South Korea’s three mobile carriers on Sept. 18 officially launched Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, starting activations for preorder customers and general sales. All three carriers saw stronger preference for the Pro model in preorders.

SK Telecom said on Sept. 18 that iPhone 18 Pro series preorders were at a similar level to the previous model. By model, the iPhone 18 Pro drew more interest than the Pro Max. The iPhone 18 Pro accounted for 78 percent of total preorders. Silver was the most preferred color for the Pro, while black was the top choice for the Pro Max.

KT said preorder volumes for the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max rose from the previous model. The iPhone 18 Pro made up about 70 percent of total reservations. Silver was the most selected color for the Pro, and burgundy for the Pro Max.

In preorders at LG Uplus’ official online store, the iPhone 18 Pro accounted for 79.7 percent and the Pro Max 20.3 percent. For both models, silver and the 256GB storage option had the highest selection shares.

Preference for higher-capacity models was relatively stronger for the Pro Max. At LG Uplus, the share choosing 512GB or more was tallied at 38.2 percent for the Pro and 51.5 percent for the Pro Max.

The three carriers are stepping up efforts to attract customers to coincide with the official launch, offering used-phone trade-in compensation, device upgrades and affiliated card discounts.

SK Telecom offers up to 1.27 million won for returning a used phone at its T Direct Shop and provides Google AI Plus and a TVING pass to customers who activate the iPhone 18 Pro series. KT is operating its 'PhoneChange_i18' service, which provides additional compensation for used phones and up to 50 percent of the retail price when customers return their existing device after 2 years. LG Uplus also offers additional used-phone compensation and its 'Compensation Pass', which guarantees up to 50 percent of the retail price.

Apple’s first foldable phone, the iPhone Duo, will begin preorders on Oct. 16. The release date is Oct. 23.