We’ve been hearing about Apple skipping the basic Apple iPhone 18 launch in 2026, but this new report puts a stamp on it. Pegatron is one of Apple’s contract assemblers in Taiwan, just like Foxconn in China. A news publication in China quotes Pegatron on the delayed iPhone 18 launch.
Pegatron gave an earnings call to its partners for Q2 2026. That’s when they confirmed the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max launch next month, in September. And they also verified the basic iPhone 18’s debut in Q1 2027, so sometime between January and March.
So previous leaks were right on the money. Pegatron quoting the launch windows puts a stamp on it. iPhone 18 might end up getting released in March 2026, according to some sources, so it’s even more delayed than we expected. Check the updated iPhone rate list in Pakistan to compare prices across the latest Apple models.
Some say iPhone Ultra is the only reason why iPhone 18 is pushed out of the slot. But the strategy is obviously more nuanced than this. There are multiple theories around. One that makes more sense is the memory and chipset shortage affecting the launch.
Apple hasn’t even begun iPhone 18 production yet because of the memory shortage everywhere. Putting all their resources into iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max production is, in Apple’s defence, a good move from a business perspective. And they also have iPhone Ultra to consider.
Of course, Apple has also moved on to a 2nm process node for its custom Apple A20 chip this year. The complications have compounded because of the bottleneck in silicon manufacturing, which is even more reason to delay the iPhone 18 launch to Q1 2027. Keep watching the news for more updates.