The analyst firm predicts that Apple will drop the iPhone 19 name and move directly to iPhone 20 in 2027.
Omdia believes the company will do this to commemorate the iPhone’s 20th anniversary, but this only strengthens my view that it’s time for Apple to bring the numbers down once and for all…
ET News Report on predictions.
Apple is expected to name the iPhone it releases in 2027 “iPhone 20.” Omdia Chief Researcher Heo Moo-yeol said at a press conference held at L Tower in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 22nd, “Apple will release the iPhone 18e and iPhone 20 in the first half of 2027, and the iPhone 20 Air, Pro, Pro Max, and iPhone Fold 2 in the second half of 2027.”
I think this is speculation on Omdia’s part rather than based on hard information, but if Apple is considering changing its numbering system, I think it’s time to move to a simple year-based approach.
Of course, the company already does this with its own operating system, but it’s doing the automaker’s annoyance by pushing it back a year. iOS 26, macOS 26, etc. will continue from 2025 to 2026.
Doing the same thing on an iPhone would result in increasingly unwieldy numbers, so I previously suggested that it makes sense to take the same approach as for Macs and iPads and simply use the name on its own with the year in parentheses.
As the numbers get bigger, the iPhone name is starting to seem more and more ridiculous. Will it end up being the iPhone 53? iPhone104?
In my opinion, a better approach would be to reduce the numbers entirely and bring the iPhone on par with other Apple products. Let the current model be iPhone (iPhone, iPhone Air, iPhone Pro, iPhone Pro Max) and the previous model be iPhone (year).
When you buy a MacBook Air at an Apple Store or website, instead of buying a MacBook Air 13 (meaning the 13th model, not the 13-inch size), you just buy a 13-inch or 15-inch MacBook Air. When Apple needed to differentiate a particular model, it used to display the year in parentheses, but now it differentiates by chip. In fact, of the two, I think year is more meaningful to the average consumer.
So the current iPhone lineup looks like this:
- iPhone (2025)
- iPhone Air (2025)
- iPhone Pro (2025)
- iPhone Pro Max (2025)
Along with older models still sold directly by Apple, these include:
- iPhone (2024)
- iPhone e (2024)
However, I don’t think it’s necessary to use the age of the current model, so what you’ll find in stores will actually be the same as the MacBook Air.
- iPhone
- iPhone Air
- iPhone pro
- iPhone Pro Max
- iPhone (2024)
- iPhone e (2024)
It also proposes that Apple retire model numbers for other products it currently uses, namely the Apple Watch and AirPods. For example, AirPods Pro 3 becomes AirPods Pro (2025).
I held my nose in one fell swoop and had Apple use a car manufacturing scheme tailored to the operating system so that the year would appear as next year.
what is your opinion? Should Apple stop numbering iPhones and only use years when necessary? Take our poll and share your thoughts in the comments.
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