GoKawiilToday Apple introduced iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, its latest flagship models. While each Pro model is largely identical, there are two exclusive new advantages—one for each model.
#1: iPhone 18 Pro has C2 modem for cellular, while iPhone 18 Pro Max uses Qualcomm
Apple began transitioning its products to in-house cellular modems in early 2025 with the iPhone 16e. First it offered a C1 modem, then the C1X followed in the iPhone Air last fall.
Now Apple has introduced the next-generation C2 modem. It’s available in iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 Pro, but curiously is absent from the iPhone 18 Pro Max.
Per Apple’s technical specs page, C2 and the iPhone 18 Pro Max’s Qualcomm modem offer comparable specs. They both support mmWave in the US, for example.
But Apple-designed modems do have the benefit of unlocking some exclusive benefits, which Pro Max users will miss out on.
#2: iPhone 18 Pro Max has much bigger battery gains than iPhone 18 Pro
iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max are both improving in the battery department this year. But as leaks previously indicated, Apple reserved much larger gains for the Pro Max model.
Here’s an overview of quoted battery life for this year’s models vs last year’s:
Battery Life (video playback) iPhone 18 Pro up to 36 hours iPhone 18 Pro Max up to 45 hours iPhone 17 Pro up to 33 hours iPhone 17 Pro Max up to 39 hours
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