In Ho Chi Minh City, a line had formed outside the TopZone store on Ham Nghi Street by 6 a.m., with customers waiting to collect their phones.

TopZone, which began taking orders on Sept. 12, said it recorded more than 170,000 deposits for the new-generation iPhones within 15 hours, making it the Apple retailer with the largest order volume in Vietnam.

Vietnam is once again among the first wave of markets to sell the new iPhones, alongside more than 60 countries and territories worldwide.

The store opened at 8 a.m. sharp, and customers streamed in to collect their phones in turn.

In previous years, some retailers held midnight handover events, and customers typically lined up the evening before and stayed up all night to get their phones. This year, most retail chains scheduled pickups in the morning, with queues organized only about two to three hours in advance.

One of the first customers to collect a phone, Nguyen Viet Anh Tai, a 26-year-old office worker, chose the iPhone 18 Pro Max in Burgundy. "This year's red is really beautiful, and it's the reason I decided to upgrade from an iPhone 14 to the new device," Viet Anh said.

Le Nguyen Hoang Vu, a 32-year-old sales employee in Ho Chi Minh City, was excited to receive his new iPhone.

The iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max come in four colors this year: red, blue, silver and black. Most first-batch buyers chose red, which is also the first time the color has appeared in the Pro line.

At a TopZone store in Hanoi, the atmosphere was quieter, as there were no launch events like in previous years.

According to a representative of one retail chain, many resellers are handing over the iPhone 18 at shopping malls and stores nationwide this year instead of concentrating deliveries at a few locations. The approach spreads customers out, prevents crowding and shortens pickup times.

Nguyen Thi Hue, who manages the Viettel Store on Xa Dan Street, said the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max had drawn strong interest, especially in Burgundy and Glacier, which were also the most-ordered versions.

However, first-batch supply has fallen short of demand, so some customers will receive their phones in the second and third delivery rounds. The store expected to hand over phones to nearly 50 pre-order customers on the morning of Sept. 18.

Customers begin unboxing and setting up their new devices.

Customers upgrading from an older phone will need to sync their data, which can take hours depending on storage. What's different this year is that users will need to verify their SIM when switching to another device.

At a store on Dai Co Viet Street in Hanoi, Nguyen Quang Huy was the first customer to arrive to collect his phone.

He said he joined the line at 7 a.m. and chose a 512GB iPhone 18 Pro Max in blue. "I need the phone early, partly because of the nature of my work. I'm using an iPhone 17 Pro Max, and I get the sense the battery on the new generation is better. I also take quite a lot of photos, so I need the lens system and the ability to adjust focal length," Huy said.

A customer holds two new iPhone 18 Pro Max units, one red and one blue.

A CellphoneS representative said the chain had received about 50,000 orders for the iPhone 18, triple last year's figure, with red and blue the most popular versions. On the first day of sales, the chain expects to hand over around 10,000 units, while remaining demand will be met in subsequent shipments.

"The iPhone 18 Pro Max is still the most sought-after and most-ordered version, even though the design hasn't changed much," Huy said.

The CellphoneS representative said purchasing typically peaks in the first few days of sales before tapering off. This year, however, iPhone 18 orders have exceeded many retailers' expectations despite a slight price increase.

Apple unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max alongside the iPhone Duo at its "Surprise and Shine" event on Sept. 9. This year, Apple also staggered pre-orders and sales across its models, with the iPhone 18 Pro pair going first and the iPhone Duo following in October.

Apple opened pre-orders for the two phones on Sept. 12 in more than 60 markets. The iPhone 18 Pro starts at VND38.99 million ($1,500) for the 256GB version, VND4 million ($154) or 11% more than the iPhone 17 Pro's launch list price. The iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at VND41.99 million ($1,615) for 256GB.

Compared with the previous generation, the new phones focus on the camera, performance and battery life. They run on the A20 Pro chip, with a new-generation vapor chamber cooling system and a 48-megapixel Fusion main camera with variable aperture.

The variable aperture lets users control how much light reaches the sensor. Apple has also added professional controls to the Camera app, aimed at users who frequently shoot photos and video.