Late August means Apple will soon announce its new iPhone lineup, and a lot of people are trying to pin down the preorder date – us included. The short answer is that Apple hasn’t confirmed anything yet. The longer answer is that, based on patterns, rumors and a few scheduling quirks, we can make some educated guesses. Here’s where things stand right now. We’ll update this page the moment anything becomes official.

A split launch and a foldable iPhone

If the rumors are right, Apple could change its usual iPhone launch pattern this year. Rather than dropping the full lineup at once, Bloomberg reports the company may take a two-wave approach. First up in September — the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max and the highly anticipated and rumored foldable iPhone, reportedly called the iPhone Ultra. Then, sometime around March 2027, the standard iPhone 18, iPhone Air 2 and lower-end iPhone 18E are expected to follow. It’s a significant shift from Apple’s usual playbook, and if it happens, it’ll be with the goal of keeping the revenue flowing more consistently throughout the year.

The iPhone Ultra is one everyone’s watching. Despite some chatter about manufacturing snags along the way, the foldable is still reportedly on track for a September debut. However, early availability may be limited to the US at launch.

And then there are the colors. Rumors and reported leaks point to two new additions to the iPhone 18 lineup of colors — a cherry red and a light blue. Neither has been confirmed, but if Apple follows through, they’d be among the more eye-catching colors the company has offered in recent years, right up there with the fiery orange iPhone 17 Pro Max.

When could preorders start?

Apple typically holds its iPhone event in early September, but the timing this year seems complicated. If the event falls on Sept. 8 or 9, preorders would ordinarily begin on Friday, Sept. 11, which marks the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Apple may want to avoid that date out of respect, and it wouldn’t be the first time. Back in 2015, iPhone 6S preorders were moved to Saturday, Sept. 12 for the same reason.

A simpler, cleaner path would be skipping that week entirely. An event on Sept. 14 or 15 would put preorders on Friday, Sept. 18, and devices in hand by Sept. 25. That timeline would also give Apple an extra week of production runway for the iPhone Ultra, which could probably use it.

What to expect with the event itself

Apple has prerecorded its launch events since 2020, but in recent years, select reporters have been invited to the Steve Jobs Theater to watch the video in person, followed by hands-on time with the new devices. Expect a polished presentation, a lot of superlatives and a long line of people waiting to hold the foldable.

Sneha is a sub-editor turned commerce writer with a love for all things digital. She spent years editing print publications, gaining a sharp eye for detail. She writes with curiosity and just a bit of humor. When she’s not sharing her takes, you’ll find her leveling up in a game, getting lost in a good book or caught in an endless loop of cute cat videos.

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