iPhone 18 Pro: Three new features that already have me excited

Apple's upcoming iPhone 18 Pro is rumored to feature a major A20 Pro chip on a 2nm process, significant camera upgrades including variable aperture and improved telephoto, and the in-house C2 5G modem with satellite support, marking a potential full transition away from Qualcomm.

iPhone 18 Pro is still a few months away https://9to5mac.com/2026/05/18/iphone-18-release-date-when-apples-new-model-is-coming/ from launching, but out of the rumored new features https://9to5mac.com/2026/06/19/iphone-18-pro-six-new-features-are-coming-this-fall/ so far, there are three upgrades I’m especially excited about. 1: A20 Pro chip Most years, the iPhone’s new chip isn’t especially high on the list of features that excite me. But with iPhone 18 Pro, things are different. The rumored A20 Pro chip coming this year is expected to be https://9to5mac.com/2026/05/08/iphone-18-pros-new-a20-chip-rumored-to-bring-two-major-upgrades/ a bigger-than-usual upgrade. That’s thanks to a new 2nm fabrication process and WMCM packaging. It’s not just the potential for big performance and efficiency gains that excites me though. It’s also the fact that iOS 27’s Apple Intelligence features should benefit a lot from the new chip. Siri AI and the many other new AI features are cutting-edge enough that certain aspects of them require the current-best iPhone chip https://9to5mac.com/2026/06/16/iphone-17-wont-get-ios-27s-top-tier-features-heres-why/ : A19 Pro. With such demanding software, I have no doubt that A20 Pro will make a noticeable difference for iOS 27 users. 2: Camera upgrades iPhone 18 Pro could offer “some of the biggest camera hardware upgrades in the lineup’s history,” per Mark Gurman. New features are rumored https://9to5mac.com/2026/06/15/iphone-18-pro-three-new-camera-upgrades-are-coming/ for my two most-used cameras: - Main camera is getting variable aperture - Telephoto camera has a larger aperture The improved Main camera is reportedly https://9to5mac.com/2026/06/22/new-iphone-18-pro-leak-highlights-big-upgrade-for-most-popular-camera/ also the reason iPhone 18 Pro’s plateau will be noticeably thicker. It may be 2mm thicker or more due primarily to an “enlarged main camera module.” Though we don’t have all the details, it sounds like the Main camera will improve in bigger ways than just variable aperture. And the Telephoto upgrades should make it perform better in low light. The camera is one of iPhone’s most important features, so I’m eager to see what iPhone 18 Pro brings. 3: C2 modem Apple began transitioning away from Qualcomm 5G modems with the iPhone 16e last year. iPhone Air and iPhone 17e continued the trend. iPhone 17 Pro still uses Qualcomm modems, but rumors indicate Apple’s next-generation C2 modem will debut in the iPhone 18 Pro. C2 is an especially interesting new feature for several reasons. First, it’s expected to be the modem that Apple uses to fully phase out Qualcomm. That means it should match or perhaps exceed the capabilities of the current best modems. Second, 5G satellite support is rumored https://9to5mac.com/2026/05/21/iphone-18-pro-could-make-life-saving-niche-feature-into-everyday-asset/ to be part of C2, likely to power several new https://9to5mac.com/2026/04/16/apple-has-four-new-iphone-satellite-features-rumored-heres-whats-coming/ satellite-related features. Finally, Apple has already shown that its in-house modems bring exclusive benefits https://9to5mac.com/2026/06/09/iphone-18-pros-new-c2-chip-will-bring-three-advantages-over-iphone-17/ , like battery gains and new privacy features. I’m interested to see if C2 will add anything to that list as part of the iPhone 18 Pro marketing pitch. Which rumored iPhone 18 Pro features are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments. Best iPhone accessories AirPods Pro 3 https://amzn.to/3Peq3Ge now only $179 , down from $249 MagSafe Car Mount for iPhone https://amzn.to/4tSJYde 10-year AirTag battery case https://amzn.to/4e6O6R2 AirTag 2 https://amzn.to/48BACtL 1-pack https://amzn.to/48BACtL / 4-pack https://amzn.to/3OFX4Lv 100W USB-C fast charging power adapter https://amzn.to/48EbPVU FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More. https://9to5mac.com/about/ affiliate our homepage http://9to5mac.com/ for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on exclusive stories https://9to5mac.com/feature/exclusive/ , reviews https://9to5mac.com/guides/review/ , how-tos https://9to5mac.com/guides/how-to/ , and subscribe to our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/9to5mac