Apple has split its iPhone release calendar, and 2027 will be the first year that shows what that means in practice. According to 9to5Mac, the iPhone 18 Pro is a month into its life and the iPhone Duo has just opened for preorders, backordered through January. Next year brings a spring wave of iPhones, then a fall wave built around the iPhone’s 20th anniversary.
What the new rhythm changes
For the first time, Apple will launch its base iPhone in spring. 9to5Mac expects the iPhone 18 to carry the A20 chip, more RAM, thermal upgrades and the new Apple C2 modem. It may start at $899, the price the iPhone 17 reached after a rise from $799 last month. The report also says an iPhone 18e is coming, and that Apple would share many components between it and the iPhone 18, though what that means for the two devices is unclear.
The practical effect is that Apple no longer concentrates its whole lineup into one September moment. Staggering launches spreads demand across the year and gives each model its own news cycle. It also gives buyers a clearer reason to ask which phone fits their timing, not just their budget.
The iPhone Air gets a second try
The most interesting spring product is the iPhone Air 2. The original Air got a lukewarm reception, and 9to5Mac says Apple reworked the design to fit an ultrawide camera, which is why the phone missed last month’s launch. The reporter argues the camera matters less as a photography tool than as a signal: a single rear lens can make a phone look less premium to shoppers.
Other expected changes include a move from the C1X modem to the C2, a possible smaller Dynamic Island and a battery reportedly as large as 3500mAh, roughly 10% more than the first model. That shows a product being tuned after market feedback, which a split calendar makes easier.
The fall: anniversary redesign and a Duo sequel
The fall wave carries the bigger bets. For the 20th anniversary, Apple is expected to ship a fully redesigned iPhone that is glassier, has much slimmer bezels and drops the flat-edge design used since the iPhone 12. It should also have a much smaller Dynamic Island, likely a hole punch selfie camera and under-display Face ID. 9to5Mac calls it the phone to wait for if you are skipping the iPhone 18 Pro.
Apple will also release an iPhone Duo successor with the A21 Pro chip. Rumors are thin, though the reporter hopes for Face ID and better cameras.
What to watch
- Whether the iPhone 18 gets a design refresh or stays a chip bump with more RAM.
- How the C2 modem performs across the iPhone 18 and iPhone Air 2.
- Whether the anniversary phone can match Pro-level thermals. 9to5Mac is skeptical, though the Duo’s strong thermals without an aluminum unibody ease that concern.
- Whether Duo supply improves beyond the January backorder.
All of this is rumor and expectation, not Apple confirmation. Still, the shape is clear: a year with two launch windows, one iterative and one ambitious, and a lineup where timing matters as much as specs.