Technologies

Apple’s iPhone 17 Specs Compared: Air, iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max

In 2026, the iPhone 17 series are the best of Apple’s phones. Here’s how to pick the best one for you.

With the new year comes a new opportunity to get a new iPhone. Whether your current Apple handset is getting a little slow, can’t quite update to iOS 26 or you’re tempted by the newest cool features and cameras, there are lots of good reasons to upgrade. And while you could go for a slightly older model, the latest crop of new iPhones are all great picks. So…which is right for you?

The current lineup of the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max and the slim iPhone Air offers plenty of options to choose from, but each phone serves a different need. Here’s everything to know about the iPhone 17 family, and which is the best fit for your needs.

Looking to order the iPhone 17, 17 Pro, 17 Pro Max or iPhone Air? Check out our iPhone 17 deals guide for ways to get it for free and other great deals.

There are a host of improvements over the iPhone 16 series, which added a handful of upgrades over its predecessors, most notably the Camera Control key. The upgrades coming to the iPhone 17 lineup are myriad, but more noticeable than the incremental updates in previous generations.

Along with the redesigned camera blocks, all of Apple’s phones get better specs, more storage and brighter displays. The big change is the new super-thin iPhone Air, which takes the place (and price) of the larger standard Plus model.

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iPhone 17 lineup price comparison

iPhone 17: $799. The iPhone 17’s price remains the same as last year despite a bump to 256GB of starting storage.
iPhone Air: $999. The iPhone Air is slotted into the lineup where the iPhone 16 Plus was priced (as the more expensive standard model).
iPhone 17 Pro: $1,099. The smaller Pro model is the only one in the lineup to get a small price hike to start at $100 above last year’s iPhone 16 Pro, though it does start at a higher 256GB of storage.
iPhone 17 Pro Max: $1,199. The higher-spec iPhone 17 Pro Max didn’t get a price hike despite starting at a higher 256GB of storage.

Despite concerns about tariffs potentially passing more costs on to consumers, only one model in the iPhone 17 lineup got a price hike when the new lineup launched in Sept. 2025: the iPhone 17 Pro, which now starts at $1,099, though it does have double the starting storage at 256GB as its predecessor. The other models also got their storage bumped up without suffering higher prices.

At its Sept. 2025 event, Apple also announced new Apple Watch models, including the Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch SE 3 and Apple Watch Ultra 3, as well as the AirPods Pro 3.

iPhone 17 lineup’s design and display changes, compared

iPhone 17: Camera bump redesign. The square-shaped camera bump from prior years has been replaced with a vertical pill-shaped ovoid with the usual two cameras (main and ultrawide).
iPhone Air: Thinner, single-camera. The new, thin model takes the place of the iPhone 16 Plus as the larger non-Pro model, but it offers only a single main rear camera.
iPhone 17 Pro: Larger horizontal camera bump. The smaller Pro model’s big changes include a new rear camera bump as well as an internal redesign with an aluminum frame.
iPhone 17 Pro Max: Same larger horizontal camera bump. Likewise, the iPhone 17 Pro Max gets a redesigned camera bump that extends horizontally across the entire rear width of the phone, along with internal changes.

The biggest change in the iPhone 17’s design is in a single model added to the lineup: the iPhone Air. It is indeed a thinner model of the iPhone line, akin to the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge, which focuses on a slimmer, lighter body that seems to have reduced battery life as a consequence — but not by much. According to Apple’s specs (which don’t include exact capacity), the Air manages up to 27 hours of video playback, just slightly under the 30 hours for the iPhone 17, 33 for the iPhone 17 Pro and 39 for the iPhone 17 Pro Max.

The iPhone Air is 5.6mm thick, compared with 7.9mm on the iPhone 17 and 8.75mm on the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max. The thinner model is also lighter at 165 grams, compared with the iPhone 17’s 177 grams, the iPhone 17 Pro’s 206 grams and the iPhone 17 Pro Max’s 233 grams.

Despite that, the iPhone Air has a 6.5-inch OLED display (slightly smaller than the 6.7-inch display on last year’s iPhone 16 Plus). Compare that to the 6.3-inch screen on the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro (both up from 6.1 inches on their respective predecessors) and 6.9 inches for the iPhone 17 Pro Max.

All models got upgrades to their screens. The standard iPhone 17 now has a ProMotion display with a refresh rate adjusting from 120Hz down to 1Hz (from a static 60Hz on last year’s iPhone 16) and a scratch-resistant Ceramic Shield 2 coating on the top — all features that also arrive in the iPhone Air. Every new iPhone’s display also has a maximum brightness of 3,000 nits, up from 2,000 in last year’s iPhone 16 lineup, making it easier to see their screens in bright sunlight.

