Apple has usually played it safe with the color options on its flagship iPhones. Aside from the usual silver, white, gold, and black, the company barely ever goes bold. That changed with the iPhone 18 Pro, which landed in an eye-catching Cosmic Orange color, and it proved to be quite popular. Apple is looking to replicate that success with the iPhone 18 Pro later this year, according to Bloomberg, and its next bet could be a shade of red.
What’s the big shift?
“Given the success of orange, I wouldn’t be surprised if the company keeps that option around and just adds the red as an additional choice,” reports the outlet, adding that “as of now, red is the new flagship color in testing for the next iPhone Pros.” Now, deep red is just one of the colors that Apple is eyeing for the iPhone 18 Pro, and it’s plausible that the company might ultimately decide on other colors. It’s also worth noting that Apple experiments with multiple colors years in advance, so there’s a possibility that we might ultimately see a red iPhone in a few years from now.
It was recently reported that Apple tried bold color options for the M2 MacBook Air, but eventually ditched the idea. Those colors are finally rumored to appear on the low-cost MacBook that is set to arrive in March, packing an A-series smartphone chip and a display smaller than 13 inches. It would be interesting to see if Apple also tries something new with the surface finish on the deep red shade of iPhone 18 Pro. Multiple iPhone 17 Pro users have reported the orange paint easily getting scratched and discolored.
A return to Red
Apple is no stranger to red iPhones. In fact, the company has a long history of releasing iPhones in a bright red shade, which the company markets as (PRODUCT)RED iPhone. The company has released iPhones donning this signature red shade, which is a reflection of a partnership with Red to raise awareness about HIV and rally support for the cause. Apple has predominantly released (PRODUCT)RED variants of iPhones and iPods, and as per the company, the initiative has raised $250 million to support HIV/AIDS programs.
As for the iPhone 18 Pro, it’s unclear whether the deep red shade will be a continuation of the partnership, or if it’s just the signature color for the Fall 2026 slate of iPhones. Other rumors suggest that chocolate brown and purple are also under consideration at Apple. As far as upgrades go, the iPhone 18 Pro is expected to feature a slimmer Dynamic Island, a camera with variable aperture, a next-gen modem with enhanced satellite connectivity, and a faster chip.