Apple's 2018 iPhones Continue to Ship With 5W Power Adapter - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Apple's 2018 iPhones Continue to Ship With 5W Power Adapter

by

Despite rumors suggesting Apple's 2018 iPhones might ship with an 18W adapter and a Lightning to USB-C cable to enable fast charging right out of the box, that didn't end up being the case.

The iPhone XS, XS Max, and iPhone XR ship with the same standard 5W Power Adapter that's traditionally included with iPhone models. The three devices also include a standard Lightning to USB-A cable, despite the fact that Apple's current Mac lineup has been transitioned to USB-C.

iphonepoweradapter
Those who want to use fast charging on the new 2018 iPhones will continue to need to purchase an 18W+ power adapter and a USB-C to Lightning cable.

There are plenty of third-party 18W+ power adapters on the market (or you can get a 30W MacBook charger from Apple for $49), but Apple sells the only certified Lightning to USB-C cable at this time. Apple is planning to let other manufacturers make these cables, but third-party USB-C to Lightning cables aren't expected until next year.

With fast charging, iPhone models are able to charge to 50 percent battery life in a 30 minute time span. iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR all support fast charging.

Top Rated Comments

whyamihere Avatar
98 months ago
Wow, the same 5W since 2007 on the newest biggest bestest battery in an iPhone ever. Courage.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
elhungarian Avatar
98 months ago
I don’t mind having a slower charger included as standar, as the normal charge cycle happens overnight and the slower you charge the better the charge. That still holds true for lipos too up to a certain point. The bummer is that any extra charger to fast charge from Apple is overpriced. Thank goodness for Anker.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
matjamca Avatar
98 months ago
Apple has lost a sale this year. I was going to get the XS Max, but the cost and penny pinching is too much of a bitter pill to swallow.

Apple used to get £900 a year from me for each Plus upgrade I bought. Now they’ll get £367-£550 a year depending on whether I upgrade every two or three years.

I hope millions of other customers do the same. That’ll certainly impact their ASP and hopefully make them think twice.

I really love Apple products but they are certainly challenging customer loyalty with their greed.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
98 months ago
Why bother including a charger in the box when it's only 5W and the cable can't even plug into any Mac that Apple currently sell?

Seriously, they should have just removed the charger and said "And it works with your old iPhone charger or you can buy a fast charger."
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jonnyb098 Avatar
98 months ago
Wow, another nice middle finger from Apple. Wonder how many days it'll take the iPhone Excess Max to charge.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Carlanga Avatar
98 months ago
This is so dumb. Why can't they get a 10W smaller like this? Is there a science reason or is it just Apple being lazy?
Neither, its all about the $.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

imac video apple feature

Apple Released Yet Another New Product Today

Friday March 20, 2026 2:39 pm PDT by
Apple has unveiled a whopping nine new products so far this March, including an iPhone 17e, iPad Air models with the M4 chip, MacBook Air models with the M5 chip, MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, the all-new MacBook Neo, an updated Studio Display, a higher-end Studio Display XDR, AirPods Max 2, and now the Nike Powerbeats Pro 2. iPhone 17e features the same overall design as...
iPhone 18 Pro Deep Red Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Wednesday March 18, 2026 7:39 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not expected to launch for another six months or so, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. It was initially reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models would have fully under-screen Face ID, with only a front camera visible in the top-left corner of the screen. However, the latest rumors indicate that only one Face ID component...
ios 26 4 pastel

iOS 26.4: Top 10 New Features Coming to Your iPhone

Friday March 20, 2026 2:44 pm PDT by
iOS 26.4 isn't the major update with new Siri features that we hoped for, but there are some useful quality of life improvements, and a little bit of fun with an AI playlist generator and new emoji characters. Playlist Playground - Apple Music has a Playlist Playground option that lets you generate playlists from text-based descriptions. You can include moods, feelings, activities, or...
Related Apple News: South Africa | Education | Motoring | Travel | World News