The three returning iPhone 17, Pro and Pro Max models have had redesigns of their rear camera bumps. In place of the diagonal arrangement in last year’s model, the standard iPhone 17’s two cameras have been vertically aligned in a raised oval bump. The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max keep their triangular triple-camera alignment, but the camera bump has been extended from a square to a rectangle that takes up the width of the phones. The iPhone Air just has a single camera.

There are bigger changes to the inside of the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, all in the name of heat management. Apple swapped its titanium frames for aluminum ones that the company says are 20 times better at conducting heat, the better to disperse it across the phone’s body. The frame is stamped in a single sheet, and layered on top is a new vapor chamber filled with deionized water running along its length to carry heat away from the phone’s chips. Apple says this redesign leads to 40% better sustained performance than the iPhone 16 Pro. Instead of just glass, the Pro models have a more durable glass-ceramic shield on the back.

In contrast, the iPhone Air has a titanium frame, the only model in the lineup to still have one — possibly to ensure maximum durability in its thinner body.

The iPhone 17 comes in five colors: lavender, light blue, dark gray, silver-white and green. The iPhone Air comes in four hues: an ethereally light blue, light gold, black and white. The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max come in a trio of colors: white, dark blue and bright orange.

Comparing iPhone 17, iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max cameras

iPhone 17: Better ultrawide and selfie cameras. The iPhone 17 got an upgraded 48-megapixel ultrawide camera and 18-megapixel selfie shooter.
iPhone Air: Single camera. As was rumored, the iPhone Air has a single 48-megapixel main camera.
iPhone 17 Pro: Sharper zoom and selfie cameras. The rear 4x telephoto camera has been upgraded to 48 megapixels, while the front-facing camera is now 18 megapixels.
iPhone 17 Pro Max: Sharper zoom and selfie cameras. Likewise, the rear 4x telephoto camera has been upgraded to 48 megapixels, while the front-facing camera is now 18 megapixels.

The standard iPhone 17 has two cameras (48-megapixel main and 48-megapixel ultrawide), an improvement from its predecessor’s 12-megapixel ultrawide. Apple calls the 48-megapixel main camera «Dual Fusion» as it can take sharp photos at full resolution or take 2x crop-zoomed images at 24 megapixels — in fact, every camera in the iPhone 17 lineup has this fusion functionality.

The iPhone Air has only one camera, a 48-megapixel main, that seems similar to the one on the iPhone 16E. That sets the new thin phone apart from last year’s iPhone 16 Plus, which had the same two cameras as the standard iPhone 16.

The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max models also bump the ultrawide to 48 megapixels (up from 12 megapixels in their predecessors) and also improve the third telephoto camera to 48 megapixels as well (up from the 12-megapixel with 5x optical zoom of last year’s iPhones). The latter has gotten a big upgrade, and thanks to the crop focus on the fusion, the 4x optical zoom can double up to 8x at 12 megapixel resolution with an equivalent focal length of 200mm. The new maximum digital zoom goes up to 40x, up from 25x on earlier Pro models.

All four iPhones’ front-facing shooters have been upgraded to 18-megapixel cameras, up from 12 megapixels on last year’s Apple phones. They also get the Center Stage feature, which first debuted on the iPad Pro M-series models. This feature automatically keeps the focus centered on whoever’s holding the phone, even as they move around.

This is aided by a new square-shaped sensor in the front-facing camera that’s twice the size as those in the iPhone 16 lineup from last year. Essentially, this size format has a lot more vertical room than the 4:3 ratio sensors typically found in selfie cameras, allowing not only more area for Center Stage to focus on, but also for iPhone 17 series owners to take horizontal selfies without rotating their phones. Neat!

All iPhone 17 model specs compared

iPhone 17: Better specs. The iPhone 17 packs the new A19 chip as its predecessor and more base storage.
iPhone Air: Pro chip, Apple’s modem. The thinner iPhone Air got the A19 Pro chip that’s also in the Pro models out this year, as well as a presumably improved version of the Apple-made C1, a 5G modem that debuted on the iPhone 16E.
iPhone 17 Pro: Better specs. The iPhone 17 Pro has a new A19 Pro chip as well as more base storage.
iPhone 17 Pro Max: Better specs, bigger battery. The iPhone 17 Pro Max packs the new A19 Pro chip, more base storage and a larger battery.

As is typical with the feature gap between standard and pro models, the iPhone 17 has improved specs but not to the level of the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max — or the iPhone Air.

