Apple's iPhone 18 Pro Max might come with a massive battery

Apple's upcoming iPhone 18 Pro Max will have a significantly larger battery than its predecessor.

We know this because a leaker called Digital Chat Station noticed the regulatory filings for the upcoming iPhones in China (via MacRumors).

Starting with the iPhone 18 Pro, it's apparently going to have a 4,056mAh battery in China and a 4,288mAh in the U.S. (the difference is there due to the SIM tray, which the iPhones still have in China; the SIM tray takes up some space that would otherwise be allocated to the battery). That's an increase compared to the iPhone 17 Pro which has a 3,988mAh and 4,252mAh battery, respectively, but it's hardly sensational.

The iPhone 18 Pro Max is a different story. The Chinese database filings reveal that it's going to have a 5,391mAh battery in China, and a 5,567mAh battery in the U.S., a decent leap from the 4,823/5,088mAh battery on the iPhone 17 Pro Max.

There's one caveat to this: The leaker says that the battery capacities for the iPhone 18 Pro Max is "questionable and needs further verification."

If the report is accurate, iPhone 18 Pro Max buyers can expect a decent increase in battery life. The battery capacity is roughly 10 percent larger compared to last year's model, though that doesn't directly translate into battery life as it also depends on the chips powering the device, the display, and various optimizations to conserve battery life. The good news is that Apple is very good at these optimizations, so we wouldn't be surprised to see an even bigger leap in nominal battery life on the iPhone 18 Pro Max.

The iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max will likely be unveiled in early September, alongside Apple's first foldable phone, which will probably be named the iPhone Ultra.