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This iPhone 18 Pro is the successor to last year's iPhone 17 Pro series. And rather than confusing yourself by counting if this iPhone series is odd or even, we prefer to call this iPhone 18 Pro the iPhone 17S Pro. Yes, not
Comprehensive 2026 review of the iPhone 18 Pro covering design, performance, camera, battery, and new features.
Key Takeaways
- iPhone 18 Pro offers evolutionary design but major internal and functional upgrades.
- A20 Pro chip and improved cooling deliver better performance and thermal management.
- Battery life is notably efficient for a compact Pro model, rivaling previous Pro Max endurance.
- Dynamic Island enhancements improve multitasking without compromising screen space.
- Camera system introduces true variable aperture and advanced manual controls in the native app.
What the video covers
- The iPhone 18 Pro is an iterative upgrade over the iPhone 17 Pro, dubbed iPhone 17S Pro due to minimal design changes but significant feature improvements.
- Official Indonesian version reviewed with 1TB storage and burgundy color, which is considered the signature color despite fingerprint susceptibility.
- Design remains largely unchanged with aluminum unibody and a refined color tone on the MagSafe area.
- Display specs are similar to last year with a 6.3-inch Super Retina XDR OLED, 120Hz ProMotion, always-on display, HDR, 3000 nits brightness, and anti-reflective coating.
- Dynamic Island is smaller and can now show up to three live activities simultaneously, enhancing multitasking without switching apps.
- Powered by the new A20 Pro chip with 2nm fabrication, 6-core CPU, 7-core GPU, and 16-core Neural Engine, featuring a larger vapor chamber cooling system to prevent overheating.
- Battery life is efficient and comparable to last year's Pro Max despite smaller size; supports fast USB-C charging up to 50% in 15 minutes with a 60W adapter.
- Camera improvements include a real variable aperture with six laser-cut blades, Pro Control in the native app for manual adjustments, and stabilized 4K Dolby Vision HDR timelapse.
- Recommended upgrade for users of iPhone 15 Pro or older models due to significant performance, battery, and camera enhancements.
- Future content planned includes gaming tests, photography, astrophotography, and tips & tricks.
Chapters
- 00:00Introduction and Overview
- 01:08Availability and Color Choice
- 01:49Accessories and Design Details
- 02:27Storage Options and Recommendations
- 03:53Display Features and Dynamic Island
- 05:20Performance and A20 Pro Chipset
- 06:05Battery Life and Charging Improvements
- 08:11Camera Upgrades and Variable Aperture
- 10:51Conclusion and Upgrade Recommendations
- 11:32Future Content and Closing Remarks
Full Transcript — Download SRT & Markdown
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without reason, because this iPhone 18 Pro is truly the perfected product of last year's iPhone 17 Pro. Very few changes to the design, but a huge leap in features and specifications. In this video, we will discuss everything about
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the iPhone 18 Pro in this year of 2026. Is it worth upgrading to, and who is this iPhone series actually for? So, this is the iPhone 18 Pro review and I'm Indra. Let's get started.
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Yes, by the time you watch this video, the iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max should already be officially available in Indonesia. And the unit in my hands right now is also the official Indonesian version. iPhone 18 Pro with
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1 TB of storage. And for the color variant, I chose burgundy again. I'll explain later why I insisted on choosing this burgundy color for the official Indonesian version. Besides the iPhone itself, the official Apple accessories have finally arrived
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officially in Indonesia as well, just like last year. Very, very nice. For the case, I have the burgundy FineWoven one to match. There's also a crossbody strap which I chose in black this time, and a new burgundy wrist strap; this is
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a new strap and the feel of the FineWoven and the wrist strap is really great when it's in my hands like this.
