The headline video number on iPhone 18 Pro is 4K Dolby Vision at 120 frames per second, and it is real, but it does not combine with everything else Apple lists. Cinematic mode stops at 4K Dolby Vision 60 fps, spatial video stops at 1080p at 30 fps, and ProRes reaches 4K120 only with external recording.
Those are four separate ceilings on one spec page, and reading them as one capability is the easiest mistake to make before the phone ships on Friday, September 18. Here is each limit as Apple published it, with nothing added, because no one outside Apple has recorded a frame on this camera yet.
The four ceilings Apple publishes
| Key fact | What Apple lists |
|---|---|
| 4K Dolby Vision | 24, 25, 30, 60, 100 or 120 fps |
| Cinematic mode | Up to 4K Dolby Vision at 60 fps |
| ProRes | Up to 4K at 120 fps, with external recording |
| Spatial video | 1080p at 30 fps |
| Also listed | Apple Log 2, ProRes RAW, Genlock |
| Port for external recording | USB-C with USB 3, up to 10 Gb/s |
| In the box | iPhone with iOS 27 and a 1 m USB-C cable |
| Models | iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, same rows |
Everything in that table applies to both sizes. Apple’s video rows do not differ between the 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch phones, which is why the decision between iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max comes down to battery ratings, weight and price.
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Cinematic mode stops at 60 fps
Apple lists Cinematic mode at up to 4K Dolby Vision at 60 fps. That is half of what the standard Dolby Vision pipeline reaches on the same phone, so on Apple’s own numbers the depth-of-field mode and the 120 fps option are not available in one clip. Apple’s press release described Cinematic effects at up to 60 fps and left it there.
Apple’s support documentation for Cinematic mode describes tapping the resolution and frame rate values in the corner of the Camera screen to change them, and adjusting aperture or exposure before recording. Those steps follow the currently published guide and may differ once iOS 27 ships on Monday, September 14.
ProRes at 4K120 needs a cable and a drive
Apple’s specs put ProRes at up to 4K at 120 fps with external recording. The port is USB-C carrying USB 3 at up to 10 Gb/s, and the box contains a 1 m USB-C cable and nothing else. Apple has not published a supported drive list, a required sustained write speed, or which internal ProRes resolutions and frame rates remain available without a drive attached.
Apple Log 2 and ProRes RAW appear on Apple’s comparison page for both Pro models alongside Genlock. No frame rate, bit depth or resolution is attached to any of the three.
Spatial video sits at 1080p30
Spatial video is the one format on the list that did not move. Apple publishes 1080p at 30 fps, full stop, with no 4K option, no higher frame rate and no Dolby Vision label attached to it. It is the same figure Apple has published for previous Pro iPhones.
Reading the four limits together
| What you might want | What Apple actually publishes |
|---|---|
| Cinematic mode at 120 fps | Cinematic mode tops out at 4K Dolby Vision 60 fps |
| Internal ProRes at 4K120 | ProRes 4K120 is listed with external recording |
| 4K spatial video | Spatial video is 1080p at 30 fps |
| Spatial video at 60 fps | Not published at any frame rate above 30 |
| Apple Log 2 at 120 fps | Log 2 is named with no frame rate attached |
| Dolby Vision at 4K120, no extras | Published, on both Pro models |
The practical reading is that the top frame rate belongs to plain Dolby Vision capture, and every extra layer costs frames, resolution or a drive. Apple’s launch announcement led on the variable aperture instead, and the ceilings only appeared on the spec page.
What Apple has not said
- Bit rates or file sizes per minute for Dolby Vision, ProRes or ProRes RAW.
- Which external drives work, or the write speed one has to sustain for 4K120 ProRes.
- Whether Apple Log 2 can be combined with Cinematic mode, spatial video or the top frame rates.
- Whether 100 and 120 fps capture is available on the Ultra Wide and Telephoto as well as the main camera.
- Any maximum recording duration, at any format.
Pre-orders open at 5 a.m. PT on Saturday, September 12, iOS 27 ships free on Monday, September 14, and the phones arrive on Friday, September 18. The Camera app that day is the first place any of these combinations can actually be tried.
