Apple’s latest generation of devices is officially reaching consumers, with the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max joining the Apple Watch Series 12, Apple Watch Ultra 4 and AirPods 5 in stores and online worldwide from Friday, 18 September.
The rollout follows the opening of iPhone 18 Pro pre-orders on 12 September and brings some of Apple’s biggest hardware upgrades of the year to market, spanning smartphones, wearables and audio.
iPhone 18 Pro Pushes Camera and Performance Upgrades
At the centre of the new lineup are the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, powered by Apple’s A20 Pro chip and equipped with a next-generation vapor chamber designed to improve sustained performance.
Apple has introduced a new 48MP Fusion Main camera with variable aperture, allowing the camera to automatically adjust for depth of field and lighting conditions. The phones also introduce upgraded Photographic Styles with texture and grain controls, alongside customisable Pro controls within the Camera app.
Video creators can apply Cinematic effects after recording footage captured at up to 60 frames per second.
Battery performance is another major focus. Apple says redesigned batteries combined with silicon efficiencies deliver significant improvements, with the iPhone 18 Pro Max recording what the company describes as the largest battery-life increase yet for a Pro model.
The devices ship with iOS 27 and are available in black, silver, glacier and a new burgundy finish.
Apple Watch Gets New Health Sensing Technology
Apple is also rolling out the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4, both powered by the new S11 chip and featuring Apple’s new Health Sensing System.
According to Apple, the technology enables its most accurate heart-rate sensing in a wearable to date, alongside higher-frequency heart-rate and heart-rate variability measurements. A new readiness score is designed to give users insight into their capacity for activity during the day.
Apple Watch Series 12 offers up to 24 hours of everyday battery life, while 15 minutes of charging can provide up to an additional 12 hours. The more rugged Apple Watch Ultra 4 offers up to 45 hours of outdoor workout tracking and up to 50 hours of battery life during everyday use.
AirPods 5 Bring Stronger Noise Cancellation
AirPods 5 are also part of Apple’s September hardware push, introducing a new multiport acoustic architecture and next-generation Adaptive EQ.
Apple says the new open-ear Active Noise Cancellation system removes up to 50% more external noise than AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation. The company has also introduced a more natural Transparency mode.
The wireless-charging version adds longer battery life and a new force sensor with volume swipe, allowing listeners to adjust their volume directly from the stem. Users can also respond to Siri using head gestures.
New Macs Continue Apple’s AI Push
Apple’s hardware refresh extends beyond its mobile devices.
The new Mac mini introduces the M6 chip alongside an M5 Pro configuration. Apple says the M6 version delivers up to four times faster AI performance, twice the storage and graphics performance and 40% faster CPU performance compared with the specified previous-generation M4 configuration.
Mac Studio, meanwhile, is available with M5 Max and M5 Ultra processors and can be configured with up to 512GB of unified memory. Apple is positioning the machine for demanding professional workloads including creative production, software development, AI research and data science.
Mac mini and Mac Studio are scheduled to reach stores on Tuesday, 22 September.
Apple Expands Trade-In and Services Offers
Alongside the hardware launches, Apple is continuing to push trade-ins, financing and its growing services ecosystem.
Eligible customers trading in an iPhone 13 or newer can receive between $175 and $885 in trade-in credit, depending on factors including the device’s model, configuration and condition.
