Updated April 21
• iPhone 17 Pro cases could offer customized camera covers to accommodate the new camera array.
• The iPhone 17 Pro models could support dual camera video recording.
• A leaked iPhone 17 Pro case seems to confirm a new camera array design.
• The iPhone 17 Pro could gain a higher resolution telephoto lens that also supports a shorter zoom.
With the iPhone 16e now on sale, our attention for the next big iPhone launch can turn to the iPhone 17. Apple's annual fall iPhone launch may still be months away, but that's not stopping the steady stream of rumors telling us what to expect from this year's phones.
And those rumors predict big changes for the iPhone this fall. Apple's standard iPhone 17 is in line to get some long-awaited improvements, and we're expecting camera upgrades for the Pro models. Meanwhile, the fall could bring an entirely new iPhone to the mix — a thinner model that replaces the Plus-sized iPhone Apple has offered the past three years.
Here’s what we know so far about the iPhone 17 based on some of the early rumors surrounding this year's upcoming phones.
iPhone 17: Potential price and release date
With iPhones, it’s pretty easy to guess the release date. For more than a decade, every numbered iPhone has been revealed in September (barring the iPhone 12, which was pushed back a month due to COVID-19). In other words, it’s extremely likely the iPhone 17 will be unveiled this September, with a release within the first two weeks of the month.
The iPhone 16 certainly fit that pattern, with Apple holding an event on September 9, 2024. The four new models hit stores on September 20.
The price of the iPhone 17 is far harder to pin down this far in advance, especially with tariffs pushed by the Trump administration potentially throwing the prices of tech into flux.
Apple didn't raise prices on its last iPhone models, with the iPhone 16 starting at $799 and the iPhone 16 Pro Max topping the lineup at $1,199. The iPhone 16e released this spring wasn't so lucky — at $599, it costs $179 more than the iPhone SE model it replaces, though the 16e does include support for Apple Intelligence features.
Unfortunately, the first iPhone flagship price hike in eight years could be coming later this year, according to one analyst. And that's before we know what impact tariffs might have on the iPhone 17 cost.
There’s talk of an iPhone 17 Air replacing the Plus model, which reliable leaker Ice Universe claims to be coming this year alongside the other models. We'll discuss that in greater depth below, but opinion on price is divided, with some suggesting it could cost more than the $1,199 Pro Max models while other reports point to the iPhone 16 Plus' $899 price as a guide.
iPhone 17 rumored specs
iPhone 17 Air joins the lineup
The iPhone 17 Air — previously thought to be called the iPhone 17 Slim — will supposedly offer iPhone fans a new, thinner version of Apple's smartphone. Bloomberg’s well-connected reporter Mark Gurman believes this is part of a plan to make “a new class of Apple devices that should be the thinnest and lightest products in the whole tech industry.”
The iPhone 17 Air will apparently sport a 6.6-inch or 6.7-inch display and a full-length camera bar with a single lens. That screen is supposed to be OLED with a resolution of 1,290 x 2,796 — slightly smaller than the iPhone 17 Pro Max is expected to be.
The phone may also feature a redesign reminiscent of how the iPhone X shook up the iPhone lineup when it dropped the Home button and introduced the notch in 2018. That said, talks of it being aluminum rather than Titanium are a touch worrying considering the price talk being bandied about.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims that the iPhone 17 Air will prioritize being thin above all else, to the point where the phone may only have a single main camera lens. The latest rumors suggest that the phone could be as little as 5.5mm thick, though the camera bump may push the top part of the phone up to 9.5mm.
Apple debuted a new C1 5G modem with the iPhone 16e, and that will apparently come to the iPhone 17 Air, but no other iPhone 17 models. But all iPhone 17s should receive new Wi-Fi 7 modems, also made by Apple.
