Login
Login

iPhone naming

{{short description|Naming system of the iPhone model series by Apple}}

{{lowercase title}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}

The iPhone is a line of smartphones designed and marketed by Apple Inc. that uses Apple's iOS mobile operating system. The first-generation iPhone was announced by former Apple CEO Steve Jobs on January 9, 2007. Since then, Apple has annually released new iPhone models and iOS updates. iPhone naming has followed various patterns throughout its history.

Nomenclature

= Current naming style =

iPhones are named with "iPhone" followed by a number, which denotes the iPhone generation, and sometimes a suffix (such as Plus, Pro, Pro Max). The current naming pattern is that "Plus" indicates a physically larger iPhone model of the same generation, sometimes with higher end features (iPhones 6 Plus through iPhone 16 Plus). "Max" indicates the largest model of the premium model (iPhones XS Max). "Pro" indicates the premium model (iPhones 11 Pro through iPhone 16 Pro). "Pro Max" indicates the largest model of the "Pro" line indicated as a premium model (iPhone 11 Pro Max through iPhone 16 Pro Max). "e" indicates the entry-level model (iPhone 16e). Currently, models with just a number (i.e. without a suffix) indicate the flagship of the iPhone (iPhones 11 through iPhone 16).

= Previous naming style =

The suffixes S, R, C and SE were previously used. "S" was used to denote a slight upgrade (iPhone 3GS, 4S, 5S, 6S & 6S Plus, XS & XS Max), but it has since been dropped; iPhone XS and XS Max were the last models to feature the "S". "R" was used to denote the lower-priced iPhone XR, which is the only iPhone with "R" in its name. Similarly, "C" was used to denote the lower-priced iPhone 5C, a variant of the iPhone 5 with similar features and internals, and is the only iPhone with "C" in its name. The "SE" used in the entry-level iPhone SE line stands for "Special Edition".{{cite web |last1=Langly |first1=Hugh |date=22 March 2016 |title=What the iPhone SE stands for – and what we think it should stand for |url=https://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/what-the-iphone-se-stands-for-and-what-we-think-it-should-stand-for-1317536 |access-date=23 June 2022 |website=TechRadar.com}}{{Cite web |date=2017-06-01 |title=Apple iPhone SE: Wofür steht eigentlich das SE? - WELT |url=https://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/webwelt/article160310620/Wofuer-steht-eigentlich-das-SE.html |access-date=2023-05-26 |website=Die Welt |language=de}} They were all named and marketed as simply "iPhone SE", and can be differentiated by generation suffixes. iPhone X (pronounced "10"), iPhone XR (pronounced "10R") and iPhone XS and XS Max (pronounced "10S") are currently the only iPhones to have been branded with Roman numerals (X).

iPhones

47 different iPhone models have been produced:

{{col-start}}

{{col-break}}

{{col-end}}

Timeline

{{Timeline of iPhone models}}

Models never made

No models called the iPhone 2, iPhone 7S, iPhone 8S or iPhone 9 were ever produced; however, iPhone 9 was the rumored name for the iPhone SE (2020).

{{cite web

| title = Why was there no iPhone 9? Plus, what happened to the iPhone 10

| url = https://www.pocket-lint.com/phones/news/apple/145701-why-is-there-no-iphone-9

| website = pocket-lint.com

| date = 15 April 2020

| access-date = 12 August 2020}}

{{cite web

| title = Will Apple Ever Release an iPhone 9? Here's What We Know

| url = https://gadgetadvisor.com/gadgets/will-apple-ever-release-an-iphone-9-heres-what-we-know

| website = gadgetadvisor.com

| date = 3 June 2019

| access-date = 13 August 2020}}

The 1st-generation iPhone was colloquially known, retronymically, as the iPhone 2G, as the 2nd-generation iPhone was the iPhone 3G. The iPhone 4 did not support 4G; the iPhone 5 was the first with LTE support,{{Cite web |date=2012-09-12 |title=Apple Introduces iPhone 5 |url=https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2012/09/12Apple-Introduces-iPhone-5/ |access-date=2023-10-16 |website=Apple Newsroom |language=en-US}} while the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro were the first with 5G support.{{Cite web |date=2020-10-13 |title=Apple announces iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini: A new era for iPhone with 5G |url=https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2020/10/apple-announces-iphone-12-and-iphone-12-mini-a-new-era-for-iphone-with-5g/ |access-date=2023-10-16 |website=Apple Newsroom |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2023-10-13 |title=Apple introduces iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max with 5G |url=https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2020/10/apple-introduces-iphone-12-pro-and-iphone-12-pro-max-with-5g/ |access-date=2023-10-16 |website=Apple Newsroom |language=en-US}}

References

{{reflist}}

{{Apple Inc.}}

{{iOS}}

{{Apple hardware}}

{{Apple hardware since 1998}}

Category:IPhone