KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 18 — Today is the day the Apple 18 Pro models go on sale in the US and many parts of the world including, wonderously, Malaysia.

Being able to say “next week” or “tomorrow” instead of “don’t know-lah maybe in two months-kot?” about Apple’s iPhones has been surreal but that means I now have to work a lot harder (boo).

The Burgundy nice or not?

This will always be the first question to answer when the iPhones drop. Is this year/this launch’s “hero” colour worth picking over the others?

I think photographers would be happier this time around. 

Last year’s Cosmic Orange was the “it” shade du jour but without a case on, the colour’s reflectiveness would often add unwanted elements.

The Burgundy is a deep wine hue that isn’t too flashy but is a lot more exciting than plain black. 

Not too bright that it’s garish, not too dull that it would be nondescript, it is probably my favourite iPhone shade ever (and I have never said that in over a decade of reviewing iPhones).

I held it up to the light just to see how the colour changed at different angles; appreciative that in dim light it darkens to a deep plum.

In-hand feel

Once I got over my “ooh shiny” I thought about how it felt in my hand.

Not that much different from the iPhone 17 Pro Max to be honest.

Dimensions are the same, even the build materials are the same, so if you’re mulling upgrading your iPhone 17 Pro Max it will take you a while to experience what the change brings.

For someone upgrading from a smaller phone or a much older iPhone it will definitely take some getting used to especially with the “giant” of the iPhone models in the 18 Pro Max.

Under the hood

What makes the difference is of course the internals. 

There’s that new A20 chip and a redesigned vapour chamber, as well as tweaks to how the parts are laid out so your iPhone won’t be telling you “It’s too hot I’m not moving” like my dog used to do.

This of course means smoother performance overall and less risk of that “exploding battery” phenomenon that keeps happening now the world is getting hotter.

Thermal management is important; especially when it comes to something you’re going to have on you all the time. 

It’s not something I will be able to comment on until I take the phone properly through its paces (mostly by taking too many pictures) so I’ll be back with an update in a week or so.

That camera

So I have finally reached that plateau where I am thinking, damn, I don’t think an iPhone camera is enough.

This was on a few occasions involving low light and taking pictures of people.

Some days there just aren’t enough photographers at work to go around so you do what you have to do, which in my case means take out my iPhone.

Most days I can get some surprisingly good results with third-party apps that allow more manual controls in iPhone photo taking.

The recent upgrades to the iPhone 18 Pro Main camera means you can finally tweak the aperture manually

That means being able to compensate better in low light as well as more pleasing bokeh.

It will be interesting to see how third-party apps use the new aperture settings and if “Shot on iPhone” quality is going to ramp up alongside its camera tech.

Worth haunting your nearest Apple Store?

The iPhone 18 Pro Max in Burgundy is objectively gorgeous but determining, objectively, if this is the phone you can’t live without?

We’ll just have to find out now, won’t we?