IPhone 18 Pro Max launches globally at $1,299 — Burgundy, Glacier, Silver, Black. No major hardware leap from iPhone 17 Pro Max, but variable-aperture main camera arrives as headline upgrade. Available since September 18, 2026, in the US and India (Rs 1,14,900, per Apple India’s website as cited by How-To Geek), with carriers and retailers including AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Amazon, Best Buy, and Apple Store stocking it outright. MVNOs carry it too, though financing is limited outside major carriers. The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199, $100 more than last year’s Pro, matching the $100 jump for the Max variant. That price bump applies across all storage tiers: 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, and new 2TB option. Confirmed in the review but not priced separately. No mention of Indian pricing for the Pro model appears in the source. Only the Max is priced in rupees. Colors are Burgundy, Glacier, Silver, and Black, a full refresh from iPhone 17 Pro’s Cosmic Orange and Deep Blue. Silver carries over. Burgundy is described as bold and fingerprint-prone. Glacier and Black are not. The Dynamic Island shrinks slightly, thanks to relocation of the Face ID infrared sensor under the display corner. A change that, per How-To Geek’s hands-on testing, hasn’t meaningfully affected unlock speed or accuracy. Siri AI debuts as a contextual assistant capable of parsing iMessages, Calendar, and Notes, but fails on cross-platform messages (e.g., Telegram) and audio recordings in Notes, even when explicitly prompted. It works reliably for iMessage-based queries and calendar lookups. The camera system’s biggest addition is variable aperture on the main 48MP sensor. The first time Apple has brought this feature to an iPhone. How-To Geek calls it the ‘biggest upgrade in years’ per Apple’s own announcement language, but judges it incremental next to the iPhone 17 Pro’s ‘turning point’ camera overhaul. So: if you’re on iPhone 16 Pro Max or earlier, or switching from Android. The 18 Pro Max qualifies as a meaningful upgrade. If you bought an iPhone 17 Pro Max last year? Not so much. Pre-orders for the folding iPhone Duo began October 19, the same day this review published, but that device isn’t covered here. The iPhone 18 Pro Max is shipping now. Apple’s next major software update, iOS 18.3, is expected to ship in November. Likely bringing refinements to Siri AI’s reliability and Notes integration.