The standard iPhone 17 packs the new A19 chip, which is 20% faster than the iPhone 16 with its A18 chip. The A19’s six-core CPU is made on a 3-nanometer process, has an improved Neural Engine with increased bandwidth to help make AI services faster, and has an updated Display Engine that helps power ProMotion and Always-On features of the display. The iPhone 17 comes in either 256GB or 512GB, an increase on the baseline 128GB storage of the iPhone 16.

The iPhone Air has slightly better specs with an A19 Pro chip, with better performance and efficiency. The chip’s graphics processing unit cores now have neural accelerators that deliver three times the peak output of the GPU on the A18 Pro found in last year’s iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max. The iPhone Air is also the only one of the lineup to get another tech advancement — an upgraded version of Apple’s C1 chip, the internally developed 5G modem that debuted in the iPhone 16E released earlier this year. The iPhone Air comes in 256GB, 512GB or 1TB storage configurations.

The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max both feature the A19 Pro chip, and combined with its redesigned thermal dissipation, reaches the aforementioned 40% better sustained performance over the iPhone 16 Pro. The iPhone 17 Pro comes in 256GB, 512GB and 1TB storage configurations, while the iPhone 17 Pro Max has those options as well as a 2TB selection, though that raises the price to $2,000.

While Apple never explicitly says how much RAM its iPhones pack, most phones require 8GB of RAM to use AI features — Given that Apple Intelligence debuted on the iPhone 16 lineup, it’s heavily suspected that those devices were given 8GB of RAM. Presumably, the iPhone 17 series has the same amount.

Apple is similarly coy about listing battery capacity, preferring instead to suggest how long they can last playing video content. As mentioned above, the iPhone Air has the lowest at 27 hours of video playback, but not by much. The iPhone 17 has up to 30 hours, the iPhone 17 Pro reaches 33 hours, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max tops out at 39 hours of video playback — made possible thanks to internal redesigns.

All three phones pack Apple’s new N1 wireless networking chip, which connects to Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread networking for smart home appliances.

All iPhone 17 models launch with iOS 26, the next version of Apple’s iPhone software, renamed to align with the year following its release. Among the new features are the Liquid Glass interface redesign, iMessage updates, a more transparent lock screen and a streamlined Camera app. These are just a few of the overhauls also coming to Safari, Photos and Music apps, among others.

The iPhone 17 series also packs Apple Intelligence, the company’s signature blend of generative AI features. But with no new tools or applications introduced during the event, it seems the phones will simply inherit the AI tools that debuted with last year’s iPhone 16 or those that were added in the year since.

