Apple unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max last night at the first launch led by new CEO John Ternus, retaining the previous design while making technical improvements. Although Apple did not disclose the capacity at launch, energy labels published on its UK and European pages in accordance with EU regulations revealed the figures. The iPhone 18 Pro with a physical SIM slot reached 4,056 mAh, an increase of 1.7% over the iPhone 17 Pro’s 3,988 mAh battery; video playback time increased by 10%, from 30 hours to 33 hours. The iPhone 18 Pro Max with a SIM slot increased from 4,823 mAh to 5,391 mAh, a rise of 11.7%; video playback time increased by 14%, from 35 hours to 40 hours. In real-world usage measurements covering messaging, photos, gaming and internet use, the iPhone 18 Pro lasts 24 hours, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max lasts 30 hours.
Why it matters
These figures show that the battery capacities Apple did not disclose at launch have become accessible to users and comparison shoppers thanks to energy-labeling rules in Europe. The fact that the improvements are not on the same scale between the two Pro models shows that the battery gains in the new generation vary within the product family. Therefore, looking only at capacity is not sufficient to assess the user experience; video playback time and measurements covering messaging, photos, gaming and internet use should be considered together. The remaining question is to what extent these measurements will vary with different usage habits and whether models other than the versions with physical SIM slots will have the same battery capacities.