Apple’s full iPhone 17 lineup is almost here, and the latest rumors point to major iPhone 17 Pro improvements coming in two areas that often motivate upgrades: battery life and cameras.
#1: Huge battery life gains
Apple’s flashy new model this year will be the iPhone 17 Air, but for anyone who cares a lot about battery life, iPhone 17 Pro will be the better option.
The latest leaks indicate Apple’s 17 Pro models will offer significantly better battery life than their predecessors.
Here’s the rumored capacity for eSIM models:
- iPhone 17 Pro: 4252mAh (18.6% higher than iPhone 16 Pro)
- iPhone 17 Pro Max: 5088mAh (8.6% higher than iPhone 16 Pro Max)
We’d been expecting a larger Pro Max battery, but now it seems Apple has a big upgrade coming for the smaller iPhone 17 Pro too.
As my colleague Benjamin points out, these higher capacities could result in 3-4 hour gains over prior models.
In other words, the smaller 17 Pro will surpass even last year’s 16 Pro Max, while the 17 Pro Max easily takes the crown for longest iPhone battery life ever.
#2: Major camera upgrades
If big battery gains aren’t enough to compel an upgrade, the iPhone 17 Pro is also expected to boast several major new camera improvements.
Mark Gurman writes at Bloomberg:
I think Apple is going to tout this year’s iPhone camera changes as some of the biggest in the device’s history. After all, the company is completely redesigning the camera area on the back of the iPhone 17 Pro — something it wouldn’t do just for aesthetic reasons. As I reported in my preview, I expect there to be a new variable aperture system, simultaneous video recording on the front and rear cameras, and hugely improved video recording. So if you’ve been holding out for an iPhone upgrade and waiting for major camera enhancements, this could be the year for you.
Here’s a rundown of what’s expected, per another Gurman report:
- Telephoto lens upgraded to 48MP, up from 12MP
- Selfie camera’s “biggest-ever upgrade” with 24MP sensor
- Variable aperture system
- Video recording will be “hugely improved”
- Up to 8x optical zoom on Pro Max
- Multi-cam simultaneous video recording
It’s always possible Apple will have some surprises in store too. One way or another, it sounds like a very big year for the iPhone’s cameras.
iPhone 17 Pro upgrades: wrap-up
Battery life and camera improvements are among the top two reasons users buy new smartphones.
Though battery and cameras sometimes get minor improvements in the same year, I can’t recall another time we saw such huge gains in a single new iPhone model.
Offering both of these sure-to-be-hit features alongside the host of other rumored iPhone 17 Pro changes could make this an especially compelling year to upgrade.
Do you plan to upgrade to an iPhone 17 Pro, and from what model? Let us know in the comments.
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