Apple iPhone 17 vs. iPhone Air vs. iPhone 17 Pro vs. iPhone 17 Pro Max

	Apple iPhone 17	Apple iPhone Air	Apple iPhone 17 Pro	Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max
Display size, tech, resolution, refresh rate	6.3-inch OLED; 2,622 x 1,206 pixel resolution; 1-120Hz variable refresh rate	6.5-inch OLED; 2,736 x 1,260 pixel resolution; 1-120Hz variable refresh rate	6.3-inch OLED; 2,622 x 1,206 pixel resolution; 1-120Hz variable refresh rate	6.9-inch OLED; 2,868 x 1,320 pixel resolution; 1-120Hz variable refresh rate
Pixel density	460ppi	460ppi	460ppi	460ppi
Dimensions (inches)	5.89 x 2.81 x 0.31 in	6.15 x 2.94 x 0.22 in	5.91 x 2.83 x 0.34 in	6.43 x 3.07 x 0.34 in
Dimensions (millimeters)	149.6 x 71.5 x 7.95 mm	156.2 x 74.7 x 5.64 mm	150.0 x 71.9 x 8.75 mm	163.4 x 78.0 x 8.75 mm
Weight (grams, ounces)	177 g (6.24 oz)	165 g (5.82 oz)	206 g (7.27 oz)	233 g (8.22 oz)
Mobile software	iOS 26	iOS 26	iOS 26	iOS 26
Camera	48-megapixel (wide) 48-megapixel (ultrawide)	48-megapixel (wide)	48-megapixel (wide) 48-megapixel (ultrawide) 48-megapixel (4x, 8x telephoto)	48-megapixel (wide) 48-megapixel (ultrawide) 48-megapixel (4x, 8x telephoto)
Front-facing camera	18-megapixel	18-megapixel	18-megapixel	18-megapixel
Video capture	4K	4K	4K	4K
Processor	Apple A19	Apple A19 Pro	Apple A19 Pro	Apple A19 Pro
RAM + storage	RAM N/A + 256GB, 512GB	RAM N/A + 256GB, 512GB, 1TB	RAM N/A + 256GB, 512GB, 1TB	RAM N/A + 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, 2TB
Expandable storage	None	None	None	None
Battery	3,692 mAh. Fast charge up to 50% in 20 minutes using 40W adapter or higher via charging cable. Fast charge up to 50% in 30 minutes using 30W adapter or higher via MagSafe Charger.	3,149 mAh. Fast charge up to 50% in 30 minutes using 20W adapter or higher via charging cable. Fast charge up to 50% in 30 minutes using 30W adapter or higher via MagSafe Charger.	4,252 mAh.Fast charge up to 50% in 20 minutes using 40W adapter or higher via charging cable. Fast charge up to 50% in 30 minutes using 30W adapter or higher via MagSafe Charger.	5,088 mAh. Fast charge up to 50% in 20 minutes using 40W adapter or higher via charging cable. Fast charge up to 50% in 30 minutes using 30W adapter or higher via MagSafe Charger.
Fingerprint sensor	None (Face ID)	None (Face ID)	None (Face ID)	None (Face ID)
Connector	USB-C	USB-C	USB-C	USB-C
Headphone jack	None	None	None	None
Special features	Apple N1 wireless networking chip (Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) with 2×2 MIMO), Bluetooth 6, Thread. Action button. Camera Control button. Dynamic Island. Apple Intelligence. Visual Intelligence. Dual eSIM. 1 to 3000 nits brightness display range.IP68 resistance. Colors: black, white, mist blue, sage, lavender.	Apple N1 wireless networking chip (Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) with 2×2 MIMO), Bluetooth 6, Thread. Action button. Apple C1X cellular modem. Camera Control button. Dynamic Island. Apple Intelligence. Visual Intelligence. Dual eSIM. 1 to 3000 nits brightness display range.IP68 resistance. Colors: space black, cloud white, light gold, sky blue.	Apple N1 wireless networking chip (Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) with 2×2 MIMO), Bluetooth 6, Thread. Action button. Camera Control button. Dynamic Island. Apple Intelligence. Visual Intelligence. Dual eSIM. ProRes Raw video recording. Genlock video support. 1 to 3000 nits brightness display range.IP68 resistance. Colors: silver, cosmic orange, deep blue.	Apple N1 wireless networking chip (Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) with 2×2 MIMO), Bluetooth 6, Thread. Action button. Camera Control button. Dynamic Island. Apple Intelligence. Visual Intelligence. Dual eSIM. ProRes Raw video recording. Genlock video support. 1 to 3000 nits brightness display range.IP68 resistance. Colors: silver, cosmic orange, deep blue.
US price starts at	$799 (256GB)	$999 (256GB)	$1,099 (256GB)	$1,199 (256GB)
UK price starts at	£799 (256GB)	£999 (256GB)	£1,099 (256GB)	£1,199 (256GB)
Australia price starts at	AU$1,399 (256GB)	AU$1,799 (256GB)	AU$1,999 (256GB)	AU$2,199 (256GB)

Technologies

Google races to put Gemini at the center of Android before Apple’s AI reboot

Google is using its latest Android rollout to position Gemini as the AI layer across phones, Chrome, laptops and cars.