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Well, okay, as I mentioned at the start of this video, in terms of design, the iPhone 18 Pro can be said to be exactly the same as last year's iPhone 17 Pro series. From the grip feel, finishing, and the material used, it's still the
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same aluminum unibody. The only small detail is in the color tone combination of the body and the MagSafe area, which now has a more matching tone. Unlike the iPhone 17 Pro series, which gave the impression of being two-toned. And
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why did I finally choose burgundy? I don't know. To me, this color is really the signature of the iPhone 18 Pro. Yes, I know this burgundy tone is quite prone to smudges. It's easy to leave fingerprints. But among the black which
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looks really handsome, the fresh and charming Glacier, and silver which is the safest, I think this burgundy is the color that truly identifies the iPhone 18 Pro. Just like Cosmic Orange was on the 17 Pro last year. Besides,
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if you're worried about fingerprints, we'll end up using a case anyway, right? Oh yeah, this year the storage options start from 256 GB and go up to 2 TB on this 18 Pro. Because last year, 2 TB was only available on the Pro Max
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variant. But if I may suggest, the sweet spot for storage is 512 GB. 256 seems a bit underwhelming for a latest Apple flagship in this year of 2026.
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And if you have the extra budget, getting the 1 TB variant like the one I'm using will give you much more peace of mind. Regarding the display, if you look at the specs on paper, this iPhone 18 Pro doesn't bring drastic changes.
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The screen panel still uses Super Retina XDR OLED with a 6.3-inch diagonal, a resolution of 2622x1206 pixels, and a pixel density of 460 ppi.
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The refresh rate also still features ProMotion up to 120 Hz. So scrolling feels smooth, complete with support for always-on display and HDR. The brightness level also reaches up to 3,000 nits for outdoor use. And now the screen is also equipped with an
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anti-reflective coating to reduce glare. So when used under direct sunlight, it is now much more comfortable to view. Now, the most visible change on the front is actually in the Dynamic Island. Its size has now been made smaller
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compared to the previous generation. Because of that, what I immediately feel is the screen feels roomier with the cutout at the top. It doesn't really get in the way when we are enjoying content on this 18 Pro screen.
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But more interestingly, the Dynamic Island on the iPhone 18 Pro can now display up to three live activities at once. For example, we can monitor navigation, a timer, and the music we are playing at the same time. So even
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though the design change looks small, functionally, the Dynamic Island can now show more info without having to switch apps. But yes, if you were hoping the iPhone 18 Pro would come with a completely clean screen design without the Dynamic Island,
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unfortunately, that hasn't happened this year. Apple still retains the Dynamic Island, just in a more compact size. Maybe next time. The next massive upgrade on the iPhone 18 Pro series this year is in the engine room. This iPhone 18 Pro is equipped with the A20
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Pro chip. This is the first chipset in an iPhone that features 2nm fabrication. The detailed specs include a six-core CPU, 7-core GPU, and 16-core Neural Engine. In fact, in yesterday's release video, Apple said this A20 Pro chipset
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has a design more or less similar to Apple's M-series chips. And not only that, for the cooling system, Apple also has a new Vapor Chamber design that is three times larger than the iPhone 17 Pro series from the previous
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year. Apple claims this will ensure temperature control on the iPhone 18 Pro stays much cooler when used for gaming, editing, or shooting high-res video for long durations; they say it won't overheat anymore. And the last improvement I want to discuss here is
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in terms of the battery. Yes, after considering various factors that affect battery quality on this 18 Pro, such as the more efficient A20 Pro chipset, C2 modem, and the improved vapor cooling system, all of this will impact the
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battery performance of this iPhone 18 Pro. If you ask about the longest-lasting battery, the choice is definitely the iPhone 18 Pro Max variant. Because Apple's claim yesterday was that the iPhone 18 Pro Max battery can last for 45 hours of
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video playback. That's 6 hours longer than the iPhone 17 Pro Max. And honestly, this is one of the things that's quite interesting while I've been using this iPhone 18 Pro. Even though the battery size isn't as big as
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the iPhone 18 Pro Max, in my experience, its endurance feels really efficient. Even when compared to the iPhone 17 Pro Max that I used last year, the battery life feels more or less on par. This is what really makes it interesting,
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because we're talking about the Pro version of the iPhone which is more compact in size, but for daily use, its battery life can match the previous generation Pro Max. So for those of you who want an iPhone with a size that's
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more comfortable to hold without having to worry about the battery, I think this is a pretty big plus point. For charging, this iPhone 18 Pro now also supports fast charging via its USB-C.
