Apple’s iPhone lineup is set to undergo a lot of big changes in the years ahead. Based on recent reporting from Wayne Ma and Ming-Chi Kuo, here’s a look at what’s rumored to be coming not only this fall, but in 2026 and even 2027 as well.
2025: iPhone 17 Air is new ultra-thin model, 17 Pro Max gets thicker
This year has already been a noteworthy one for the iPhone lineup. Earlier this year, iPhone 16e launched as a brand new model replacing the iPhone SE.
But this fall is when the biggest new iPhones are coming:
- iPhone 17
- iPhone 17 Air
- iPhone 17 Pro
- iPhone 17 Pro Max
While Apple’s 17 Pro models will no doubt still justify their premium price tags, the ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air could steal a lot of the spotlight.
iPhone 17 Air will replace the Plus model in Apple’s lineup, though likely at a higher price point.
Prioritizing form over function, the Air model will easily be the thinnest iPhone ever, boasting a futuristic 5.6mm-thin design.
Its main drawbacks will be in two key areas: battery life and cameras, where it will trail the rest of the iPhone 17 lineup—especially iPhone 17 Pro Max, which is getting thicker than ever to pack even more battery.
2026: Apple’s first foldable debuts, iPhone 18 gets bumped from lineup
For the second year in a row, Apple is planning to launch a new iPhone early in 2026: the iPhone 17e.
iPhone 17e is expected to, like its predecessor, offer many of the features of the iPhone 17 in a more budget-friendly package with a few compromises.
The fall 2026 lineup is where things get really exciting though, with four models expected:
- iPhone 18 Air
- iPhone 18 Pro
- iPhone 18 Pro Max
- iPhone 18 Fold
Notice anything missing? There’s no base iPhone 18, as the addition of the first foldable iPhone will bump Apple’s base model to a later release.
iPhone Fold’s rumored features include: a 7.8-inch inner display and 5.5-inch outer display, crease-free book-style folding design, and likely an ultra-premium price tag.
iPhone 18 Air should look and feel just like its predecessor, but the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max may gain a key design change: the current Dynamic Island cutout could go away, replaced by a single hole-punch in the corner of the display.
2027: Six new iPhones, all-screen design, larger Air model
Get ready for more new iPhones than ever before, with six models launching in a single year.
In spring 2027, Apple is expected to launch:
- iPhone 18
- iPhone 18e
These two lower-cost models will arrive several months after the more expensive iPhone 18 Air, Pro, and Fold lineup.
They’ll be followed by four more iPhones in the fall:
- iPhone 19 Air
- iPhone 19 Pro
- iPhone 19 Pro Max
- iPhone 19 Fold
Noteworthy features for the flagship iPhone 19 line includes a larger screen for the iPhone 19 Air, and possibly all-screen, cutout-free designs for the iPhone 19 Pro and Pro Max.
If Apple is able to ship the first truly all-screen iPhone in 2027, it will pair well with the 20th anniversary of the iPhone and follow 10 years after the similarly radical iPhone X.
iPhone three-year roadmap: wrap-up
Top comment by Sam
Moving from five available phone models (already pushing the envelope, in my opinion) to six, and then on top of that, splitting the release date between fall and spring so that the cheapest models won't be available during the initial demand in the fall, creating two waves of iphone releases per year — if true, then wow.
It would boost profits for Apple in the short term, but it will also cost them in their brand long-term, and with their core product (the phone) too. The consumer market will be less able to track the available options with ease, and less confident when making a choice, because the differences between each model all begin to feel minute and diluted, and therefore too tech-y and nerdy.
Those emotions of lower confidence and higher uncertainty are not emotional associations that Apple should be incubating among their customers.
If these plans as reported are true, then this is a mistake, and an all too common one. (See Hollywood and sequels). More — and bigger — is not the same as better, and we are already past the goldilocks zone.
For years now, Apple’s iPhone lineup hasn’t changed very radically. The Plus model replaced the mini, but the basic iPhone form factor has been remarkably consistent across several generations.
As the rumored three-year roadmap makes clear, those days of minor changes are over.
With major new iPhone models coming this year and next, and possibly the first all-screen model after that, there’s plenty coming to excite users and perhaps give iPhone sales a fresh boost.
What do you think about Apple’s rumored iPhone roadmap? Let us know in the comments.
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