IOS 18

iOS 18 is the eighteenth and current major release of Apple's iOS operating system for the iPhone. It was announced on June 10, 2024, at the 2024 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). It was made publicly available on September 16, 2024, as a free software update for supported iOS devices. It is the direct successor to iOS 17 and was announced alongside iPadOS 18, macOS Sequoia, watchOS 11, visionOS 2, and tvOS 18.

iOS 18 is the final version of iOS that supports the iPhone XS/XS Max and iPhone XR; its successor, iOS 26, dropped support for those models in 2025.

System features

Apple Intelligence

The Apple Intelligence platform is available in iOS 18.1 and beyond on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max models as well as the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro models. Apple Intelligence adds artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities and large language model integrations to Siri and other operating system functions, such as the Photos app and also the image creation tools.

Apple's Intelligence features are set to be introduced gradually across several forthcoming updates. These features were not included in the initial release of the iPhone 16 models.

Calculator

iOS 18's Calculator introduces Math Notes, a new feature that allows users to perform and track calculations on separate sheets, solve mathematical equations, and plot functions on graphs. With integrated handwriting recognition, Math Notes automatically evaluates user input and displays the results in their own handwriting. The redesigned Calculator app, now shared between iOS and iPadOS, marks the first time an official calculator has been available for iPad.

Messages

iOS 18 supports Rich Communication Services (RCS) on supported conversations, including support for read receipts and higher-quality multimedia sharing across various platforms. As with SMS, it is designated with green message bubbles and buttons to distinguish it from blue iMessage conversations. Availability of RCS messaging varies by carrier availability and compatibility. Apple previously refused the adoption of RCS in iOS.

In 2022, after being questioned about RCS potentially coming to iPhone to increase compatibility with Android, Tim Cook said that iPhone users were not expressing interest in RCS and instead suggested that a solution would be to switch to an iPhone to use iMessage. The person who asked the question followed up, explaining that they use an iPhone while their mom uses an Android phone, to which Tim Cook jokingly replied "Buy your mom an iPhone" to large controversy. The quote was later cited in an anti-trust lawsuit against Apple Inc. filed by the United States Department of Justice.

18.4 added RCS support for more carriers.

In iMessage, Animated effects can be applied to any letter, word, or phrase, and text formatting such as bold, italic, underline, and strikethrough can be applied to any part of the text as well. Both can be used simultaneously but cannot be used with the same selected text, however.

Photos

iOS 18 includes a significant redesign of the Photos app. Slideshows known as collections are now automatically generated and visible at the top of the screen. Support for encoding/decoding the ISO 21496-1 gain map standard for HDR images was added, which allows for cross-platform HDR compatibility while remaining backwards compatible with SDR displays. This redesign has led to backlash from many users who find it too confusing and is said to be the most controversial change in iOS 18.

Home screen

iOS 18 allows users to customize the icon color as well as the icon position and size on the home screen.

A toggle to activate dark mode icons for first-party apps and many third party ones was implemented.

Previous iOS versions arranged icons on a preset grid, but now users can place them anywhere.

In iOS 18, App Widgets and some apps can now be enlarged or reduced as desired.

Many system icons were given gradients or had them removed.

In iOS 18, applications can now be locked or hidden. Locked apps require passcode/biometric authentication to run. Hidden apps are moved to a designated 'Hidden' folder in the App Library; accessing that folder requires passcode/biometric authentication. Hidden apps do not show in other places on the phone such as Siri Suggestions and the Settings app.

In iOS 18.1, a new feature was introduced which enables users to edit the iPhone home screen through iPhone Mirroring.

Control Center

iOS 18 comes with a redesign to the Control Center, allowing for multiple pages of controls, resizable buttons, and third-party controls.

Passwords

Apple introduced Passwords, a password manager aimed at simplifying password management for websites, applications, Wi-Fi, and verification codes. This new app is heavily inspired by and replaces the Passwords section that was previously found in Settings, with the addition of Wi-Fi passwords. All existing passwords and codes in Settings are automatically moved to the Passwords app upon updating.

recoveryOS

iOS 18 includes recoveryOS for the iPhone 16 series that allows users to restore firmware wirelessly from another iPhone 16. While all iPhone devices running iOS 18 are able to recover and restore firmware for an iPhone 16 device, wireless firmware recovery can only work between iPhone 16 devices.

Others

With iOS 18.1, iOS allows the detection and display of battery health information of a non-Apple battery.

On devices with an OLED display, there is a bulge animation when a hardware button is pressed.

With iOS 18.2, users are able to share a link with others or airlines to track the location of AirTags or other accessories in the Find My app.

Reports from law enforcement suggested that a new security feature was added that would reboot iPhones after 72 hours of inactivity to make it harder to break into, something that researchers were able to confirm while looking at the code for iOS 18.1.

18.2 allowed app developers like Truecaller to add real-time Caller ID and spam-blocking.

With iOS 18.5, Apple introduced the 2025 Pride wallpaper.

Supported devices

iOS 18 requires a device with an Apple A12 Bionic processor or newer, all iPhones that support iOS 17 are also compatible with iOS 18. The Apple Intelligence feature requires an Apple A17 Pro processor or newer.

Release history

See also

* Apple Intelligence
* Artificial intelligence
* iPadOS 18
* macOS Sequoia
* tvOS 18
* visionOS 2
* watchOS 11

Notes

References

{{Apple

*18
2024 software
Applications of artificial intelligence
Mobile operating systems
Products introduced in 2024
Proprietary operating systems