New iPhone 18 Pro Max leak suggests Apple may halt thickness trend now

Conflicting reports have emerged about the dimensions of Apple's most anticipated upcoming handset, the iPhone 18 Pro Max, with the latest leak suggesting the company may be ready to put the brakes on a thickening trend that has characterised the past two Pro Max generations.

Prominent hardware leaker Ice Universe has published a new claim placing the depth of the iPhone 18 Pro Max at 8.75mm — an identical figure to that of the iPhone 17 Pro Max, suggesting Apple is holding the measurement steady.

What the latest leak means for the Pro Max line

Should the detail prove accurate, it would mark the first time in two generations that the Pro Max has not grown thicker.

That would represent a modest but notable reversal, given that both the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max arrived heavier and deeper than their predecessors when they launched.

Ice Universe stopped short of addressing the device's weight, however, leaving that half of the size debate unresolved for now.

Earlier leak painted a very different picture

The new 8.75mm depth figure directly contradicts an earlier report published last November by Instant Digital, which claimed the iPhone 18 Pro Max would be both thicker and heavier than the iPhone 17 Pro Max.

That previous prediction also put the device's weight above 240 grams — a figure that could make it the heaviest iPhone Apple has ever produced. Notably, Instant Digital did not include a specific depth measurement in its report, leaving a gap in its claims.

The conflict remains unresolved

With two leakers now on opposite sides of the same argument, and neither having provided sufficient detail to settle the matter definitively, the debate continues.

One possible scenario that reconciles both accounts is that the handset remains relatively slim in depth whilst still coming in heavier, owing to denser internal components.

Battery capacity tipped as key design priority

Whichever thickness claim ultimately proves correct, earlier reports have pointed to battery capacity as the central design focus for this year's Pro Max.

Leaks from earlier in 2026 indicated that the iPhone 18 Pro Max is set to receive a substantial boost in battery size, whilst the standard iPhone 18 Pro is expected to see considerably more modest improvements in that area.