We reported yesterday that Apple officially confirmed to The Wall Street Journal that its products could see price increases due to ongoing memory/storage chip shortages. Now, The Wall Street Journal has estimated that the iPhone 18 Pro could start at least $1,299, with at least $1,399 being most likely. If so, this means that the iPhone 18 Pro could see at least a $200-$300 price hike over the current iPhone 17 Pro. This further implies that we could see even more substantial price increases for higher storage tiers.
While both the memory and storage components certainly contribute to the rumored price hike, we should also take into account that the iPhone 18 Pro may have more advanced components beyond the memory and storage, as there’s a recent rumor that the iPhone 18 Pro could feature larger camera sensors with variable aperture.
Likewise, the iPhone 18 Pro Max will likely start at $100 higher, given the current price gap between the iPhone 17 Pro and the iPhone 17 Pro Max. Apple is expected to introduce the iPhone 18 Pro models and the “iPhone Ultra” this September. Given the most ambitious breakthroughs coming to the iPhone Ultra, it well justifies the ~$2,000 price tag. On the other hand, the regular iPhone 18 could continue to start at $799, but that model isn’t expected to launch until next spring, and only time will tell if the memory crisis will even affect the regular iPhone models.
Still, would the higher starting prices for the iPhone 18 Pro models deter you from upgrading? Sound off in the comments below.
