A recurring rumor says that the iPhone 18 Pro will have a smaller Dynamic Island.
It has been rumored over and over again that the iPhone 18 Pro will have a significantly smaller Dynamic Island. Now another report has reiterated that claim.
While the iPhone 18 Pro isn’t expected to have any major design changes, Apple’s next higher-end iPhone should get new under-display technology to reduce the Dynamic Island.
Following a post from January 2026 with alleged dimensions of the new and improved Dynamic Island, the rumor is now recurring that the iPhone 18 Pro will indeed get a modified camera notch.
As he stated Bloomberg on Tuesday, Apple is planning a redesigned, smaller Dynamic Island for the iPhone 18 Pro. A change can be expected at this point, as Apple has reportedly been working on Face ID under the display as early as 2021.
Rumors of an under-display Face ID for the iPhone 18 Pro go back years
A December 2023 rumor claimed that Apple’s under-display Face ID hardware would debut in 2026, which would coincide with the release of the iPhone 18 Pro.
Analyst Ross Young reiterated rumors in May 2024 and May 2025 that Apple’s under-display Face ID design would arrive in 2026.
Multiple sources have reported an apparent display-related change in store for the iPhone 18 Pro. In May 2025, claims of an under-display Face ID system for the iPhone 18 Pro resurfaced, this time from a Weibo leak, which reiterated its stance shortly after.
The same source reiterated its under-display Face ID claim once more in June 2025, and again in September 2025, October 2025, and November 2025. Just a month later, another leaker also said the iPhone 18 Pro would get under-display Face ID.
In short, rumors believe that the iPhone 18 Pro will get Face ID under the display. However, there are different claims about where Apple will place the components of its improved Face ID module and what Dynamic Island will look like as a result.
Why doesn’t the dynamic island move to the upper left corner
In January 2026, YouTuber Jon Prosser, who was sued by Apple over the iOS 26 leaks, claimed that the iPhone 18 Pro would feature a small dynamic island at the top left of the screen.
Despite dubious rumors, the iPhone 18 Pro will probably not have its Dynamic Island in the upper left corner.
However, that same month, an Instant Digital leak came out saying that Dynamic Island is not moving to the left side of the screen after all.
Instead, it claims that only the infrared Face ID sensor will be moved to the left, while the Dynamic Island and front-facing camera will still be at the top center.
“The front-facing camera on the left side of the iPhone 18 Pro is complete misinformation,” the leaker writes (via Safari translation.) “I suspect the English author made a translation mistake.”
Later in January 2026, leaker Ice Universe stated that the Dynamic Island on the iPhone 18 Pro will be shrunk by 35% from 20.76mm to 13.49mm. They also provided a mockup showing a noticeably smaller Dynamic Island, still more or less in the middle of the upper display area.
At the time of writing, it looks like the Dynamic Island will shrink with the iPhone 18 Pro. However, its position doesn’t seem to have changed as only the Face ID sensor is expected to move to the top left corner.