iPhone 18 Pro reviews: faster and longer-lasting, but the price rise is hard to ignore

The iPhone 18 Pro costs more than last year’s model, and the reviews say it is better in measurable ways. They also say it is not different enough to tempt anyone who bought the iPhone 17 Pro. 9to5Mac gives the US starting price as $1,199 for the Pro and $1,299 for the Pro Max, both with 256GB, a $100 increase over last year’s base models.

This roundup covers three reviews: 9to5Mac, Expert Reviews and Smartprix. They were written in the US, the UK and India, so currencies differ, but all three note a price rise.

What every review agrees on

Battery life is the clearest improvement. 9to5Mac says Apple rates the Pro at 36 hours of local video playback and gives new “typical use” estimates of up to 24 hours for the Pro and 30 hours for the Pro Max. Its reviewer got about a day and a half from the Pro Max. Expert Reviews finished its days with roughly 30% left, about 5% more than on last year’s Pro, and says charging reaches 50% in around 15 minutes with a 60W adapter. Smartprix reports 8 to 10 hours of screen-on time and says the phone comfortably lasts a full day.

Performance is the second agreed point. 9to5Mac’s benchmarks show the CPU 22 to 27% faster and the GPU 40 to 45% faster than the A19 Pro, and it credits a larger vapor chamber for better thermals.

The weight comes up in two reviews. 9to5Mac lists 211 g for the Pro and 249 g for the Pro Max and says the Pro Max is near its reviewer’s comfort limit. Smartprix also calls the 211 g Pro heavy for its size.

On upgrading, the reviewers speak with one voice. Expert Reviews:

“If you picked up an iPhone 17 Pro last year, you can happily forget this model and keep scrolling.”

9to5Mac says there is little reason to upgrade from the 17 Pro, but that owners of an iPhone 16 Pro or older should consider switching. Smartprix says to skip it if you own a 17 Pro and that it is worthwhile from an iPhone 15 Pro or older.

Where they differ: the camera

The headline change is a variable aperture on the 48MP main camera, moving between f/1.48 and f/4.0. 9to5Mac says it gathers more light at night, which reduces noise, and stops down for sharper close-ups, with manual aperture control for Pro users. Expert Reviews found daylight shots better and close-ups clearer than those of the Galaxy S26 Ultra.

Smartprix is less impressed. It says everyday photos look much like the iPhone 17 Pro’s, the telephoto trails rivals such as the OPPO Find X9 Ultra, and wide-aperture shots show notable flare and ghosting. It also reports occasional freezes and Face ID failures on its unit. No other review in this set mentions those problems, so treat them as one reviewer’s experience until more users report the same.

The ultra-wide and telephoto lenses are carried over from the iPhone 17 Pro, according to Expert Reviews. That helps explain why the two groups disagree: if you shoot mostly in low light or close up, the new aperture matters. If you shoot zoomed-in, nothing much has changed.

The price question

The price is where the verdicts diverge. Expert Reviews calls the iPhone 18 Pro a strong phone that is easy to overlook, and says the camera, Dynamic Island and battery improvements add up to an excellent experience. Smartprix scores it 8.8/10 and then says “paying significantly more for largely familiar hardware is a bitter pill.”

Storage makes it worse. 9to5Mac says the 1TB Pro costs $1,799, up $400 from last year. The UK price is £1,199 for the 256GB model, £100 above the iPhone 17 Pro at launch, per Expert Reviews. In India, Smartprix lists ₹1,64,900, about ₹30,000 more.

Expert Reviews adds a point worth noting: for most buyers it still recommends the cheaper iPhone 17.

Who should buy it

• From an iPhone 16 Pro or older: the combination of battery, speed and camera is a solid reason to upgrade, and all three reviews agree.
• From an iPhone 17 Pro: wait. Nothing in these reviews suggests the gains are large enough.
• Heavy photographers who shoot telephoto: check sample shots before buying, given Smartprix’s comparison.
• Anyone who wants 1TB: price the jump carefully, because the storage premium grew more than the base price.

What to watch: whether the Face ID and freezing reports from Smartprix appear elsewhere, and whether Apple’s software updates change the camera processing that reviewers describe as slightly brighter.