Former display analyst Ross Young corroborated a leak concerning the iPhone 18 Pro’s front-panel design, indicating a smaller Dynamic Island will persist on the device. Young, previously a vice president at Counterpoint Research, supported information from Chinese leaker Instant Digital, detailing how Apple will reduce the Dynamic Island’s size.
Yes this is what I alluded to months ago.
— Ross Young (@DSCCRoss) January 20, 2026
Young had previously stated in June 2025 that while some Face ID components would integrate under the display in iPhone 18 Pro models, visible Face ID elements would remain, resulting in a smaller Dynamic Island compared to the iPhone 14 Pro through iPhone 17 Pro. Instant Digital specified that only the IR flood illuminator would relocate under the display to the top-left corner, while the dot projector, infrared camera, and selfie camera would stay within a smaller, centered Dynamic Island. Another Chinese leaker and Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman previously reported similar information.
This corroboration contradicts a report by The Information’s Wayne Ma, which claimed Apple would move the selfie camera to the top-left corner of the iPhone 18 Pro display, creating a hole-punch cutout and eliminating the Dynamic Island. Apple is projected to introduce the iPhone 18 Pro models in September.
