Apple will debut its new premium smartphone lineup on September 9, featuring the foldable iPhone Ultra alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max.
The September 9 Showcase and Executive Shift
The annual autumn gadget showcase is undergoing a fundamental shift. Traditionally, Apple events followed a predictable cadence under Tim Cook, where the arrival of a new generation immediately brought a neat one-hundred-dollar or euro price cut to the previous year’s models. This autumn, John Ternus is stepping up to lead the presentation on Tuesday, September 9, according to the reporting outlet.
While consumer expectations for immediate discounts on older hardware run high every autumn, market realities are rewriting the playbook. Social media editor Ana Lađarević noted that Apple will present the new generation of phones on September 9, including the first foldable model named iPhone Ultra.
Component Chaos and the Absence of a Standard Successor
The traditional post-launch markdown is missing its usual anchor this year because the standard iPhone 18 will not debut alongside the Pro devices. Industry tracking indicates that the base model is slated to arrive only next year. Because no direct successor is hitting shelves in September, the current iPhone 17 is expected to hold its starting price of 999 € for an extended period.
Behind this pricing stubbornness lies a turbulent electronic component market. RAM chip prices have soared into the sky, inflating manufacturing costs across the board and leaving producers with minimal room to voluntarily compress their profit margins.
The Price Tag of the iPhone Ultra
The center of attention at the upcoming event is the company’s first foldable device, designated as the iPhone Ultra. The device surfaced briefly on Vodafone Egypt’s website at a conversion equivalent of roughly 2.630 evra, though regional tax variations make direct currency conversions imperfect indicators.
A more reliable gauge comes from comparing the new Ultra directly against the iPhone 17 Pro Max within the same market, where the foldable model commands a roughly 65 percent premium. Applying that exact percentage to the European starting price of the iPhone 17 Pro Max yields an estimated 2.395 evra. In the United States, parallel math points toward a figure around 1.980 dolara, with speculation mounting that the company may settle on a clean 1.999 or 2.000 dolara threshold.
Additional data from the Australian market further fuels rumors of very high pricing:
- 256 GB model: Approximately 2.295 evra
- 512 GB model: Approximately 2.605 evra
- 1 TB model: Approximately 2.915 evra
For comparison, the iPhone 17 Pro Max with 256 GB costs about 1.365 evra on that market, indicating the new foldable model is approximately 68 percent more expensive.
Higher Costs for the Pro and Pro Max Lineup
Buyers hoping to bypass the foldable tier by purchasing a traditional flagship will still absorb increased costs. Vodafone listings placed the iPhone 18 Pro at roughly 1.660 evra equivalent and the iPhone 18 Pro Max at approximately 1.775 evra equivalent on that regional marketplace, representing a 10 and 11 percent increase over the previous generation.
When mapped to European markets, the iPhone 18 Pro is projected to start around 1.430 evra compared to the 1.300 evra debut of its predecessor, while the Pro Max variant could climb to approximately 1.600 evra. Underlying these adjustments are mounting hardware expenses; analytical company TrendForce estimates suggest that component costs for the iPhone 18 Pro could run up to 40 percent higher than the preceding generation.
Consumer Strategies and Unresolved Questions
With official price cuts off the table for current hardware, shoppers looking for a discount on Pro models will need to look toward third-party distributors like Amazon or local distributors, or second-hand and refurbished channels once inventory turnover begins. Whether secondary retailers will discount stock quickly enough to offset the broader upward pricing trend remains entirely open as the industry awaits Tuesday’s official presentations.
