iPhone 18 Pro Max is advertised for a difference of 9 million VND compared to the listed price

Buying iPhone 18 Pro Max on the website of a retail system in the first few minutes of the day of ordering on September 12, Hoang Phu (Saigon ward, Ho Chi Minh City) was disappointed when he received a text message informing him that the appointment time to pick up the device was early October. Because he needed to give it to an important partner early, he canceled the order and went to small stores or groups on social networks.

Even though he accepted the price difference to get the device early, he was still surprised when in many stores, the burgundy red iPhone 18 Pro Max 256 GB was listed for 51 million VND, 9 million VND higher than the listed price of 42 million VND. The blue model is also about 50 million, a difference of 8 million VND, while the silver white and black models are 5.5 and 4.5 million VND respectively.

Meanwhile, the iPhone 18 Pro is less popular with Vietnamese people, so users can own it on the first day of sale on September 18 at a higher price than the listed price from a few hundred thousand to 2 million VND.

Talking to a store, Mr. Phu shared that this is essentially buying back deposits at large retail systems. “They took the difference, and I went to the store to pick up the phone and activate it like a normal customer,” he said. Some other parties commit to “completely new device, just unboxed and activated on September 18”.

According to Apple’s regulations, during the initial period, customers who buy and receive devices at retail systems must activate them right at the store. A representative of a system explained that if the company does not do so, it will be heavily fined, but this is “necessary to prevent hoarding of resold goods”.

The above situation was recorded last year. Before the opening date of September 19, 2025, the orange iPhone 17 Pro Max 256 GB was advertised for 43-45 million, an “increase” of 5-7 million VND compared to Apple’s announcement. Two weeks later, the silver 17 Pro Max 256 GB was even priced at 46-48 million, while the listed price was 38 million, a difference of 8-10 million VND.

Currently, major systems such as The Gioi Di Dong, FPT Shop, CellphoneS, Hoang Ha Mobile still set the price equivalent to Apple’s listed price, but most buyers will have to wait at least 1-2 weeks to receive the device.

The design has not changed, but iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max still receive great attention from consumers in Vietnam. The duo was allowed to place orders from 7:00 p.m. on September 12 and large systems such as TopZone, FPT Shop, and CellphoneS recorded more than 300,000 deposit orders in one day.

“Compared to the 2025 iPhone season, the number of interested customers and pre-orders has doubled,” said a TopZone representative. Last year, iPhone attracted more than 100,000 bookings on the first day. However, the 2025 iPhone generation has four versions including iPhone 17, 17 Pro, 17 Pro Max and iPhone Air. Meanwhile, on September 12, Apple just opened for sale two models of iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max.

As usual, the Pro Max version with new red color and low capacity is still chosen by the majority. According to statistics at Mobile Vietnam, the number of orders for 18 Pro Max accounts for 84%, of which the 256 GB version accounts for 75%, the red version accounts for 66%. CellphoneS also said it was “not unexpected” that burgundy red and ice blue were the most chosen.

iPhone 18 Pro has a starting price of 38.99 million with 256 GB version, 4 million VND higher than the listed price at launch of the 17 Pro. The remaining models are 45.49 million (512 GB), 58.49 million (1 TB), and 77.99 million (2 TB), respectively. The iPhone 18 Pro Max is priced from 41.99 million VND with the 256 GB version. The 512 GB, 1 TB and 2 TB versions are sold for 48.49 million, 61.49 million and 80.99 million VND respectively.