Apple iPhone 17 Rumors: Ultra-Thin Air Model, 48MP Cameras & Bold New Design!

Industry leaks say Apple’s iPhone 17 lineup (due Sept 2025) will shake things up. Expect four models – a base iPhone 17, a new ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air (or “Slim”) instead of a Plus, plus the Pro and Pro Max. The phones should largely follow Apple’s usual September launch schedule. The 17 Air is rumored to have a ~6.6″ display but an astonishingly slim 5–6 mm chassis. By contrast the base 17 and 17 Pro will have ~6.3″ screens (same as last year’s 16 Pro), and the 17 Pro Max ~6.9″. AppleInsider notes the Pro models will use a new horizontal “camera bar” design on the back, whereas the standard 17 “will be virtually indistinguishable” from the iPhone 16.

• Expected models – iPhone 17 (base), 17 Air (new slim model), 17 Pro, 17 Pro Max. (The old “Plus” line is gone.) The Air is tipped to sport a ~6.6″ OLED and ultra-thin body. An ultra-premium “iPhone 17 Ultra” has occasionally been rumored, but most sources now doubt it will appear.
• Release timing & pricing – Apple usually announces new iPhones in early September. TechRadar predicts the iPhone 17 series will be unveiled around Sept 8–10, 2025, with pre-orders that week and shipping mid-September. Early price leaks have been mixed: one analyst even predicted the slim Air might start at $1,299 (well above today’s models), but more credible reports say the 17 Air could begin at ~$899 (matching the iPhone 16 Plus).
• Form factor & materials – The base iPhone 17 is expected to keep the flat-sided design of the iPhone 16, with dual rear cameras in a vertical pill-shaped bump. The iPhone 17 Air will have a new look – extremely thin with a single rear lens – and may eliminate the SIM card slot entirely to save space. For the Pro models, rumors suggest a mix of materials: one leak claims the 17 Pro/Max backs could be “half glass, half aluminum” (metal top half, glass bottom) for durability, though other rumors insist the Pro models will keep titanium frames. New color options are also floating: MacRumors says Apple is testing green and purple finishes for 2025 (with purple most likely). TechRadar reports unofficial swatches of “Dark Green Titanium,” “Teal Titanium” and “Green Titanium” for the Pro, plus whispers of a “Sky Blue” shade; the base iPhone 17 might see a green or purple variant too.

Display & Interface Changes

All iPhone 17 models are expected to use upgraded OLED panels. Rumors say Apple will switch to Samsung’s new M14 OLED (boosting brightness ~30%), and – a first for the base model – enable 120 Hz ProMotion on every phone. This would allow an Always-On display mode and smoother animations. The screen sizes may also inch up: one report even predicts the base iPhone 17 will be 6.3″ (vs 6.1″ today). There’s also chatter about the notch: one leak (analyst Jeff Pu) claims Apple is using advanced “metalens” optics to shrink the Dynamic Island on all models, but Ming-Chi Kuo strongly disagrees, saying the Dynamic Island will “remain largely unchanged” in the 2025 iPhones. No matter what, the face-safe hardware (Face ID cameras, speakers) will still sit at the top of the screen. Under-display Face ID is mentioned by one rumor, though that seems far off. In the UI, iOS 26 is expected to debut on these phones, bringing a new “Liquid Glass” visual theme, revamped apps, enhanced Apple Intelligence features, and even an Apple Games hub.

Cameras & Imaging Upgrades

The iPhone 17 series could see significant camera boosts. Multiple sources say every model will upgrade its selfie camera from 12 MP to 24 MP (rumored by Jeff Pu and Ming-Chi Kuo). The Pro variants should gain a new 48 MP telephoto lens (up from 12 MP), improving optical zoom; Kuo and other analysts have backed this claimtechradar.com. Leaker @UniverseIce even asserts the 17 Pro/Max will sport three 48 MP cameras (telephoto plus 48 MP wide and ultrawide). One source bizarrely suggested the main wide camera might actually shrink in sensor size – which would be a downgrade if true.

