The iPhone 18 Pro’s N1 wireless chip handles Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread, according to Apple’s press release. Thread got no stage time at the keynote, but of the three radios it is the one built specifically for the smart home.
Apple’s release lists Thread in a single line and does not describe what the iPhone does with it. Our report on the iPhone 18 Pro announcement covers the rest of the wireless package, including the C2 modem.
What Thread is and why smart home devices use it
Thread is a low-power wireless mesh networking standard designed for smart home accessories such as sensors, lights and locks. Devices relay traffic for one another, so the network tends to get more reliable as you add accessories rather than less.
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Thread is also one of the connection types used by Matter, the cross-platform smart home standard Apple supports in the Home app. Thread accessories typically reach the wider network through a border router, a role Apple’s HomePod mini and Apple TV 4K already fill.
What Apple has and has not said about Thread on iPhone 18 Pro
- Confirmed: the N1 chip includes Thread, alongside Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.
- Not specified: whether the iPhone can act as a Thread border router.
- Not specified: whether the phone talks directly to Thread accessories for setup or control.
- Not specified: how the N1’s Thread support compares with earlier iPhones.
- Not specified: which Thread version the N1 supports.
Apple’s iOS 27 feature list in the same release does not mention Thread or any new Home app capability either. Whatever the radio enables, Apple has not announced it yet.
Why a Thread radio in a phone could matter
What follows is analysis, not something Apple has said. A phone with its own Thread radio could in principle talk to an accessory directly when it is within range, which would make setup faster and let controls work even if the home hub is offline.
The more interesting point is that the radio now sits on an Apple-designed chip rather than a third-party part. That gives Apple the hardware to add Thread features in a later iOS release, but nothing in Apple’s announcement commits it to doing so.
For now, the practical takeaway is simple: the iPhone 18 Pro ships with the radio, and the software story is still to come. Apple has not said whether the Thread hardware differs between the Pro and Pro Max, or whether the iPhone Duo’s wireless chip includes it.
Pre-orders for the iPhone 18 Pro open Saturday, September 12 at 5 a.m. PT, and the phones arrive Friday, September 18, with iOS 27 landing as a free update on September 14. Our guide to iPhone 18 Pro pre-orders has the timing, and the Apple event live blog has everything else from the keynote.
