CUPERTINO, California, April 9, 2026, 10:13 PDT
Fresh leaks suggest Apple has not locked down one of the iPhone 18 Pro’s most visible design choices and may still push ahead with an iPhone Air 2 despite weak demand for the first ultra-thin model. The claims surfaced in Weibo posts this week from Digital Chat Station and Fixed Focus Digital, later cited by 9to5Mac and MacRumors. 1
The timing matters. Reuters reported in January that Apple planned to give priority in 2026 to three premium iPhones while pushing the standard iPhone 18 into 2027, and Apple is due to report fiscal second-quarter results on April 30. Apple also started 2026 with a 23% jump in China smartphone sales even as the broader market shrank, underscoring how closely investors are watching the next iPhone cycle. 2
Digital Chat Station wrote on Thursday that supply-chain feedback points to two hardware paths for the iPhone 18 Pro: one that keeps the current display mold and another that moves some Face ID parts beneath the screen and uses a smaller Dynamic Island, the pill-shaped cutout that holds front sensors and camera components. If Apple sticks with the current mold, the cutout may stay much as it is, 9to5Mac said. 3
The same leaker said the rear camera plateau would remain broadly unchanged, with only smaller tweaks to body materials and other exterior details. That would leave Apple with an iterative Pro update after the bolder redesign of the iPhone 17 Pro line, according to 9to5Mac’s reading of the posts and its earlier reporting in March. 1
On the Air side, Fixed Focus Digital said on April 6 that “Air2” would move ahead on its normal cycle and that Apple would “grit its teeth” and build at least two generations regardless of sales. In a separate April 4 post, the same account said the standard iPhone 18 would see little exterior change beyond a possible size adjustment. 4
That cuts against earlier reporting from The Information, cited by Reuters in November, that Apple had delayed the next iPhone Air because the first model sold below expectations. Apple launched the iPhone Air in September as its thinnest iPhone ever at 5.6 mm and equipped it with a single 48-megapixel rear camera. 5
Signs of that trade-off have lingered. MacRumors reported on Thursday that Apple cut the iPhone Air by up to 30% on its official UK Amazon storefront last month, an unusual move for a current iPhone, while Reuters reported last year that analysts saw weak demand for the first Air as buyers weighed thinner design against battery and camera compromises. 6
Apple’s push into thinner hardware also keeps it in a race with Samsung, which launched its 5.8-mm Galaxy S25 Edge ahead of Apple’s slim-phone move. NH Investment & Securities analyst Ryu Young-ho called Samsung’s timing a “calculated decision” to capture demand for thinner phones. 7
When Apple unveiled the first Air, PP Foresight analyst Paolo Pescatore said the thinner model could “reinvigorate” the iPhone line, and IDC’s Nabila Popal said Apple tends to do things “bigger or louder or better than anyone.” Those views help explain why Apple may be reluctant to kill the Air after just one outing. 8
But the 2026 roadmap still looks fluid. Digital Chat Station said the iPhone 18 Pro front design is still in testing, while Reuters reported this week that Apple’s foldable iPhone has hit engineering snags that could delay shipments even though Bloomberg later said the device remains on track for September alongside the Pro models. Bloomberg and MacRumors have also pointed to a spring 2027 window for the standard iPhone 18 and Air 2, leaving the new leak in direct conflict with other recent reporting. 3
The backdrop is hardening. IDC expects 2026 smartphone shipments to fall 12.9% because of a memory-chip squeeze, Reuters reported in February, though Apple and Samsung are still seen gaining share as smaller rivals struggle. In that market, the iPhone 18 Pro’s screen cutout and the Air line’s survival are not just cosmetic questions; they are part of Apple’s push to keep buyers moving up the range. 9
