Which iPhone 17 Model Should You Buy?

Apple’s 2025 iPhones are right here, and issues are fairly completely different for the primary time shortly. The bottom iPhone 17 will nonetheless really feel acquainted, however the iPhone 17 Professional fashions have a totally new look, and there is a brand-new mannequin known as the iPhone Air. The “Air” branding has been considerably diluted of late—the current-gen iPad Professional fashions are lighter than the iPad Air—however the iPhone Air brings which means again to the unique thought: a super-thin and ultra-lightweight gadget.Preorders kick off September 12, and official gross sales begin September 19. In case you’re contemplating an improve, what mannequin must you get? I am going to break down the important thing variations and similarities among the many iPhone 17 lineup, so you may hopefully make a extra knowledgeable alternative in your subsequent iPhone.Desk of ContentsAccordionItemContainerButtonYou Don’t Must UpgradeIf you have got an iPhone from just some years in the past, you in all probability need not improve to Apple’s newest, until your gadget has points. Even then, there are issues you are able to do to repair your iPhone, like getting a battery alternative, or you may attempt a few of these troubleshooting steps. The purpose is, you should not really feel the necessity to improve simply because Apple has a brand new mannequin.In case you’re set on shopping for an iPhone 17 mannequin, we’ve a information on methods to promote your iPhone in order that it would not simply acquire mud in a drawer. When your new gadget arrives, again up your outdated iPhone earlier than switching to the brand new one, then observe our information on manufacturing unit resetting your gadget earlier than promoting or giving it away. We even have recommendations on methods to arrange your new iPhone and what settings to vary to get probably the most out of it.Which iPhone 17 Is Proper for You?Let’s rapidly discuss in regards to the similarities throughout all of the iPhone 17 fashions this 12 months, and sure, that features the iPhone Air, even when it would not have “17” within the title.{Photograph}: Julian ChokkattuPhotograph: Julian ChokkattuPhotograph: Julian ChokkattuAppleiPhone 17, iPhone Air, and iPhone 17 ProThe DisplayAlthough iPhones differ in display screen measurement, all of them characteristic an OLED display screen (Apple refers to it as a Tremendous Retina XDR show) and make use of ProMotion expertise. That is the primary time the non-Professional fashions have ProMotion, which is actually a 120-Hz refresh price.This has been a standard characteristic on Android telephones for some time, but it surely means your show refreshes 120 instances per second quite than 60, like on the iPhone 16, so all the pieces you do will really feel smoother. (Now we have a broader explainer right here.) These are adaptive refresh charges that may drop as little as 1 Hz when there’s little exercise on the display screen, which is why the brand new iPhone 17 and iPhone Air now help the always-on show.Apple additionally says there is a new Ceramic Defend 2 entrance glass that is 3X extra scratch-resistant than earlier than, and a brand new antireflective coating to scale back glare. All of those screens may hit as much as 3,000 nits of peak brightness, which means it will be simpler to learn your iPhone display screen on sunny days.The CameraThe front-facing selfie digital camera is an identical on all of the iPhone 17 fashions. It is a new square-shaped 18-megapixel sensor, and meaning you may count on extra element out of your selfies. Nevertheless, the sq. sensor additionally introduces a better strategy to seize group selfies. You’ll be able to maintain holding your cellphone in portrait orientation for the most effective grip, and it’ll routinely zoom out to verify everybody suits within the body, whereas additionally switching to a panorama orientation for the widest view. All of those fashions additionally help Twin Seize, which helps you to shoot with each the entrance and rear cameras on the similar time. You’ll be able to learn extra about these options right here.The Standard SpecsAll of the iPhones are IP68 water- and dust-resistant and have Face ID, the Digital camera Management button, Motion Button, USB-C, and Qi2 magnetic wi-fi charging (MagSafe). All units begin at 256 GB of storage. There’s Apple Intelligence on these units, the identical Emergency SOS by way of Satellite tv for pc and Crash Detection capabilities, and so they make the most of Apple’s new N1 wi-fi networking chip for Bluetooth 6, Wi-Fi 7, and Thread help.The DifferencesPhotograph: Julian ChokkattuNow, here is the place they diverge, which is able to enable you to higher perceive what mannequin to purchase.