Some individuals queue up, others pay a premium, yet scalpers show reluctance to buy.

On September 18, 2026, the iPhone 18 series officially hit the shelves. As per his routine, Leikeji arrived at the Apple Store in Tianhuan Plaza, Guangzhou, half an hour early.

(Image Source: On-Site Photography by Leikeji)

Xiaolei initially believed that the iPhone 18 Pro series, with its minor upgrades this year, wouldn't ignite a buying spree. To his astonishment, the long queue outside the store was notably longer than the previous year, and even the number of scalpers had doubled. So, what makes this year's iPhone 18 Pro series so appealing?

Pro Models See Immediate Price Drop, While Pro Max Top Models Face a Lukewarm Reception?

Similar to the past two years, the Apple Store in Tianhuan Plaza continued its crowd control measures, allowing only five people to enter at a time, with customers needing to wait for staff assistance upon entry. However, the process of picking up new phones was highly efficient, with customers able to receive their new iPhones in an average of three to five minutes if they didn't linger in the store.

Due to the significant increase in customers and scalpers this year, the area outside the store had transformed into a 'scalper's haven' by 8:10 AM. As soon as a customer exited the store, three to five scalpers would rush up to inquire if they wanted to sell their new phone.

(Image Source: On-Site Photography by Leikeji)

Regarding models, Xiaolei inquired around on-site and overheard conversations between users and scalpers, uncovering an intriguing point: this year's iPhone 18 Pro, much like last year's iPhone 17 standard model, experienced an immediate price drop upon release. Scalpers either refused to buy them outright or offered at most a 150 yuan premium for resale. Xiaolei witnessed a college student-looking user who, after consulting with several scalpers, eventually sold his phone for just a 100 yuan premium, barely earning enough for a meal after waking up early.

What about the Pro Max? According to previous patterns, during the first hour after release, the 1TB version of the iPhone Pro Max would often command a premium of 1,500 to 2,000 yuan, the 512GB version would have an 800-1,200 yuan premium, and the 256GB version would generally not see much of a price increase. However, the situation this year is less optimistic compared to last year.

(Image Source: On-Site Photography by Leikeji)

Firstly, Xiaolei had anticipated that the 1TB and 2TB versions would be hot sellers, but this year, scalpers were only offering a 400-600 yuan premium for them (the 2TB version was basically not being accepted for fear of being stuck with unsold inventory). Instead, the 512GB version became the most sought-after, with its premium soaring from 600 yuan at 8:30 AM to 950 yuan by 10:30 AM. Xiaolei waited until 11 AM to secure one from a personal seller for a 600 yuan premium.

(Image Source: On-Site Photography by Leikeji)

As for why the 1TB and 2TB versions faced a lukewarm reception, a scalper revealed, 'This year, iPhone prices have already gone up. The official price for the 1TB version is 16,500 yuan. Adding another thousand or so won't attract any buyers, let alone the 2TB version.'

In terms of color, scalpers were primarily interested in the newest 'Burgundy' color this year, followed by blue and silver, with black being the least sought-after. After all, as the main color of this release, burgundy is the most popular choice as it allows others to immediately recognize that you have purchased a new iPhone.

Surge in Overseas Scalpers, Everyone a 'Reseller'?

Last year, Xiaolei noticed the emergence of some foreign faces among the scalpers on Apple's first-day sales. This year, their numbers have surged from a dozen to seventy or eighty, accounting for nearly one-third of the entire scalper group.

(Image Source: On-Site Photography by Leikeji)

However, unlike domestic scalpers, most of them were unable to use WeChat or Alipay for large transfers and could only produce bundles of cash from their suitcases, the amount of which surprised Xiaolei. These foreign scalpers even set their sights on domestic scalpers. Xiaolei witnessed a 'dark-skinned' scalper take away a full sixteen iPhone 18 Pro Max units from a domestic counterpart and then produce nearly 200,000 yuan in cash on the spot.