Google is using its latest Android rollout to make Gemini less of a chatbot and more of an operating layer across the phone, browser, car and laptop, just weeks before Apple is expected to show its own Gemini-powered Apple Intelligence reboot at WWDC.
Ahead of its Google I/O developer conference next week, the company previewed a number of Android updates, including AI-powered app automation, a smarter version of Chrome on Android, new tools for creators, a redesigned Android Auto experience, and a sweeping set of new security features.
Alphabet is counting on Gemini to help Google compete directly with OpenAI and Anthropic in the market for artificial intelligence models and services, while also serving as the AI backbone across its expansive portfolio of products, including Android. Meanwhile, Gemini is powering part of Apple’s new AI strategy, giving Google a role in the iPhone maker’s reset even as it races to prove its own version of personal AI on the phone is further along.
Sameer Samat, who oversees Google’s Android ecosystem, told CNBC that Google is rebuilding parts of Android around Gemini Intelligence to help users complete everyday tasks more easily.
“We’re transitioning from an operating system to an intelligence system,” he said.
As part of Tuesday’s announcements. Google said Gemini Intelligence will be able to move across apps, understand what’s on the screen and complete tasks that would normally require a user to jump between multiple services. That means Android is moving beyond the traditional assistant model, where users ask a question and get an answer, and acting more like an agent.
For instance, Google says Gemini can pull relevant information from Gmail, build shopping carts and book reservations. Samat gave the example of asking Gemini to look at the guest list for a barbecue, build a menu, add ingredients to an Instacart list and return for approval before checkout.
A big concern surrounding agentic AI involves software taking action on a user’s behalf without permissions. Samat said Gemini will come back to the user before completing a transaction, adding, “the human is always in the loop.”
Four months after announcing its Gemini deal with Google, Apple is under pressure to show a more capable version of Apple Intelligence, which has been a relative laggard on the market. Apple has long framed privacy, hardware integration and control of the user experience as its advantages.
Google’s Android push is designed to show it can bring AI deeper into the device experience while still giving users control over what Gemini can see, where it can act and when it needs confirmation.
The app automation features will roll out in waves, starting with the latest Samsung Galaxy and Google Pixel phones this summer, before expanding across more Android devices, including watches, cars, glasses and laptops later this year.
The company is also redesigning Android Auto around Gemini, turning the car into another major surface for its assistant. Android Auto is in more than 250 million cars, and Google says the new release includes its biggest maps update in a decade and Gemini-powered help with tasks like ordering dinner while driving.
Alphabet’s AI strategy has been embraced by Wall Street, which has pushed the company’s stock price up more than 140% in the past year, compared to Apple’s roughly 40% gain. Investors now want to see how Gemini can become more central to the products people use every day.
WATCH: Alphabet briefly tops Nvidia after report of $200 billion Anthropic cloud deal

Technologies

Waymo recalls 3,800 robotaxis after glitch allowed some vehicles to ‘drive into standing water’

Waymo issued a voluntary recall of about 3,800 of its robotaxis to fix software issues that could allow them to drive into flooded roadways.

Waymo is recalling about 3,800 robotaxis in the U.S. to fix software issues that could allow them to “drive onto a flooded roadway,” according to a letter on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website.
The voluntary recall is for Waymo vehicles that use the company’s fifth and sixth generation automated driving systems (or ADS), the U.S. auto safety regulator said in the letter posted Tuesday.
Waymo autonomous vehicles in Austin, Texas, were seen on camera driving onto a flooded street and stalling, requiring other drivers to navigate around them. It’s the latest example of a safety-related issue for the Alphabet-owned AV unit that’s rapidly bolstering its fleet of vehicles and entering new U.S. markets.
Waymo has drawn criticism for its vehicles failing to yield to school buses in Austin, and for the performance of its vehicles during widespread power outages in San Francisco in December, when robotaxis halted in traffic, causing gridlock.
The company said in a statement on Tuesday that it’s “identified an area of improvement regarding untraversable flooded lanes specific to higher-speed roadways,” and opted to file a “voluntary software recall” with the NHTSA.
“Waymo provides over half a million trips every week in some of the most challenging driving environments across the U.S., and safety is our primary priority,” the company said.
Waymo added that it’s working on “additional software safeguards” and has put “mitigations” in place, limiting where its robotaxis operate during extreme weather, so that they avoid “areas where flash flooding might occur” in periods of intense rain.
WATCH: Waymo launches new autonomous system in Chinese-made vehicle

Technologies

Qualcomm tumbles 13% as semiconductor stocks retreat from historic AI-fueled surge

Semiconductor equities reversed sharply after a broad AI-driven advance, with Qualcomm suffering its worst day since 2020 amid inflation concerns and rising oil prices.

Semiconductor stocks fell sharply on Tuesday, reversing course after an extensive rally that had expanded the artificial intelligence investment theme well past Nvidia and driven the industry to unprecedented levels.

Qualcomm plunged 13% and was on track for its steepest single-day decline since 2020. Intel shed 8%, while On Semiconductor and Skyworks Solutions each lost more than 6%. The iShares Semiconductor ETF, which benchmarks the overall sector, fell 5%.

The sell-off came after a key gauge of consumer prices came in above forecasts, and as conflict in Iran pushed crude oil higher—prompting investors to shift away from riskier assets.

The preceding advance had widened the AI opportunity set beyond longtime industry leader Nvidia, which for much of the past several years had largely carried the market to new peaks on its own.

Explosive appetite for central processing units, along with the graphics processing units that power large language models, has sent chipmakers to all-time highs.

Market participants are wagering that the shift from AI model training to autonomous agents will lift demand for additional AI hardware. Among the beneficiaries are memory chip producers, which are raising prices as supply remains tight.

Micron Technology slid 6%, and Sandisk cratered 8%. Sandisk’s stock has surged more than six times over since January.