The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,200, but Apple’s foldable and expected lower-cost iPhones may better suit shoppers seeking a different design or price.
Before You Buy the iPhone 18 Pro, These Upcoming Phones Deserve a Look
Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro is a serious upgrade, but that doesn’t automatically make it the right buy. It starts at $1,200, and several phones due in the coming months could suit you better—especially if you want a foldable, a lower price, or Android. The catch: some of the alternatives are still based on rumors, so the details may change.
Apple announced the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max in September, alongside its first foldable, the iPhone Duo. The Pro models look much like last year’s phones, but their A20 Pro chip moves to a 2nm process and is said to deliver twice the AI performance of the A19 Pro. That extra computing power could help the phones handle Siri AI in iOS 27, though it’s too early to know how much of a difference owners will notice.
The cameras gain a six-blade aperture system for manual control over incoming light and depth of field. Apple also promises longer battery life and charging speeds up to 60W with a compatible adapter. But Apple’s products have seen price hikes, and these Pro phones now cost $100 more than their predecessors: $1,200 for the 256GB iPhone 18 Pro and $1,300 for the 256GB Pro Max. Our iPhone 18 Pro review found a powerful phone. The more useful question is whether you need that much phone.
Apple’s first foldable takes a different shape
The iPhone Duo arrives at the end of October. Apple has taken years to bring a foldable to market, and its approach differs from the tall, narrow designs common among foldable phones. The Duo has a 5.4-inch OLED cover screen that opens into a wider 7.6-inch OLED display. Both screens support ProMotion refresh rates up to 120Hz, HDR, True Tone, and up to 3,000 nits of brightness.
Unfolded, it’s thinner than the iPhone Air, with a titanium frame intended to add structural strength. Apple’s unfolding animation may be polished, but the larger test comes after launch: third-party developers will need to adapt their apps to the format.
The Duo costs $2,000 for 256GB, above the price of some Android foldables. It uses the same A20 Pro chip as the iPhone 18 Pro, though its two-camera setup—wide and ultrawide—may not be its main draw. If you’ve been waiting for Apple’s first foldable, that combination may be enough to make it worth considering. The price makes it a harder recommendation for everyone else.
Waiting could bring less expensive iPhones
Apple has usually announced the major iPhone models together, even when their release dates differed by a few weeks. This year’s schedule is split: the company has introduced the iPhone 18 Pro models and Duo, while the standard iPhone 18, iPhone 18e, and second-generation iPhone Air are expected next year. A staggered launch may give Apple room for its expanding lineup, though the company hasn’t explained the timing.
Rumors point to a spring 2027 launch for those three phones. The iPhone 18 is expected to use a new A20 chip, with better battery life and possibly more RAM—changes that could help it keep pace with Siri AI. The iPhone Air 2 may add a second ultrawide camera and a larger battery, addressing two of the main complaints about the original Air.
Prices could rise for these models too, so waiting doesn’t guarantee a bargain. Still, the iPhone 17 earned a strong review, which gives the next standard model a decent starting point. If you don’t need a Pro phone now, it may be sensible to see what Apple announces.
Motorola makes a flagship play
For Android buyers, Motorola’s Signature 27 is one to watch. The company is known for budget phones and foldables; this is its first U.S. flagship in quite a while. Announced at Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit 2026, it’s among the first phones slated to use the 2nm Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chip, which could put it in competition with Apple’s A20 Pro. The name is a mouthful. The performance claim still needs to be tested.
A large vapor chamber is designed to keep performance steady under heavy workloads. The camera array includes wide and ultrawide cameras plus a 200-megapixel telephoto lens. Motorola hasn’t explained what the fourth sensor does or disclosed its specifications.
The phone has a 6.8-inch AMOLED screen with a 165Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision, and HDR10+. It will come in several RAM and storage configurations, and its 7,000mAh silicon-carbon battery supports charging up to 90W. More unusual is Motorola’s promise of up to seven years of major Android OS updates. The Signature 27 will launch with Android 17 and support GrapheneOS, a privacy- and security-focused custom ROM based on the Android Open Source Project.
Samsung’s next Ultra may bring a battery trade-off
Google’s Pixel line may be the closest Android counterpart to the iPhone, but Samsung remains Apple’s most prominent U.S. rival. The companies’ launch schedules tend to alternate, and the Galaxy S27 family is expected in January or February 2027. Samsung typically announces a standard model, a larger version, and an Ultra together.
Analyst Ice Universe says the Galaxy S27 Ultra may weigh 218 grams and measure 7.9mm thick, the same thickness as the S26 Ultra. The extra weight could indicate a silicon-carbon battery, but that remains speculation. Rumors also point to a price increase, with higher storage options potentially pushing the S27 lineup to or above iPhone 18 prices.
In a separate post, OnLeaks said the S27 Ultra may drop one camera sensor and get a redesigned camera module. The S27 family is also expected to include built-in Qi2 magnets for wireless charging, alongside the usual anticipated gains in performance, battery life, and display quality. Until Samsung confirms the details, the camera change and battery theory are best treated as early clues, not buying advice.
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