While it may seem spectacular, this has made many on-site users hesitant to trade with these foreign scalpers: after all, in the era of electronic payments, cash transactions are inconvenient, and users have to worry about receiving counterfeit bills. On the contrary, foreign scalpers generally offer 100 to 200 yuan more than their Chinese counterparts, which may be their only advantage.

(Image Source: On-Site Photography by Leikeji)

As for why these foreign scalpers are so bold in offering premiums for resale, Xiaolei also gleaned some information from some sources: 'They are buying them to resell in the Middle East or Africa, where iPhones are significantly more expensive than in China. They can easily earn at least two to three thousand yuan per unit.'

Xiaolei also looked up some relevant information: the starting price of the iPhone 18 Pro series in Turkey is 149,999 lira (approximately 20,810 yuan), which is double the price in China. The starting price of the iPhone 18 Pro Max in Egypt is 123,999 Egyptian pounds (approximately 18,000 yuan). Not to mention that many African countries lack an official Apple retail system, relying entirely on such scalpers to 'physically' bring the phones back to the local market.

Scalping Becomes Increasingly Difficult, and Initial Sales Lose Their Charm

While lurking on the sidewalk, Xiaolei randomly asked several college student-looking males, all of whom were looking to earn some extra money and had little interest in the iPhone 18 Pro series itself. They had heard that reselling the iPhone 17 series last year was quite profitable, so after securing new units on the official website this year, they got up early to earn some living expenses.

One male student obviously 'bet on the wrong horse.' He mistakenly thought that the 1TB version would command a high premium this year like last year and bought five units with a few friends, only to earn a few hundred yuan in the end.

After observing the iPhone's initial sales for several years, Xiaolei's feeling is not that iPhones are no longer popular, but rather that the event of the 'initial sale' itself has lost its special significance.

Why were Apple users willing to queue up for hours or even overnight in the past? Because it was truly difficult to buy one. Getting a new iPhone from an Apple Store on the first day of sale would easily garner dozens of likes on social media.

(Image Source: On-Site Photography by Leikeji)

But now, the three major e-commerce platforms and food delivery platforms all go on sale simultaneously with Apple's official channels. Coupled with extremely efficient logistics, while users are still queuing up at the store, online shoppers have already received their phones and started activating and applying screen protectors. More crucially, everyone knows that iPhone prices will drop. In the past, Apple's official channel prices were relatively stable, and buying at the initial release at least offered a 'price protection period' of half a month. Now, with various subsidies, prices can drop by 500-1,000 yuan in less than a week. Who wouldn't want to save a thousand yuan by waiting a few days?

(Image Source: Graphic by Leikeji)

This is why the Apple Store entrance seems particularly lively this year, but Xiaolei always feels something is off. Apart from those users who are determined to get their hands on an iPhone as soon as possible, most of the remaining people on-site are 'outsiders' looking to earn some extra money.

However, from another perspective, a smartphone with a starting price of nearly 10,000 yuan can still draw long queues at multiple Apple Stores across the country on the first day of sale, and the Pro Max even commands a premium. This is enough to show that Apple's appeal in the high-end smartphone market remains strong.

But now, everyone is starting to know which versions hold their value and which versions will plummet in price. They also know that e-commerce platforms will offer discounts soon. Users are increasingly clear about what they want, and the same goes for scalpers.

Ten years ago, the excitement of the initial sale of a new iPhone was reflected in the hundreds-of-meters-long queues outside the Apple Store. A few years ago, it was reflected in the one to two thousand yuan premiums charged by scalpers. This year, the queues are still there, and so are the scalpers. Some models even start to plummet in price on the first day, but the number of iPhones sold by Apple continues to increase rather than decrease.

The excitement of the iPhone's initial sale has not disappeared; it's just no longer solely concentrated outside the Apple Store.

Source: Leikeji

The images in this article are from the 123RF royalty-free image library. Source: Leikeji