When Apple introduced its skinny and lightweight iPhone Air, some folks stated, “Who requested for a thinner cellphone?” Moments later, the corporate went within the different course and introduced a barely thicker and bulkier iPhone 17 Professional lineup.

With this, Apple did what these folks had needed: It made a cellphone with a thicker type issue to accommodate a bigger battery, main to raised efficiency. Out of the brand new iPhones, the Professional telephones acquired extra iterative updates (except you depend the brand new orange shade). However individuals who purchase these telephones will nonetheless reap the advantages.

The construct

The very first thing that you simply’ll discover with the iPhone 17 Professional is the brand new unibody construct with aluminum, alongside a brand new digital camera bump design on the again with area for MagSafe-based equipment beneath it. I’ve gotten used to cross-body digital camera bumps just like the one on the Pixel 10, so I don’t thoughts the brand new design selection from Apple.

Apple stated that utilizing this design has made the cellphone extra sturdy. Nevertheless it has additionally made the 17 Professional Max heavier at 233 grams as in comparison with the 227 grams of the iPhone 16 Professional Max. I felt the heft of the cellphone a bit extra as I used to be juggling between the ultra-light iPhone Air and the 17 Professional Max.

The corporate added Ceramic Defend 2 on the entrance and the first-gen Ceramic Defend on the again, beneath the digital camera plateau. I had shattered the again of my outdated iPhone 15 Professional Max, which simply had a textured glass layer, so I admire the additional safety together with the aluminum body on the again.

I can’t wrap the construct part with out speaking about colours. I’ve bought a silver-colored unit, which I really feel is probably the most boring shade out of all three. I personally just like the blue much more, and don’t thoughts the orange, which clearly stands out. I normally use my new cellphone with out a case, however I plan to attempt the brand new TechWoven blue case that’s made with a customized 100% recycled polyester yarn to alter the look of the cellphone.

And whereas I’ve seen many posts and movies about how the brand new gadget’s again is prone to scratches, I haven’t observed many on my unit as of but.

Higher battery, higher efficiency

Apple has managed to cram extra battery into the iPhone 17 Professional Max because of its unibody design. I constantly bought greater than 5 hours of display time, regardless of various utilization. When it comes to sheer numbers, the 17 Professional Max packs a 4,823 mAh battery as in comparison with 4,685 mAh within the iPhone 16 Professional Max. For those who snag an eSIM-only model in nations the place it’s accessible, you’re going to get an excellent larger 5,088 mAh battery, which could final a bit longer than the gadget with the bodily SIM.

The brand new design additionally brings vapor chamber cooling to the iPhones, which implies that your cellphone will get much less scorching whereas doing resource-intensive duties reminiscent of gaming. I performed Struggle Thunder at 60 FPS for an prolonged time period, and as in comparison with the iPhone Air, the Professional Max ran a lot cooler.

Small upgrades you’ll admire

One other sturdy improve within the battery division is the elevated charging capability.

The cellphone is suitable with USB-PD 3.2 requirements. Whereas it’s not reaching the whacky 100W+ charging capacities of a number of the Chinese language producers, the brand new iPhone can theoretically cost at 40W as in comparison with 30W. This implies you’ll be able to cost your cellphone a lot sooner when utilizing a 40W or greater adapter.

The larger cellphone additionally gained help for greater pace, Qi2-based wi-fi charging at 25W. When you’ve got an adjunct station at your work desk with a wi-fi stand, this new prime iPhone can benefit from it.

The show dimension of the iPhone 17 Professional Max is similar as final 12 months’s Professional Max. However the show will get an improve as it may obtain a peak brightness of three,000 nits. It additionally has a brand new anti-reflective coating, making it simpler to make use of in brighter circumstances. Past the iPhone, brighter shows have been a pattern this 12 months with smartphones just like the Pixel 10 Collection and Honor V5 Magic, and so they’re a welcome addition.

A few of the overview movies present that different gadgets, such because the Samsung Galaxy S25, have a greater reflective materials on the display, nonetheless.

Let’s speak cameras

The Professional iPhone fashions acquired two notable digital camera updates this 12 months.

First, all three rear cameras now have a 48-megapixel sensor. The ultrawide had an improve final 12 months, and this 12 months, it’s the telephoto lens getting a lift. (As somebody who has three pets within the family, I at all times admire having higher zooming capabilities, so I can take candid photographs of them with out transferring, which could end in a misplaced pose.)

Till final 12 months, the Professional Max had zoom choices of 2x and 5x. This 12 months, the corporate has modified its focal lengths a bit. So now you get 2x, 4x, and 8x (which is a 2x crop). You would possibly lose some particulars in an 8x shot, however the photographs are usually good even at that stage of zoom.

Telephones just like the Pixel 10 Collection, Xiaomi 15T Professional, and the Honor Magic V5 do provide digital zoom augmented with generative AI to artificially enhance the image. However Apple simply presents a digital zoom of 40x with none generative processing. The outcomes aren’t something to put in writing residence about, as the pictures are noisy and don’t have particulars.

Whereas the telephoto is a Professional-only replace, all iPhones bought a selfie digital camera improve with a brand new 18-megapixel sq. sensor. Other than upgraded decision, the entrance digital camera will get a Middle Stage function, which routinely zooms out and in and adjustments the orientation based mostly on the variety of folks within the body — with out you having to do it manually. (That is very useful within the festive season in India, once you meet associates and folks need to cram into the body!)

Apple gave Intelligence a miss

Regardless of good upgrades to the {hardware}, Apple Intelligence was hardly talked about as a part of the brand new iPhones’ launch. This was a distinction in comparison with final 12 months, in addition to rival cellphone launches like Google’s new Pixel lineup.

The gadget will obtain iOS 26 options, like utilizing the total display as context to ask ChatGPT or Google questions on what’s on the display. However there aren’t any new Apple-native AI options.

The brand new Professional iPhones are additionally powered by A19 Professional chips, which have higher neural efficiency, Apple says. This might come in useful for builders who’re utilizing Apple’s native AI fashions. However we might have to attend for subsequent 12 months’s Worldwide Developer Convention to see if Apple offers Siri a much-awaited AI improve.

Who is that this iPhone for?

For the previous few years, Apple has positioned its Professional traces of telephones to help the artistic course of extra, other than being top-notch gadgets in its lineup. With the iPhone 17 Professional Max, that’s much more so the case.

With a brand new design, battery, and thermal efficiency, creators can shoot longer movies. Plus, the corporate launched new options like ProRes RAW and Log 2. It additionally has genlock, which permits creators to make use of a number of iPhones to take time-locked photographs.

For those who’re not a creator, iPhone 17 Professional Max is extra of an iterative replace. Similar to a whole lot of new cellphone releases yearly, it doesn’t scream that it’s important to replace. In case your cellphone is greater than two years outdated, nonetheless, you will note substantial good points in all departments, together with battery life, efficiency, display, and digital camera. However if in case you have purchased a cellphone after the iPhone 15 Professional was launched, there’s not as a lot purpose to replace.