Updated June 29 with details of how the display for one of the iPhone 17 series will differ from the rest.
Apple’s next big release, it’s thought, will be the iPhone 17 series in September (expected date here), and a new leak suggests that in at least one important way, the new regular iPhone will be different from the current one. And a new report suggests the display on one model, the super-slim phone nicknamed iPhone 17 Air, will have a key element reversed. More on that later.
Apple iPhone 16: the iPhone 17 may feature a bigger, better display.
Getty Images
This year looks like being a year of big design changes including a new slim iPhone, longer-lasting batteries, a thicker-than-ever iPhone 17 Pro Max and more.
Now, according to a new report from Digital Chat Station, a leaker on Weibo who had accurately come up with Apple information previously, the display on the iPhone 17 is about to get bigger.
Right now, the iPhone 16 display measures 6.1 inches, while the iPhone 16 Pro screen is 6.3 inches. It seems the iPhone 17 screen will be enlarged to match the Pro model at 6.3 inches.
The new report chimes with one in May from analyst Ross Young. At the time, it seemed to suggest that not only will the display be bigger, but that it could finally mean the regular iPhone would see ProMotion technology — where a dynamic refresh rate balances smoother viewing while conserving battery life where possible — would come to a non-Pro iPhone for the first time.
Since then, it’s been suggested that while there will be a change in display refresh rate, it will simply move from the current 60Hz to a 120Hz screen, without the dynamic changes of ProMotion. That’s a shame, because ProMotion is tremendous, and is one of the reasons the iPhone 16 Pro and others have always-on displays. Still, Apple has always said it’s a Pro feature.
If you’re thinking of upgrading from iPhone 16 to iPhone 17 then, yes, you’ll need a new case. The iPhone 16 Pro with 6.3-inch display is fractionally larger in every direction compared to the iPhone 16, so current cases wouldn’t fit. Mind you, do you want your brand-new phone crammed into a year-old case, anyway?
According to other rumors, there’s another way the front of the iPhone 17 will differ from the iPhone 16: the front-facing camera is expected to change from 12-megapxiel to 24-megapixel resolution.
As to the display on the iPhone 17 Air, serial leaker Majin Bu has now stated that there’ll be a difference to the layout of the front-facing camera and Face ID sensor and it will be unique to the Air. On the iPhone 16 series, and apparently for the iPhone 17, 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max, the camera lies at the right edge of the Dynamic Island. On the iPhone 17 Air, it will be on the left, it’s claimed.
“The repositioning of the front camera to the left on the iPhone 17 Air, driven by its slimmer design and the need to accommodate the Face ID module, combines practicality with strategic foresight. This move paves the way for a more compact Dynamic Island in future models, marking an evolution in Apple’s design and potentially inspiring innovations in other smartphones,” Majin Bu insists. This will be proved or disproved in due course.