When the iPhone 17 Air debuts, it will have some company. Samsung just previewed an ultra-slim phone of its own with a Galaxy S25 Edge teaser — that phone's reportedly been delayed, but a mid-May Galaxy S25 Edge launch now appears to be in the cards.
iPhone 17: Design and display
Beyond the Air, the iPhone 17 may not change all that much in terms of its overall look. According to analyst Jeff Pu, the iPhone 17 will still be a 6.1-inch device, with no plans to grow an extra 0.2 inches like this year’s Pro models.
Pu claims Dynamic Island will shrink on the iPhone 17 Pro, but a separate report says the Dynamic Island will stay the same size on all iPhones. Although, known leaker Digital Chat Station hints that a new "metalens" for Face ID could result in a smaller Dynamic Island for the iPhone 17 Pro Max specifically.
Some leakers believe Apple will change up the back design by expanding the camera block sideways — at least on the Pro models. Leaked case designs allegedly for the iPhone 17 Pro models give us a sense of what that could look like. Case makers could also develop customized camera covers for the expanded camera array on the Pro models.
There's also talk out of China of iPhone suppliers adopting a new design that features more seamless transitions between materials like glass and aluminum on the phones. We'll have to wait for more renders to emerge to see what impact this has on the iPhone 17's look.
The standard iPhone 17 could be in line for one of the bigger additions — a 120Hz ProMotion display for smoother performance and up to 120fps gameplay. The claim, backed up by a late December 2024 supply chain report, would mean the iPhone 17 would finally have a refresh rate on par with Apple's Pro models — and practically ever other flagship handset. The planned LTPO OLED panels will be able to drop to 1Hz with the always-on display, just like the Pro models.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman — who has a good track record with iPhone forecasts — is the latest to say that the iPhone 17 will feature a ProMotion display, which is how Apple brands screens with fast refresh rates. Korean publication ETNews also reports that all iPhone 17 models will get 120Hz displays this year.
The screen itself may be a bit more robust. According to the leaker Instant Digital on Weibo, the iPhone 17’s panel will be “made of a super-hard AR [anti-reflective] layer” to make it “more scratch-resistant than you think.” Perhaps the days of needing a screen protector will soon be over.
Leaker Jukanlosreve later claimed that Apple would add new "Low-Dielectric TEE" technology to iPhone 17 Pro's display. This tech will apparently offer better power efficiency, more durable displays and overall better display performance.
One thing that isn't clear is whether the Pro models will utilize titanium in their frames again. While it makes sense that Apple would retain the premium metal, some rumors claim that Apple will be swapping in aluminum — a much cheaper and far less durable material. Others have disputed this, however.
It's widely rumored that Apple wants to use solid-state buttons in future iPhones, and that work is apparently continuing behind the scenes. However, it's a feature that's unlikely to appear on board any iPhone 17 model.
iPhone 17: Performance and battery
Apple’s A-series chips are no slouch, offering some of the best smartphone performance available. The A18 Pro silicon powering the iPhone 16 Pro models has proven to be a particularly strong performer, as you can see in our iPhone 16 Pro benchmarks.
And yet, the A19 chipset you'd imagine that Apple will use in the iPhone 17 series could be a giant leap forward. It was initially reported that the new chips could be built to the 2nm process, meaning a greater transistor density for better performance and efficiency. However later reports have debunked this, insisting that 2nm chips won't be arriving until the launch of the iPhone 18.
That said, the A19 chips may still benefit from TSMC's third generation 3nm process. This is said to offer better transistor density compared to the 2nd gen process used to build the A18 chips. This would improve performance and energy efficiency, though not to the same extent as a drop to 2nm would.
There's some other good news on the power front. A report claims every iPhone 17 model will adopt vapor chamber technology designed to keep the new models from overheating. The new setup would replace the standard heat syncs used by current iPhones and address problem that past models have had with getting too hot and suffering from performance dips as a result.
Greater efficiency means less power drain, which means better battery life. And on that note, Apple is tipped to be making a change with its iPhone 17 series, building its own batteries for the first time. The aim is reportedly to offer “significantly improved performance compared to the existing one”, which sounds extremely promising.
