Before last year's iPhone 17 Pro in Cosmic Orange, Apple had been playing it safe with iPhone Pro colors for years. But the success of its latest standout color may have started a trend.
According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple is testing a "deep red" finish for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. It's a color that has never appeared on a Pro model in the iPhone's history.
If the rumor pans out, it would also mark the first time any iPhone has come in red since the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus offered a (PRODUCT)RED option back in 2022. That said, don't expect a bright, charity-branded red this time around. Gurman's description suggests something closer to burgundy – sort of like a moodier, more premium take on the color.
Earlier rumors suggested purple and brown as possible new finishes for the iPhone 18 Pro, but Gurman says those were likely "just variants of the same red idea," given how similar the tones are. So rather than a trio of new options, it sounds like Apple has been circling around one color from the start and has been diligently working to dial in the exact shade it wants.
Apple has mostly stuck to safe, muted tones for its premium lineup in recent years. The Pro models have rotated through shades of gray, gold, blue, and titanium finishes since the line launched, but nothing as quite as bold as deep red.
By contrast, Apple's foldable sounds like it's headed in the opposite direction. Gurman says Apple plans to avoid fun colors for the device, and will instead stick to more conventional space gray/black and silver/white options. That's in direct contrast to Samsung, which has embraced brighter hues for its more recent Galaxy Z Flip and Fold lines.
Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 18 Pro models alongside its new foldable iPhone in September.
