Apple still can’t quite keep up with demand for the iPhone 18 Pro Max. The high-end handset has been available for nearly two months, but customers ordering one from Apple’s U.S. online store today must wait about a week for delivery.
There’s been so much attention on months-long wait times for the iPhone Duo that it’s easy to overlook that iPhone 18 Pro Max buyers need to be patient, too.
iPhone 18 Pro Max remains in heavy demand
The iPhone 18 Pro Max features Apple’s A20 Pro processor, a new variable aperture camera and the best battery life of any smartphone.
It launched back on September 18, but the product is popular enough that Apple has yet to completely catch up.
An order placed from the U.S. online Apple Store on Friday, November 13 for the base model won’t be delivered until sometime between November 19 and November 23. That’s true for any casing color and storage capacity.
Note that this wait time doesn’t apply to the smaller iPhone 18 Pro. Order it on Friday, and the shipment arrives the next day.
Get one sooner at an Apple Store
Those in a hurry to get an iPhone 18 Pro Max have an option: many brick-and-mortar Apple Stores show they have stock of the sought-after handset.
And, of course, buying an iPhone straight from Apple is far from the only option. Purchase the device from Amazon, for example, and it can be delivered on November 17.
iPhone Duo launch overshadows iPhone 18 Pro Max
The launch of the iPhone Duo drew much of the attention this year, overshadowing Apple’s more conventional flagship phones. The company’s first foldable iPhone is a headline-grabbing new product that naturally attracts curiosity. But that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the bigger seller.
The iPhone 18 Pro Max is likely to be considerably more popular, thanks to its familiar design, more traditional form factor and lower starting price.
True, the wait for an iPhone Duo to be shipped can stretch out to January 25, 2027, according to the Apple Store online. But it’s reportedly possible to get one sooner by going to an Apple retail store early in the day. And the shipping times are apparently heavily affected by challenges in producing the device, not just demand.
That said, the fact that there is still a shipment delay for the more traditional iPhone 18 Pro Max two months after it launched is an indication that plenty of buyers are interested in Apple’s premium conventional model.
The iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at $1,299 in the U.S., with storage options ranging from 256GB to 2TB. The most expensive configuration costs $2,499.
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 26 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh SE/30 (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer.
That’s because he’s a “tablet first” type of guy. Rather than use a Macbook, he connects a keyboard case to the iPad. And instead of a desktop Mac, he connects his tablet to a 27-inch display and full-size keyboard. (So don’t try to tell him that everyone has to use a Mac to be productive.)
Before coming to Cult of Mac, Ed wrote for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
