The iPhone 18 Professional is already placing 2026 Android telephones to disgrace

The 2026 Android panorama is rapidly taking form. Samsung’s Galaxy S26 sequence has leaked to loss of life, OnePlus already launched its huge telephone for the 12 months, Google’s subsequent Pixel A handset is true across the nook, and Motorola is getting again into the flagship race.

We regularly give Apple flak for releasing the identical telephone 12 months after 12 months, however 2025 was totally different. Along with including big modifications to the bottom iPhone 17 and making an attempt one thing fully new with the iPhone Air, the iPhone 17 Professional was some of the important upgrades we’ve seen from Apple in years.

The brand new aluminum design, whereas considerably controversial, was a daring redesign that largely paid off. The brand new 48MP telephoto digital camera is excellent, as is the genius Middle Stage selfie digital camera. Pair that with a strong A19 Professional chip, good battery life, and sooner cost speeds, and the iPhone 17 Professional was precisely the improve we’ve been ready for.

Given all that, it might be protected to imagine the iPhone 18 Professional will probably be a quieter launch with no significant modifications. Nonetheless, if the most recent rumors and reviews are true, we’re in for an additional 12 months of main upgrades throughout the board.

One of the important reported modifications is that Apple’s Face ID sensor will probably be hidden beneath the show, whereas the front-facing digital camera is moved to the left nook, and the show bezels are smaller than ever. Dynamic Island is predicted to stay, however the hidden sensors, repositioned digital camera cutout, and slimmer bezels ought to give the entrance of the iPhone 18 Professional one of many greatest visible refreshes for the reason that iPhone 14 Professional.

The brand new A20 chipset is predicted to be constructed on a 2nm design (smaller than the 3nm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5), and the first digital camera could characteristic a variable aperture for higher management over lighting in photographs and movies. And to high all of it off, Apple will reportedly improve the iPhone 18 Professional’s satellite tv for pc connectivity to help 5G networks.

Simply take into consideration all of this for a second. For Apple to doubtlessly ship a refreshed design, a significant new chip, new digital camera {hardware}, and a game-changer for satellite tv for pc connectivity — all only one 12 months after the iPhone 17 Professional — is large. These will not be insignificant modifications we’re speaking about, and to get this instantly after the iPhone 17 Professional sounds too good to be true.

Assuming these reviews concerning the iPhone 18 Professional are correct, Apple’s Android rivals have their work lower out for them. After such a profitable iPhone 17 Professional and the iPhone 18 Professional shaping up the way in which it’s, 2026 is the 12 months Android manufacturers must step it up.

Sadly, there’s slim hope of that taking place. Based mostly on the place we’re at proper now, the iPhone 18 Professional is already placing 2026 Android telephones to disgrace.

The OnePlus 15, whereas technically launched in November 2025, is positioned as OnePlus’s flagship telephone for this 12 months. And as a 2026 Android flagship, it misses the mark on a couple of counts — together with downgraded digital camera sensors, poor thermal efficiency, a generic design, and quite a lot of questionable software program modifications. The OnePlus 13 was topped as our favourite Android telephone of 2025, however the OnePlus 15 fully didn’t reside as much as its predecessor’s success.

Samsung is about to enter the 2026 flagship race, and its outlook doesn’t seem any brighter. All indicators level to the Galaxy S26 sequence being a copy-paste job of the Galaxy S25 lineup, which we simply criticized final 12 months for being too just like the S24 household. We haven’t heard something confidence-inspiring about Samsung’s subsequent trio of flagship Android telephones, and there’s a motive why my colleague Rita says the Galaxy S26 is already the worst telephone of 2026.

What else do we’ve to look ahead to? The Motorola Signature is a promising re-entry into flagship telephones from Motorola, however on the time of publication, there aren’t any plans for US availability. The Pixel 11 sequence could possibly be thrilling, however based mostly on how disappointing an improve the Pixel 10a is shaping as much as be, that’s not a assure both.

And … that’s about it. It’s at all times doable that Samsung, Motorola, or Google will shock us with one thing huge, however there’s at the moment no indication that any of them will. And if not, I don’t foresee a future the place any of those 2026 Android handsets can correctly compete with the iPhone 18 Professional.

I say all of this as a longtime Android fan and consumer — as you’d anticipate from somebody writing for Android Authority. However I’m additionally a realist, and after I take a step again and have a look at the iPhone 18 Professional in comparison with what the Android world will supposedly provide in 2026, I don’t see how Apple doesn’t win that struggle each single time.