Apple’s iPhone 17 event is officially set for September 9. For eager early adopters, the ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air will likely be in consideration alongside iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max. Here are five advantages the iPhone 17 Pro will have over the flashy new Air model.
Battery life
This should come as no surprise, but it’s an important differentiator nonetheless. iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max are expected to offer significantly better battery life than the ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air.
That would be true even if Apple made no changes to the Pro line this year. But on the Pro Max specifically, the lead will grow wider this year.
Apple is rumored to make the 17 Pro Max even thicker this year to pack a larger battery than ever. There’s no way the 17 Air will even come close to matching that.
Rear camera system
Apple’s Pro models will continue to offer the best rear camera systems. This year, here’s what that means for the iPhone 17 line:
- iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max: 48MP Main, Telephoto, and Ultra Wide cameras
- iPhone 17 Air: 48MP Main camera
That’s right, Apple’s new Air model will only have a single rear camera.
Anti-reflective display
Apple has been rapidly expanding its use of nano-texture displays that reduce glare in the last couple years. And now the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max are rumored to get their own anti-reflective technology.
This likely won’t be identical to nano-texture, but it should offer similar benefits.
iPhone 17 Air, meanwhile, won’t get an anti-reflective display. It is, however, expected to gain the always-on and 120Hz variable refresh rate features long exclusive to Pro models.
Fully powered A19 Pro chip
Rumors indicate the iPhone 17 Air and Pro models will be surprisingly similar in specs. Both will boast 12GB of RAM, for example, and even include the A19 Pro chip.
If you want the most possible performance, however, the Pro models will have one advantage.
iPhone 17 Air’s A19 Pro chip is rumored to be a binned version with one GPU core disabled. So if you want to get the full GPU count, you’ll need an iPhone 17 Pro or Pro Max.
Wildcard: Reverse wireless charging
Rumors indicate Apple has tested reverse wireless charging in its iPhone 17 Pro models.
The feature is expected to be exclusive to Pro models, and let you charge other Apple devices on the back of your iPhone.
This is the newest iPhone 17 Pro rumor, and there’s reason to be skeptical. But it would certainly be another good way to make use of the extra Pro Max battery gains this year.
Are you most interested in the iPhone 17 Air, Pro, or Pro Max? Let us know in the comments.
Best iPhone accessories
- AirPods Pro 2 (now only $199, down from $249)
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- 100W USB-C fast charging power adapter
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