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With Apple's claim yesterday that it can charge up to 50% in about 15 minutes using a compatible 60-watt adapter or higher. And it's true, guys, charging this 18 Pro is way, way, way faster and more efficient in charging time
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compared to the previous generation. For me, the most noticeable battery improvement isn't just numbers on paper, but how the battery can last all day without making me look for a charger or power bank too often. And if its
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endurance can really match last year's 17 Pro Max, I think this is a significant improvement for a more compact Pro model iPhone for this year, 2026. Yes, this variable aperture is one of Apple's breakthrough features present in the 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max
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series. Technically, the mechanism inside the camera module actually uses six laser-cut aperture blades to physically change the size of the lens opening. So, this is a real variable aperture, not a gimmick or just a software simulation. Even when we play
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around with adjusting the size of this variable aperture on the iPhone lens, you can actually see it. It's like it gets bigger and smaller. It's exactly like a lens on a mirrorless or professional camera. Plus, now in Apple's native camera application,
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there is finally Pro Control. So finally, now just from the native iPhone camera app, we have the flexibility to adjust aperture, ISO, shutter speed, and there's even a histogr
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years ago, rather than Apple releasing the camera control on the iPhone 16 Pro back then. And for those of you users who don't want the hassle, who just want to point and shoot and get good results. Don't worry, this variable
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aperture can be set automatically in the camera app based on scene conditions. And this variable aperture is also available in video mode, along with shutter speed and white balance.
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And thanks to this variable aperture feature, we can now turn normal videos on our iPhone into cinematic mode during post-processing. Besides that, there are also improvements to cinematic mode. Now we can finally record in 4K 60 fps, and for the
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timelapse feature, it now supports stabilized 4K recording in Dolby Vision HDR. Overall, I think the improvements Apple made to the camera sector on the 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max series are some of the most interesting camera upgrades
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because it really allows users to get or feel a control experience closer to a professional camera. And here are the camera and video sample results from the iPhone 18 Pro. Okay, we’ve arrived at the conclusion. I feel that
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for those of you who are currently using an iPhone 17 Pro or 17 Pro Max, it might not be very exciting to upgrade to the iPhone 18 Pro series this year in 2026. Unless you really need the variable aperture feature,
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better battery life, and a faster chipset on this iPhone 18 Pro. And for those of you who might currently be using an iPhone 15 Pro or older, like an iPhone 13 Pro or 12 Pro, I highly recommend upgrading to this iPhone 18
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Pro series. Because as I said at the beginning of the video, this iPhone 18 Pro series is a refinement of last year's iPhone 17 Pro. The camera layout design is still relatively new, the style is modern, with a better cooling
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system, better camera, longer battery life, and you will definitely feel a much more significant performance boost on this year's iPhone 18 Pro series. So , I think that's it for this video, and of course, there's still a lot of
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testing I'll be doing on this iPhone 18 Pro in the future. Maybe gaming tests, photography, astrophotography, tips and tricks videos, and more. So, make sure to subscribe so you stay tuned for our latest videos. So, what do you think?
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Are you upgrading to the iPhone 18 Pro this year, or holding off until next year? Thank you guys for watching. I'm Indra. Until next time.
Topics:iPhone 18 ProApple 2026A20 Pro chipvariable aperture cameraDynamic IslandiPhone battery lifeProMotion displayUSB-C fast chargingiPhone reviewsmartphone camera
