Apple’s New Era Begins: iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max Launch Day
Apple just kicked off a new chapter literally. On September 18, 2026, CEO John Ternus marked his first iPhone launch day as chief executive by opening the doors of the company’s Fifth Avenue flagship store in New York, greeting a cheering crowd as sales of the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max began. Ternus swung open the doors at 8 a.m. ET and personally welcomed the first customer, a moment that echoed years of Apple leadership traditions only this time under new management. macdailynewsmacdailynews
Ternus, an American engineer and business executive who has served as Apple’s CEO since September 1, 2026, took over from Tim Cook, ending Cook’s 15-year run at the top, with Cook moving into the role of executive chairman. It’s a symbolic shift for the company: Apple is moving from an operations-and-supply-chain CEO to a product-and-engineering CEO, and this launch was his chance to prove it. John Ternus +2
What’s New in the iPhone 18 Pro Max
The headline device of the event is the iPhone 18 Pro Max, and the specs sheet shows a phone built for power users and creators:
- Display: A 6.9-inch OLED panel with a smooth 120Hz refresh rate at a resolution of 1320 x 2868 pixels smartprix
- Chip: The new Apple A20 Pro processor, built on a more efficient manufacturing process for stronger AI and gaming performance smartprix
- Cameras: A 48MP + 48MP + 48MP triple rear camera system paired with an 18MP front-facing camera smartprix
- Battery: A 5,567 mAh battery — noticeably larger than last year’s model, with fast charging that gets the phone to 50% in about 15 minutes nanoreviewnanoreview
- Design: MagSafe support, Face ID, and a weight of 249 grams gsmarena
- Colors: Black, Silver, Glacier, and Burgundy smartprix
- Price: Starting at $1,299 for the Pro Max, a $100 increase over last year CNBC
Apple also used the event to make a bigger statement about its future. Ternus unveiled the iPhone Duo Apple’s first-ever foldable iPhone, starting at $1,999. It was the biggest product move Apple has made in seven years of iPhone release cadence, and it doubled as a debut statement from a CEO with an engineering background rather than a marketing one. Apple event 2026: Folding iPhone Duo, iPhone 18 Pro, added AI features and more +2
A Quick Note on the “iPhone 18” Naming
One detail worth flagging for readers: reports indicate the standard (non-Pro) iPhone 18 won’t actually launch until next year, meaning this September event covered only the Pro, Pro Max, and the new foldable Duo. If you’ve seen “iPhone 18” plastered everywhere and wondered where the regular model is that’s why. Yahoo Finance
Will There Be a Special 20th Anniversary iPhone?
Here’s where things get speculative and it’s a theory worth mentioning if you’re advising readers on whether to buy now or wait. Some enthusiasts online have pointed out that 2027 will mark the iPhone’s 20th anniversary, and they’re drawing a comparison to 2017, when Apple broke from its usual naming convention to release the iPhone X alongside the iPhone 8 as a special anniversary edition.
The theory goes that Apple could skip straight from “iPhone 19” to something like an “iPhone XX” or an anniversary-branded flagship in 2027, similar to how the X leapfrogged expectations back then. It’s an interesting parallel, but it’s important to be clear with readers: this is community speculation, not anything Apple has confirmed or hinted at officially. If you’re the type of buyer who always wants the newest flagship, this is a reasonable thing to keep in mind before committing to an upgrade but it shouldn’t necessarily stop you from buying the iPhone 18 Pro today if you need a new phone now.
Should You Upgrade to the iPhone 18 Pro Max?
If you’re coming from an iPhone 15 or older, the jump in display size, battery life, and camera performance makes this one of the more compelling upgrades Apple has released in a few years. If you already own an iPhone 17 Pro Max, the improvements are more incremental bigger battery, faster chip and you may want to wait and see what direction Ternus takes the lineup in 2027, especially with anniversary rumors circulating.
Either way, the bigger story this week isn’t just the hardware it’s the passing of the torch at Apple itself, and the first real signal of what an engineering-led Apple looks like.