For the iPhone 17 Air, rumors differ: MacRumors reports it may drop to a single 48 MP rear camera (with a 12 MP front camera), omitting any telephoto. (TechRadar likewise says the Air could have just one 48 MP lens.) Pro models may also pick up new tricks: one leak says they could record 8K video. Apple is reportedly testing even more exotic tech for 2025 – for example, at least one 17-series model might get a mechanical aperture (adjustable iris) for creative depth-of-field control. Beyond 17, there’s buzz of a 200 MP sensor under development, but that’s expected for later iPhones.

Performance, Battery & Connectivity

Inside, the high-end iPhones will pack Apple’s next processors. Early reports say the iPhone 17 Pro/Max will use a new A19 Pro chipset (built on a 2 nm or 3 nm process), while the base/“Air” models may use a slightly lower-tier A19 or A18 chip. Memory is also on the rise: one Weibo leak (“Digital Chat Station”) claimed all four phones will ship with 12 GB RAM. Kuo and others, however, expect only the Pro Max to get 12 GB (the others would stick to 8 GB) – similar to past model splits. Notably, Apple may use a thinner mainboard in the 17s to save space.

The iPhone 17 Air is rumored to maximize its slim frame with a high-density battery cell, giving it endurance “comparable to current iPhones” despite the thinness. Conversely, the iPhone 17 Pro Max is said to step up to a ~5000 mAh cell (well above the 16 Pro Max’s 4670 mAh). Charging speed may improve too – one rumor even cites 35 W wired fast charging support (versus 27 W today). There’s also talk of a new “battery case” accessory for the Air model to pad its runtime.

For connectivity, Apple is advancing its custom silicon. The 16e model introduced Apple’s first in-house C1 5G modem; now it’s said that only the iPhone 17 Air will use the C1, while the rest (17/Pro/Pro Max) stick with Qualcomm modems. Separately, Ming-Chi Kuo reports Apple is developing its own Wi‑Fi 7 chip (codenamed “Proxima”) to debut by 2025. This chip (TSMC 7 nm) would replace Broadcom’s and enable faster Wi‑Fi on future devices – possibly first appearing in the iPhone 17 line.

Other notable hardware tidbits: some leaks claim Apple will replace the separate Action and volume keys with a single multifunction “smart” button on the iPhone 17 Pro (and maybe other models)techradar.com. Under-display Touch ID (fingerprint) has been speculated, but most doubt it will arrive. IP68 water resistance, MagSafe wireless charging, and 5G/6G support are of course expected to continue.

Analyst & Insider Commentary

The rumor mill includes many named sources: For example, Ming-Chi Kuo (Apple analyst) says the 17 Pro Max alone will get 12 GB RAM (others remain at 8 GB) and explicitly predicts the Dynamic Island “will remain largely unchanged” in the new phones. On the other hand, leaker Digital Chat Station (on Weibo) claimed every iPhone 17 will have 12 GB RAM, and even showed early test units ready for mass production. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman estimates the 17 Air will be roughly 2 mm thinner than today’s 16 Pro (so about 6.2–6.3 mm). Display analyst Ross Young (DSCC) specifically predicted a 6.55″ screen for the iPhone 17 Air. Leaker UniverseIce has said the Pro models will feature three 48 MP cameras, while others like Jeff Pu have corroborated the 48 MP tele and 24 MP front rumors. Naturally, not all experts agree: Kuo and Pu doubt major changes to the Dynamic Island, whereas Digital Chat Station strongly suggested a new “smart island” UI and smaller notch. Tech sites note that “who will be correct is anyone’s guess” until Apple’s official announcement.

Sources

Our report is based on the latest news and leaks from tech media (July 2025). Key references include TechRadar and AppleInsider reports, MacRumors roundups, and analyst tweets. All details above are cited from those original sources (see links) for verification: e.g. TechRadar’s Jul 8 article on Dynamic Island, MacRumors (Jul 2 roundup), AppleInsider (May 2), and others. As always with pre-release rumors, details may change – stay tuned for the official reveal in fall 2025!

Read more at Apple iPhone 17 Lineup: Latest Rumors & Leaks (2025)