Apple's iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max will offer "significant design changes," The Information's Wayne Ma reports.
The two flagship iPhone 17 models will be the first high-end iPhones to feature an aluminum frame since the delineation of the iPhone lineup into Pro and non-Pro models. In recent years, lower-end iPhone models such as the iPhone SE and iPhone 16 have featured aluminum frames. Until the release of the iPhone 15 Pro, high-end iPhone models featured stainless steel frames. Now, the high-end iPhones feature titanium chassis – a change that was touted as one of the key upgrades of the iPhone 15 Pro. With the introduction of the iPhone 17 lineup, Apple is reportedly planning to bring the entire selection of devices back to aluminum.
The rear of the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max will also feature a new part-aluminum, part-glass design. The top half of the back will be made of aluminum and feature a "rectangular camera bump made of aluminum rather than traditional 3D glass," while the bottom half will continue to be made of glass to support wireless charging. Apple introduced a glass back to the iPhone with the iPhone 8 and iPhone X in 2017, but prior to that, every iPhone except the iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, and iPhone 5C had an aluminum rear. The new, aluminum camera bump of the iPhone 17 Pro will also apparently be larger than that of previous models.
The new design will constitute one of the most significant visual changes to the high-end iPhone models in recent years. The Information has an excellent track record for accurate Apple rumors, so the latest report is highly likely to pan out. The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are expected to launch in the fall of 2025 alongside the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air.
