Technologies

The iPhone 17 Pro ‘Feature’ I Want Most? More Colors Beyond Monochrome and Metal

Commentary: Why are Apple’s best phones restricted to black and white or silver and gold?

While we can all agree that what’s inside an iPhone is far more important than the outside, I still care a ton about how my smartphone looks. So with all the rumors swirling about the upcoming iPhone 17, one that caught my eye had nothing to do with specs or features. It simply said the iPhone 17 Pro could adopt color inspired by iOS 26’s Liquid Glass redesign — which, based on descriptions, may resemble some older Samsung phone hues. And I started dreaming about a world where Apple’s best phones look as fun as their lower-tier siblings.

For years, Apple has split its phones into two tiers: the «regular» iPhones and the Pro models. The former offer lower specs and prices with bolder colors, while the latter are pricier premium models with more subdued tones. The iPhone Pro and Pro Max typically come in black, white and a silver-gray — along with one trendier color that changes each year. For being the best that Apple offers, their colorways leave a lot to be desired, in my opinion.

But the iPhone 16 Pro comes in desert titanium, which is gold in all but name. The year before, the iPhone 15 Pro was available in a gray-blue (which I remember well, if not fondly, for not matching my vintage Bondi blue case). In 2022, the iPhone 14 Pro left white behind for gold and added a pastel purple alongside its black and silver hues — and so on.

Some people dropping $1,000-plus on a souped-up iPhone Pro want their device to look svelte, not superlative — elite over effervescent, cultured instead of colorful. I’m not that person. When I saw the iPhone 5C, I didn’t mind the cheaper-looking plastic case — the vibrant colors popped. I don’t think buying a premium phone should sentence you to a purgatory of dimmer hues.

And yes, there are those of you out there who don’t care what your phone looks like, since its colors will only briefly see the light of day before the handset is stuffed in its case to survive life’s inevitable bounces and falls. That’s completely valid, too.

So hearing that there’s a potential Liquid Glass color coming to the iPhone 17 Pro that we expect to launch (as we do every year) in September, I got tentatively excited. But there’s a big caveat: The rumor, sourced to Weibo-based leaker Instant Digital, didn’t include a photo or any imagery of this potential debut. Instead, the leaker suggested that (as translated by Google Translate) the iPhone 17 Pro color is expected to be white, but with a finish that shifts or changes subtly under different lighting conditions.

Where are my prismatic phone colors?

Apple introduced its Liquid Glass update during WWDC 2025 in June, unveiling a new design strategy for the iPhone 17 Pro line that emphasizes translucence and rounded icons to give iOS 26 a fresh UI facelift. App makers responded to the initial developer betas with disdain, criticizing the design’s distracting and disorienting lack of visual separation — icons in the Control Center overlay were hard to see. Thankfully, subsequent tweaks improved the redesign ahead of the recently launched iOS 26 public beta.

But how Liquid Glass’s design looks as an iPhone color is a bit harder to fathom. Instant Digital’s claim that it’ll be white but will shift with the light offers clues— and it could end up looking like some beloved colors from smartphones of yore.

For instance, the 2018 Samsung Galaxy S10 came in a rather fetching prism white color that shimmered when you rotated it in the light, giving off a pearlescence of subtle pinks, purples and blues. Watch how it compares to the standard cream-colored ceramic white hue in this video from Sakitech.

Contrast that with the more wildly prismatic «aura glow» color in the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 from the same year, which reflected every color of the rainbow. This bombastic choice sure was eye-catching, but I’d guess it’s too flamboyant for Apple. (And the beautiful glass back sure couldn’t stand up to a fall.)

True, Apple has dabbled in subtly shimmering colors — the iPhone 13 and 13 Mini came in midnight, a black so deep it was almost blue, reflecting hints of hidden hues underneath. That same year’s iPhones had another color, starlight, that was essentially the same effect in white.

But looking more closely at iPhone Pro designs from past years, I doubt we’ll see anything as vivacious as those Samsung hues — not only because Apple has avoided vibrant colors, but also because in recent years it’s used a frosted rear glass that blurs and mutes the color beneath. Just what we end up getting from a Liquid Glass color, if anything at all, is very uncertain given Apple’s design priorities.

But I’m hoping, just this once, the Pro phones get to show off a bit more of their stuff. And who knows — maybe that’ll be what finally sells us on the upcoming Liquid Glass redesign that’s set to change the look and feel of iOS, like it or not.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Sunday, Aug. 24

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Aug. 24.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s Mini Crossword cites one of my favorite childhood shows in 6-Across. Hint: Think of a red-headed comedian who was famous for tugging her ear and for some classic commercial parodies — and who is still with us at age 92. Need answers for today’s NYT Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Perch for a family photo
Answer: SHELF

6A clue: Burnett with a variety show from 1967 to 1978
Answer: CAROL

7A clue: Plant that yields mezcal
Answer: AGAVE

8A clue: Deceptive ploys
Answer: RUSES

9A clue: «You’ve gotta be kidding me!»
Answer: YEESH

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: How a leap of faith might feel
Answer: SCARY

2D clue: Dutch seat of government, with «The»
Answer: HAGUE

3D clue: What many pencils can do that magic markers can’t
Answer: ERASE

4D clue: Holds dear
Answer: LOVES

5D clue: _ and blood (kin)
Answer: FLESH

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Aug. 24, #805

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for Aug. 24, #805.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle is a real mix. The green category reminds me that the puzzle editors love to find common words that have second meanings that are somewhat rare. Hint: «Rent» doesn’t only mean money you pay to a landlord. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Cheers!

Green group hint: You don’t want this to happen to your pants.

Blue group hint: Sssss…

Purple group hint: Do this with a phone.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Wine vessels.

Green group: Ripped.

Blue group: Kinds of snakes.

Purple group: ____ call.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is wine vessels. The four answers are bottle, carafe, decanter and glass.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is ripped. The four answers are cleft, rent, split and torn.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is kinds of snakes. The four answers are coral, garter, king and rattle.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ____ call. The four answers are booty, close, cold and curtain.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Aug. 24, #335

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Aug. 24, No. 335.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is tough. I played some darts in bars back in the day, but I didn’t know very much about the game, apparently. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Whack!

Green group hint: Sunshine State.

Blue group hint: Popular bar game.

Purple group hint: They have halos.