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iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max will have a new camera cluster design. Photo: Asher Dipprey

Here are 10 notable upgrades on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max.

Aluminum frame

The iPhone 17 Pro will switch to an aluminum frame, instead of the titanium frame on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro, or the stainless steel frame on the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro lines.

The back of this year's iPhone Pro will have a new design combining aluminum and glass.

Specifically, a part of the back is made of glass in the logo area, integrated into the overall metal frame, according to source Majin Bu.

Rectangular camera cluster

The iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max will have a large rectangular camera cluster with rounded corners.

However, the arrangement of the three rear lenses will still retain the same triangular shape as before, but the flash will be placed on the far edge of the camera cluster instead of in the middle like previous generations. It is still unclear whether Apple applied this design for aesthetic or functional reasons.

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Source Majin Bu shared CAD renders of the upcoming iPhone 17 series. Photo: Majin Bu

Despite having many similarities with the Google Pixel line, the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max still retain Apple's own style in the overall design language.

Better scratch-resistant screen

The iPhone 17 Pro will be equipped with a new anti-reflective coating, which increases scratch resistance compared to previous generations.

It's unclear whether Apple will adopt Gorilla Glass Armor technology like the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, but the descriptions match Corning's latest technology.

Bigger battery

The iPhone 17 Pro Max will have a slightly thicker design, allowing for a larger battery to improve battery life.

According to some predictions, the body thickness of the iPhone 17 Pro Max will increase to 8.725mm, compared to 8.25mm of the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Apple is said to have tested 7.5W reverse wireless charging for the iPhone 17 Pro, allowing the device to wirelessly charge other Apple products such as AirPods and Apple Watch.

A19 Pro Chip

The iPhone 17 Pro will be equipped with the new generation A19 Pro chip, manufactured on TSMC's third-generation 3nm process.

Performance and power efficiency are expected to see improvements over the previous generation.

Apple-designed Wi-Fi 7 chip

All four iPhone 17 models will be equipped with Wi-Fi 7 chips designed by Apple itself, instead of using Broadcom chips as before.

Citing industry sources, analyst Ming Chi Kuo said that this year's iPhone 17 models will all use Apple's Wi-Fi chips. According to Kuo, in addition to cost factors, switching to self-developed Wi-Fi chips will help improve connectivity across all Apple devices.

Previously, analyst Jeff Pu predicted that only the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max would use the Apple-designed Wi-Fi 7 chip, but it seems that plans have changed.

According to Qualcomm, Wi-Fi 7 can reach peak speeds of over 40 Gbps, up to four times faster than Wi-Fi 6E.

24MP selfie camera

The iPhone 17 will have a 24MP front camera, a significant upgrade over the 12MP camera on the iPhone 16, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

With 24MP resolution, photos can retain sharpness even when heavily cropped, providing more flexibility in post-editing.

48MP Telephoto Camera

In addition to the redesigned rear camera cluster, the iPhone 17 Pro will have a 48MP telephoto camera, instead of 12MP like on the iPhone 16 Pro.

According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the telephoto camera on the iPhone 17 Pro Max is 1/2.6 inches in size, an improvement over the 12MP 1/3.1 inch of the iPhone 16 Pro.

12GB RAM

Initially, 12GB RAM was rumored to be reserved for the iPhone 17 Pro Max only, but it was later reported that the iPhone 17 Pro would also get the upgrade.

The increase in RAM will help improve Apple Intelligence performance as well as multitasking. Currently, all iPhone 16 models have 8GB of RAM.

Improved cooling system

According to some leaked news, all 4 iPhone 17 models will have internal design changes for better heat dissipation.

However, according to Instant Digital (China), Apple's upcoming iPhone 17 Pro models will use vapor chamber cooling technology to improve heat dissipation.

Vapor chamber technology is already common in many high-end Android smartphones. By spreading heat over a larger surface area, the system helps prevent overheating and maintain consistent performance – a key advantage for slim, compact devices.

The new iPhone series will be launched in September 2025, according to Apple's annual tradition. The 2025 iPhone models are expected to include: iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max and the ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air.

Watch the iPhone 17 Pro concept video with a completely new rear camera cluster design. (Source: Asher Dipprey)

(Synthetic)

iPhone 17 has not been released yet, but there is information about the 'super chip' on iPhone 18. Although the iPhone 17 series is still about 6 months away from being released, leaked news about iPhone 18 has begun to appear.