You’re looking at your phone right now, or maybe a friend’s, and you realize the math just doesn't add up. We went from the iPhone 7 to the iPhone 8, then suddenly, the iPhone X. Then 11, 12, and so on. It’s like a glitch in the Matrix. People always ask why no iPhone 9 ever hit the shelves, and honestly, the answer is a mix of high-stakes marketing, a massive anniversary, and the fact that Apple really, really wanted to charge you a thousand dollars for a phone.
They skipped a number. Just like that.
In the tech world, numbers aren't just for counting; they are psychological triggers. When Phil Schiller stood on stage at the Steve Jobs Theater in 2017, he wasn't just announcing a new product. He was resetting the clock. If you’ve ever felt like you missed a chapter in the Apple story, you didn't. Apple just ripped the page out because the page was boring.
The 10th Anniversary Problem
2017 was a big year. It marked exactly ten years since Steve Jobs pulled the original iPhone out of his pocket and changed everything. Apple had a massive dilemma. They had the iPhone 8 ready to go—a solid, if somewhat uninspiring, evolution of the iPhone 7 design. But "iPhone 8" doesn't scream "revolution." It screams "incremental update."
Apple needed something that felt like the future. They had been working on a bezel-less OLED display, Face ID, and a glass-sandwich design that looked lightyears ahead of the chunky forehead and chin of the iPhone 8. They called it the iPhone X.
Wait, it's pronounced "Ten."
By calling it the iPhone X (Roman numeral for 10), Apple aligned the device's name with the 10th anniversary of the brand. If they had released an iPhone 9 alongside it, the 9 would have looked like a fossil before it even left the warehouse. Who wants the "9" when the "10" is sitting right there looking all shiny and futuristic? Nobody.
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Marketing Psychology and the "Windows 9" Effect
Apple wasn't the first company to pull this stunt. Remember Windows 8? Microsoft famously skipped Windows 9 and went straight to Windows 10. There are various technical theories about legacy code and "Windows 9x" causing software bugs, but the real reason was branding. Microsoft wanted to distance themselves from the lukewarm reception of Windows 8. They wanted to signal a "new beginning."
Apple did the same thing.
If they had released an iPhone 9 in 2017, it would have felt like the "last of the old" rather than the "first of the new." By jumping to 10, they signaled that the iPhone X was a whole new generation. It was a leapfrog maneuver. Marketing experts often point out that consumers perceive larger numerical jumps as larger technological jumps. Going from 8 to 10 feels like a massive upgrade; going from 8 to 9 feels like you’re just keeping up with the Joneses.
Think about it this way. If you were a car salesperson, would you rather sell the "2018 model" or the "next-generation prototype"? Apple chose the latter.
The iPhone SE (2020) was the iPhone 9 in Disguise
For a few years, rumors swirled that Apple might actually go back and fill the gap. In late 2019 and early 2020, supply chain analysts like Ming-Chi Kuo were talking about a "budget" iPhone that would use the iPhone 8 body but with the guts of an iPhone 11. Everyone—literally everyone in the tech press—referred to this as the iPhone 9.
It made sense. It was the logical successor to the 8.
But when the phone finally dropped in April 2020, Apple called it the iPhone SE (Second Generation). They effectively killed the "9" branding forever. Why? Because by 2020, the iPhone 11 was already out. Releasing a "9" would have made the phone sound three years old at launch. By using the "SE" (Special Edition) moniker, Apple removed the phone from the chronological timeline altogether. It became "the affordable one" rather than "the old one."
Hardware Constraints and the Supply Chain
Beyond just marketing, there was a physical reality to deal with. Producing the iPhone X was a nightmare. The OLED panels from Samsung were expensive and hard to manufacture. The TrueDepth camera system for Face ID had a tiny yield rate initially.
Had Apple tried to market an iPhone 9 as a flagship, they would have had to differentiate it enough from the 8 to make it worth buying, but not so much that it cannibalized sales of the super-expensive iPhone X. By ditching the 9 and keeping the 8 as the "standard" model, they simplified their lineup. You had the "Normal" phone (8/8 Plus) and the "Luxury" phone (X).
There was no room for a middle child. Middle children in product lineups usually die quiet deaths.
The Prestige Factor
Apple is a luxury brand. Let’s be real. They sell status as much as they sell silicon. The iPhone X launched at $999, a price point that seemed insane back in 2017. To justify that price, the phone had to feel exclusive.
If you had an iPhone 8, 9, and X all on the shelf at once, the 9 would have acted as a "reasonable" middle ground. Apple doesn't want you to be reasonable. They want you to see the cheap one and the expensive one, then convince yourself that the expensive one is the only "real" choice for a tech enthusiast. By skipping the 9, they widened the gap between the legacy design and the future design. It was a brilliant, if slightly manipulative, move to push the average selling price (ASP) of iPhones higher than ever before.
What Most People Get Wrong
People often think there's a secret iPhone 9 prototype locked in a vault in Cupertino. While there were almost certainly test units with "iPhone 9" etched into the software strings, the hardware was essentially what we saw in the iPhone 8 and the 2020 SE. There isn't some "missing" technology that we never got. We got the hardware; we just didn't get the sticker on the box.
Also, some folks think Apple skipped 9 because of Japanese or Chinese superstitions. In Japan, the number 4 is unlucky (sounds like "death"), and sometimes 9 is avoided because it sounds like "suffering." But Apple has never cared about that before. They had the iOS 9. They have Macs. They have plenty of 4s and 9s in their history. This was purely a business decision made in a boardroom to maximize the hype of the 10th anniversary.
Actionable Takeaways for the Curious
If you're still holding out for a "9," or if you're just trying to figure out which older iPhone to buy, here is the ground truth:
- Don't wait for a 9. It is never coming. Apple has moved firmly into the "Pro/Pro Max/Standard" naming convention.
- The iPhone SE (2022) is the spiritual successor. If you want the home button and the classic 4.7-inch feel that the iPhone 9 would have had, the 3rd Gen SE is your best bet. It has 5G and the A15 chip, which is still incredibly fast.
- Understand the "X" naming. If you're buying used, remember that the iPhone X, XS, and XR are all "10" series phones. They are significantly older now and starting to lose iOS update support.
- Watch the numbers. Apple's naming conventions tell you who they think the phone is for. Pro is for creators (and people who want the best screen), SE is for the budget-conscious, and the standard numbered models are for the "everyday" user.
Basically, the iPhone 9 died so that the $1,000 smartphone could live. It was a sacrifice at the altar of branding. Next time you're at a trivia night and someone asks why the math skips a beat, you can tell them it wasn't a mistake—it was a promotion.