iPhone 18 Pro starts at Dh5,099 in UAE with pre-orders opening September 12

Dubai: UAE consumers will be able to pre-order Apple’s new iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max from Saturday, September 12, with prices starting at Dh5,099 and Dh5,499 respectively.

Both phones will go on sale on Friday, September 18, with storage options of 256GB, 512GB, 1TB and 2TB. Buyers can choose between burgundy, glacier, silver and black.

Customers trading in an iPhone 13 or later through Apple Trade In can receive between Dh640 and Dh3,260 in credit towards a new device.

The latest Pro models bring a variable aperture camera to the iPhone for the first time, alongside longer battery life, a new A20 Pro processor and redesigned thermal management aimed at sustaining performance for longer periods.

Camera gets variable aperture

The 48MP Fusion Main camera now uses six laser-cut blades that move between different aperture settings, allowing the camera to adjust depth of field and lighting while giving users the option to manually select one of four aperture settings.

Apple said the new sensor and computational imaging system improve low-light photography and detail, including people positioned farther back in group photographs.

Users can also adjust aperture, shutter speed and white balance through new Pro controls inside the Camera app, while a histogram can be used to monitor exposure.

Video recorded at up to 60 frames per second can have Cinematic effects applied after capture. Time-lapse video can now be recorded in 4K with Dolby Vision HDR, while Audio Mix has been updated to improve voices and isolate music.

New tool checks whether photos were altered

Apple is also introducing Reference Image on the iPhone 18 Pro models, using the Main camera sensor to sign the data captured by each pixel.

Photos taken in Reference mode generate an unalterable reference image through Private Cloud Compute, which can be viewed alongside the main photograph in the Photos app to compare the two and determine whether edits have been made.

Apple said image metadata and planned support for the SynthID standard can also help identify images generated or edited using artificial intelligence.

Battery reaches up to 45 hours of video playback

Battery life is another major change, particularly on the iPhone 18 Pro Max.

eSIM-only versions provide up to 36 hours of video playback on the iPhone 18 Pro and up to 45 hours on the iPhone 18 Pro Max. The UAE is among the markets receiving eSIM-only models.

Removing the physical SIM tray creates space for a larger battery, providing two additional hours of video playback, according to Apple.

The iPhone 18 Pro can reach up to 50% charge in around 15 minutes using a wired connection, or around 30 minutes when charging wirelessly.

Five minutes of wired charging on the iPhone 18 Pro Max provides around seven hours of video playback, while Apple says the device provides up to 30 hours of usage on a full charge under its new battery usage model.

A20 Pro moves to 2-nanometre technology

Both phones are powered by the A20 Pro processor, built using 2-nanometre process technology.

The chip has 50% more memory bandwidth than the A19 Pro, alongside a six-core CPU and seven-core GPU that Apple says is up to 40% faster than the previous generation for graphics rendering.

A Dual 16-core Neural Engine provides 32 total cores and double the AI processing power of the A19 Pro.

Apple has paired the processor with a next-generation vapour chamber with three times the surface area used on the iPhone 17 Pro. The company says the redesigned system enables up to a 40% improvement in sustained performance over the previous generation.

The phones also include Apple’s N1 wireless networking chip supporting Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread, alongside the C2 cellular modem system.

Apple said C2 provides faster uploads than C1X while consuming 15% less energy.

Dynamic Island can show more information

The Dynamic Island has also been redesigned and can display three Live Activities at the same time while retaining Face ID functions for unlocking the phone, approving purchases and signing into apps.

Both models will run iOS 27, which will be available as a free software update on Monday, September 14.

Apple Intelligence will also become available with iOS 27 on September 14 for supported devices and languages, while Siri AI will begin rolling out in beta on the same day for supported devices set to English.

UAE models move to eSIM

The UAE is among the countries where eSIM-only versions of the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max will be sold, alongside Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Apple said eSIM is supported by more than 500 carriers worldwide, including e& and du.

Pre-orders in the UAE begin at 5am PT on Saturday, September 12, before retail availability starts on Friday, September 18.