The memory shortage is showing up in Apple’s own stores, analysts are warning that iPhone 18 Pro may cost more, and a paid Safari feature is leaking IP addresses.
A ‘major’ shortage of MacBook Air
Despite a price rise in June, MacBook Air is in a “major” shortage, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who said retail sources described shipments as more constrained than they could recall. In the US, Apple’s online store was quoting two to six weeks for delivery, with higher-memory configurations waiting the longest. Apple has not issued a statement, and stock will vary by store and configuration, including in Australia, but if you need an Air soon it is worth checking the delivery estimate on apple.com/au, or in a store, before you count on a quick handover.
The squeeze is part of a wider memory crunch that has already pushed up Mac and iPad prices, and is hanging over the next iPhone launch as well.
iPhone 18 Pro may cost more
Analyst Jeff Pu has said the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max could cost US$250 to US$300 more than the current models, because of component shortages. That is a US figure, and it is a forecast, not an Apple price list. Apple is also reported to be still securing enough memory for the new phones, with a large number of processors waiting on memory chips. Apple is also reported to have around US$1 billion of unpackaged processors waiting on memory chips. Shortages at launch are possible. Australian prices will only be confirmed when Apple publishes them, and they will include GST.
A split iPhone launch is still the plan
Apple is still expected to use September for its Pro iPhones and a foldable, and to hold the more affordable models until spring 2027. That means this year’s event, likely in the first half of September, will be a narrower lineup than usual — and, if the foldable is priced at the top of the range, a more expensive one. Camera-equipped AirPods have also been mentioned as a wild card, though that is far from certain.
Private Relay can leak your real IP address
Security researchers Tommy Mysk and Talal Haj Bakry found that iCloud Private Relay, the Safari feature included with paid iCloud+ plans, can expose a user’s real IP address to sites that use, or pretend to use, passkeys. Private Relay is not a full VPN; it only covers Safari. Passkey requests using WebAuthn leave the browser and are not protected by the relay. If you rely on Private Relay to hide your IP, it is not doing that job in those cases. Apple has not yet said when it will fix it. In a separate EU interoperability request, Apple also told Microsoft it is working on copy and paste between iPhone and Windows PCs, with work not expected to be finished until autumn 2027, and possibly limited to the EU at first.
What to watch next week
iOS 27’s next betas are still arriving as Apple closes in on a September release, and an event date should be announced before long. If you are shopping for a MacBook Air, check the delivery estimate before you buy.
