the cost increase into final iPhone prices for consumers.
If this is indeed what happens, then we could be looking at a starting price for the iPhone 18 Pro series which is higher than last year’s models. In the Indian subcontinent, the iPhone 17 Pro started at ₹1,34,900 when it was first launched. The Pro Max model cost even more, and Apple could start the iPhone 18 Pro series at a significantly higher price point.
Apple fans have a lot to get excited about
Now, as noted above, this expected price increase isn’t all due to Apple’s production costs. The iPhone 18 Pro series also has a range of upgrades in the works that are quite exciting on their own, so let’s take a look at the things Apple could be bringing to its next iPhones in the pipeline:
- Rollout of Under-display Face ID along with a punch-hole selfie camera for an unobstructed, more immersive front display.
- Improved performance and efficiency in the A20 Pro chip.
- Greater camera capabilities and a variable aperture lens for improved depth of field control.
- A new unified color for the rear, with the rear moving away from the dual-tone design language in recent series.
Apple iPhone 18 Pro Series: What’s Expected?
If the leaked specs are true, the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max will see an exciting set of upgrades that could push these to be one of Apple’s best flagships in its portfolio. These devices, along with other potential launches, such as an iPhone Air refresh and even a foldable iPhone, are expected to launch in September or October of 2026, as per previous years.
