California [US], September 10 : Apple has announced the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, the top models in its new iPhone 17 lineup, alongside the regular iPhone 17 and all-new iPhone Air.
The Pro returns to an aluminium build, adds the biggest battery of any iPhone yet, and boasts what Apple is calling a "full-width camera plateau" on the back as per the live event, which was broadcast on Apple's website and YouTube channel on Tuesday.
The iPhone 17 Pro starts from 1,099 USD, with the Pro Max starting at 1,199 USD, both with 256GB of storage, according to The Verge.
The obvious change this year is a dramatic redesign of the rear camera module, which now stretches all the way across the body, rather than only containing the lenses.
It's still a triple camera within that new camera island, though there's been one major upgrade. For the first time this year, Pro models feature 48-megapixel sensors across all three cameras, reported The Verge.
The telephoto is the lens getting a bump here, with a significant resolution improvement from the 12-megapixel telephoto lens found on last year's models.
It's not only higher resolution, the telephoto packs a 56 per cent larger sensor too, and Apple says it can deliver up to 8x optical quality zoom, reported The Verge.
The 6.3-inch Pro and 6.9-inch Pro Max come in only three colours: silver, blue, and an eye-catching orange that's much more colourful than the previous Pro models.
According to The Verge, Apple has switched from titanium back to an all-aluminium build, and now both the front and back of the phone are made with the scratch-resistant Ceramic Shield, with the extra tough second-generation coating on the front.
Despite the redesign, there's been no major change to the Pro models' sizes. The 17 Pro offers a similar 6.3-inch display to last year's 16 Pro, with the 17 Pro Max at 6.9 inches.
As before, the screens themselves support ProMotion, with up to 120Hz refresh rates.
The chipset inside the phones has been upgraded year-on-year, too.
Like the new iPhone Air, the two Pro phones are powered by the A19 Pro chip, promising improvements in performance and efficiency, reported The Verge.
It's a 3nm chip with a six-core CPU, which Apple says is "the fastest in any smartphone," and a five-core GPU.
Unlike the Air, the Pro comes with what Apple says is its biggest battery ever in an iPhone, delivering its best-ever battery life, making up to 39 hours of video playback in the Pro Max, compared to 33 hours for the 16 Pro Max.
You'll only get that top performance if you buy an eSIM-only version of the phone, like that sold in the US, with Apple using the extra space to cram in more power.
It says phones with a physical SIM will run for two hours less.