In summary:
- Macworld reports that the iPhone 18 Pro has reportedly entered test production according to Weibo leaker Fixed Focus Digital, whose prediction accuracy varies.
- This development timing aligns with Apple’s typical production validation test phase, suggesting normal progress toward the device’s eventual release.
- Speculation exists about whether the standard iPhone 18 or rumored iPhone Fold might also be included in this early testing phase.
We’re in the dying days of February, and Apple’s flagship phone launches are still more than six months away. But according to a new report, the company is making solid progress towards the iPhone 18 Pro’s launch, with the device having just entered test production.
The leaker Fixed Focus Digital, who has a mixed record but a few solid predictions under their belt, claims in a Weibo post this week (spotted by MacRumors) that the 18-series handsets are “already in mass production testing,” adding that the “iPhone 18 Pro production line has also started operation.” (Both quotes via Google Translate.)
The leaker does not specify a source for these claims, referring only and vaguely to “current information.” One would assume they have access to sources in Apple’s supply chain, which is so large and complex that a few leaks are almost inevitable. But it also wouldn’t be impossible to guess and have a fair chance of being right.
Because, while this might seem early (after all, we haven’t even got the iPhone 17e yet), this is pretty standard timing. Apple’s road to a shipped hardware product has numerous stops along the way, going through Engineering Validation Test (EVT), Design Validation Test (DVT), and Production Validation Test (PVT) before actual mass production begins. February is roughly when we would expect DVT to transition into PVT.
A more interesting question is how the standard iPhone 18 fits into all of this. Fixed Focus’s initial reference to the “iPhone 18 series,” rather than the iPhone 18 Pro specifically, as it does in the second part, appears to imply that the iPhone 18 is included in the mass production testing. Indeed, every Apple news site I’ve seen covering this story has taken that to be the leaker’s meaning, which would leave us in a situation where Apple is already production-testing the iPhone 18 even though it isn’t expected to come out until spring 2027.
That’s not impossible–the iPhone 18 could be in an earlier validation stage, such as EVT–but the vagueness of the prediction, combined with potential for confusion introduced by having to translate the post from Chinese, makes me wonder if that might not be what is meant. Could it be that Fixed Focus is instead including the iPhone Fold in the “18 series” of iPhones, given that it’ll launch alongside them and is effectively part of that generation? Is it even possible that the leaker thinks the device will be called the iPhone 18 Fold?
Regardless, we’ll get plenty more opportunities to observe the new phones’ progress as we head towards the big launch. For all the latest news and rumors, bookmark our regularly updated iPhone 18 superguide. And of course, if you can’t wait until September, check our roundup of the best iPhone deals to make sure you’re paying the lowest possible price on the current range. Just wait until we’ve seen the iPhone 17e before making that purchase.
Author: David Price, Editor, Macworld
David has been writing about technology for well over two decades, and got on board the Apple hype train when covering the original iPhone launch in 2007. He is an enthusiastic Apple Watch evangelist and feels that the HomePod is misunderstood.