Prices for iPhone 18 Pro Models Expected to Rise Sharply

It has been reported that the prices of the flagship smartphones expected to be introduced in September of this year — the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max — will be at least $250–300 higher compared to the previous generation. This serious change is causing heated discussions in the tech market, as such a sharp jump in flagship device prices in recent years could create unexpected financial pressure for consumers. This is reported by Ixbt.com reports .

Citing information from well-known analyst Jeff Pu, the publication ixbt.com notes that two main factors are cited as the primary reasons for the price increase. First, this is the high cost of production for the new A20 chips, which will be manufactured based on an advanced 2-nanometer technological process. Second, the relentlessly growing global demand for DRAM and NAND flash memory is putting severe pressure on the supply chain.

Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure and Its Impact

This trend is directly related to the enormous demand worldwide for key components required to build artificial intelligence infrastructure. This process exerts intense pressure on Apple's supply chain, inevitably affecting the final product price. The company is trying to cover these costs by changing the pricing of its high-end models.

Apple is also taking steps to balance the initial research and development investments for creating its first foldable iPhone and to maintain profit margins across the overall hardware business. According to experts, if the price of the base Pro version increases by $250–300 in foreign markets, the top-tier models with larger storage will become even more expensive.

Technical Upgrades and Expected Premieres

Despite the price hike, the iPhone 18 Pro series devices will be fully updated with a new generation Bionic chip. This will significantly increase the processing computing power for Apple Intelligence capabilities locally on the device. Additionally, the company will install a new sensor in the camera system, improve the telephoto lens characteristics, and optimize the body materials and heat dissipation structure to adapt to long-term AI calculations and heavy photography scenarios.

As a reminder, analyst Jeff Pu has previously made several accurate predictions, correctly anticipating the appearance of LPDDR5 RAM and a 48-megapixel sensor in iPhone 14 Pro models, as well as periscope cameras in the iPhone 15 Pro. Therefore, his new forecasts are being taken very seriously in the tech world.