Analyst Jeff Pu has said the iPhone 17 could feature with 8GB RAM. However, in a report to investors, Pu said the iPhone 17 Pro models could come with 12GB RAM, a notable upgrade from the 8GB found in the current models — and probably a necessary boost given Apple's push into on-device artificial intelligence. Ming-Chi Kuo also thinks the higher-end iPhones will feature 12GB of RAM.
Noted leaker Majin Bu has said the entire iPhone 17 could use a new glue to hold the batteries in place, making them easier to replace without risking damage to their devices. Apple previously used this same tech on the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus, but it seems ready to roll it out to all four phones in the iPhone 17 line.
iPhone 17: Cameras
While the iPhone 17 Pro Max model is tipped to get three 48MP cameras, nothing has yet been revealed about the regular iPhone 17’s rear camera array. That might be because there’s no change from the iPhone 16’s 48MP primary lens and 12MP ultrawide, or nothing has yet leaked.
One thing that has leaked is the word for an upgrade to the front-facing selfie camera. The analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is predicting a 24MP selfie camera for the iPhone 17 — a significant improvement on the 12MP TrueDepth Cam that’s been present since the iPhone 11 Pro Max. It's also speculated that we may see a camera lens with a variable aperture for the first time on an iPhone.
Given how the iPhone 16 Pro models only saw an upgrade to their ultrawide cameras, these upgrades to their telephoto and selfie cameras could be enough to keep the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max in contention for some of the best camera phones around.
One potential caveat to that 48MP telephoto lens rumor, though — it could come at the expense of the iPhone 17 Pro's zoom capabilities. A report claims that an upgrade to a 48MP sensor is in the works for both the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max, but that the new lens would only support a 3.5x optical zoom and not the 5x zoom found on the current models.
The iPhone 17 Air, on the other hand, may only have two lenses at most, with some reports claiming it will be a single-camera phone in order to save space. You wonder how people will receive that, given the premium shoppers place on cameras when choosing a phone.
As for new camera features, Jon Prosser of Front Page Tech claims the iPhone 17 Pro models will offer dual video recording, which would let you capture video from the front and rear cameras simultaneously. The feature would also come in handy on FaceTime calls, letting you film yourself with your TrueDepth camera while also letting other people see video captured by your phone's rear camera.
iPhone 17: Software
It's a pretty safe bet that the iPhone 17 models will debut around the same time as iOS 19, the next version of Apple's iPhone software. We expect a preview of iOS 19 at June's Worldwide Developers Conference. Right now it seems the biggest focus will be on a massive interface redesign.
Apparently, Apple is looking to make the software that powers its phones, computers and tablets more unified, so that could mean changes to things like icons, menus, apps, windows and system buttons. One thing we've heard early on is a switch to circular icons as well as more streamlined menus on apps.
You'd expect Apple Intelligence to be a big part of iOS 19, as Apple continues to build up its suite of AI-powered tools. However, one report says there may not be any new AI features in iOS 19, as Apple focuses on extending Apple Intelligence to more apps. (Subsequent reports have suggested that AI heath coaching features will be part of iOS 19.)
Apple may also be concentrating on the promised improvements to Siri that would deliver a smarter digital assistant to iPhone users. Those features were supposed to be a part of the iOS 18 release, but Apple has since delayed their launch.
We should get a hint of what Apple has planned for the iPhone 17's software in a few months. Apple says that WWDC 2025 will take place the week of June 9.
iPhone 17: Outlook
All in all, it sounds like the iPhone 17 will be a serious upgrade — especially if the 120Hz ProMotion display and performance upgrades come to pass.
The iPhone 16 phones released last September are certainly worthwhile upgrades, if not revolutionary ones, with Apple putting most of the emphasis on new AI features coming to the phone rather than significant hardware improvements. It sounds like the iPhone 17 lineup could be a departure from that, should it introduce an iPhone 17 Air to the mix.
