Apple fandom was on full display across Indian cities on Friday as the iPhone 18 Pro series went on sale, with long queues and celebratory scenes unfolding at stores from Delhi and Mumbai to Bengaluru and Noida.
The India sales debut came just over a week after Apple unveiled its latest smartphone lineup at its September 9 keynote, with pre-bookings opening on September 12 across 65 countries, including India, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, France and Germany.
Also read: Once bitten, never shy: India’s Apple iPhone obsession grows and grows
Premium pricing, four colours
"iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will be available in 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB storage capacities. Available in burgundy, glacier, silver, and black, iPhone 18 Pro starts at Rs 1,64,900 and iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at Rs 1,79,900," the company had said earlier.
Customers queue for hours
A Delhi customer said he had booked the iPhone 18 Pro Max along with an Apple Watch to upgrade from his iPhone 15 Plus. "I wanted to upgrade from the 15 Plus, and the new model comes with several upgraded features and better performance. That was the main reason I decided to go for it," he said.
Another Delhi buyer, Mannat Singh, said the burgundy colour, the new A20 chip, AI capabilities and camera features drew him to the Pro Max, adding that Apple's brand appeal was also a factor. "...it is quite good for showing off because it has three cameras, and on top of that, of course, Apple is a big brand," he said.
A customer named Honey said he had pre-booked the 512GB burgundy iPhone 18 Pro at the first available slot as soon as bookings opened. "I bought the iPhone 18 pro with 512 GB of storage in the burgundy colour. It was launched on the 9th of this month, so I had been waiting for it since then. The pre-booking started on the September 12th at 5:30 in the evening, so I pre-booked it at that time. The very first slot was at 8:15, and I booked that slot. And now I have finally bought it," he said.
