Apple’s upcoming iPhone 18 Pro has entered production testing ahead of a launch later this year, a Chinese leak reported today.
In a Weibo post, a leaker account known as “Fixed Focus Digital” said the Pro models have already entered “mass production testing,” possibly referring to the final stage of production verification of the device ahead of its September launch.
February usually coincides with Apple’s Design Validation Test (DVT) phase, which transitions into an early Production Validation Test (PVT). During this period, Apple uses manufacturing tools and activates parts of factory assembly lines to verify manufacturing processes, yields, and quality control, rather than producing full-scale units. Full series production usually starts in the summer months before the market launch.
The leak also claimed that production testing has begun for the regular iPhone 18 model, but given that we don’t expect the lower-spec device to be released until early next year, it’s likely to be in an earlier stage of validation at this point, such as a mid-to-late technical validation test (EVT) or early DVT.
Fixed Focus Digital added that based on their information, there have been no major changes in materials and that overall the devices continue to use the existing design specifications for the iPhone 17 series. The comment echoes earlier reports that the iPhone 18 Pro models will not be a major update this year, with external changes potentially only extending to the smaller Dynamic Island.
There will still be a few important internal changes, such as a new variable aperture camera system, an A20 chip and a custom C2 modem. However, the new Pro models are unlikely to be “the star of Apple’s iPhone launch this fall,” he claims BloombergMark Gurman with the company’s first folding kit that got attention instead.