iPhone 18 Pro Max Requires 'Prepare to Ship' Battery Drain Before Shipping

The iPhone 18 Pro Max, featuring a battery capacity exceeding 20 watt-hours, necessitates specific shipping precautions. To comply with shipping regulations, Apple has implemented a firmware solution that restricts the battery capacity to under 20Wh during production and delivery to the customer. This limit is automatically removed when the device is activated, restoring the battery's full charging capacity. iPhones that have not been activated or are still in their packaging do not require the "Prepare to Ship" feature, as their battery capacity is already limited.

However, customers needing to ship their iPhone 18 Pro Max for repair, trade-in, or other reasons must utilize the new "Prepare to Ship" feature. Activating this feature discharges the battery to below the 20Wh threshold and sets a charge limit to ensure the iPhone remains within the safe capacity during transportation. Users can access the "Prepare to Ship" option by navigating to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Prepare to Ship.

Apple cautions that the device may become warmer than usual while in preparation for shipping if the battery needs to be discharged further. Upon completion, the iPhone displays a "Ready to Ship" status in the Settings menu. To reverse the shipping preparation, users can find an option in the same section of the Settings app to undo the process.

Depending on the reason selected for using the "Prepare to Ship" feature, there may be a 14-day waiting period before the iPhone can be disabled from the shipping preparation state. Apple reassures that the iPhone 18 Pro Max remains safe for shipping and air travel, emphasizing that this limitation has been introduced to meet shipping requirements.

It is noteworthy that no other iPhone models possess a single-cell battery exceeding 20Wh, rendering this procedure exclusive to the iPhone 18 Pro Max.