iPhone Ultra Availability May be Limited at Launch, Adopting iPhone X Strategy

Apple may be limiting the number of units available for its first foldable iPhone. According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone Ultra may be released in short supply, adopting a similar launch strategy to the iPhone X.

Kuo suggests that Apple may ship 7 to 8 million iPhone Ultra units in the second half of 2026, following its September launch. However, Q3 shipments may be limited to 1 million or fewer, accounting for about 10 percent of that total allocation. The priority and focus will supposedly be on the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, which Apple is believed to ship 20 to 22 million units of during Q3.

“The foldable iPhone is likely to repeat what happened with the iPhone X in 2017,” Kuo says. The analyst believes that Apple will reveal the foldable during its September keynote alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. However, preorders and a launch date may be “coming later.”

In 2017, the iPhone X was announced alongside the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus on September 12. However, Apple didn’t open up preorders for the iPhone X until October 27, with a launch date slated for November 3rd. The iPhone 8 series was released much sooner, on September 22nd. Given that Apple may have limited iPhone Ultra shipments, preorders may not officially go live until Q4 2026.

Kuo presumes that even though iPhone Ultra may come with a premium price tag, it could sell out. The analyst predicts strong demand from enthusiast Apple customers as well as scalpers, leading to 4- to 6-week fulfillment times into December. “Demand for the foldable iPhone should remain strong at least through the end of 2026.” The report also predicts that iPhone Ultra may cost around $2,500 USD (roughly $3,559 CAD).

In recent months, there have been other credible reports made that Apple could be facing limited supply for the iPhone Ultra. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman made an earlier report debunking rumours of a delayed launch while noting that “supply could be limited initially.”