I'm still on an iPhone 11 and this might finally be the one to get me to upgrade. I don't need the "Pro" stuff, but the ProMotion was always frustratingly only associated with the Pro phones.
That said, I'm sort of frustrated with iOS overall, and sorely tempted to go back to Pixels, so I can't decide.
Still no reason to upgrade. My shift from iPhone 8 to iPhone 13 was qualitative. Now much of the barrier to improvement is software, and they’re all gated by Apple.
Through the last iterations I only ever upgrade my iPhone whenever there is a "meaningful" RAM upgrade in it for me. So this one here is not too bad going from 8GB to 12GB (Air, Pro, Pro Max).
I have a 12 Pro, I am definitely going to be upgrading, I've had my phone for 5 years now (since 2020) that's actually longer than I've owned any other cell phone without upgrading.
I think I could probably squeeze more life out of my phone, but the 17 has a nicer camera, me and my wife are noticing our relatives with newer iPhones have photographs that look slightly (I meant to write NOTICEABLY here) better. As we raise our first child, having a quality camera is definitely important to us.
I was really tempted by the iPhone Air, but the Pro has better camera features. I am actually really excited to see what they will do for the iPads. If they release a thin iPac Mini similar to the iPhone Air, I would immediately buy it. I am not usually a fan of thin, but something in me has always wanted a thin iPad Mini, not sure why, but I'm waiting for it still.
Great demo, the most impressive demo had to have been the Airpod Pros translation piece.
Edit: Needed to annotate that I wrote 'slightly better' but its not just slightly, we both visually noticed a different in quality.
One last note, the 12 Pro was my first iPhone ever. I was on Android since 2009, every Android I had lasted about 2 years. My last one probably would have lasted me 5 years but I was tired and wanted a change at my 2 year mark. I have not regretted my decision to date.
Surprising there’s no matte-black iPhone 17 Pro - dark, low-reflectance finishes are standard in pro video kit because they minimise specular reflections and stray highlights; keeping a shiny silver finish and skipping a subdued matte black feels like a strange choice and undercuts the “Pro” claim.
I just browse the web on my phone. In fact, my phone is already too expensive just for that one thing. I’m not upgrading until the new phones can run a 5B model with adequate context size and adequate inferencing speeds.
I’m still using iPhone 12 mini running iOS 26 beta and it’s good enough. OS is definitely not polished, some of the design choices don’t even make sense but in general I believe it’s the right direction - spatial + maxing out visual looks.
Being able to turn Liquid Glass off to sth like flat design would be nice but this probably won’t happen.
Now when it comes to the event itself, it felt so cartoonish.
I switched to 12 mini about a year ago from 1st gen SE because it broke down. I agree that it would be more than enough for years to come.
I cannot agree more on the event video. It looks like a pure TV ad for a full hour long. Also, it used to cover more diversity in terms of presenters. Where are they now? I want to hear lovely accents from people all around the world.
I really like the new unibody design on the 17 Pro, as well as the orange. That seems like the first iPhone might feel like bypassing the case. However, seeing as I just got a 16 Pro last year, I don't think I can justify an upgrade just yet.
Overall this year seemed much better than last year.
I'd be curious to understand their rationale for not making a small, reasonably priced phone like the iPhone SE used to be. I probably will be leaving the iPhone ecosystem the next time I have to buy a smartphone (even though I use a Mac, iPad, and Airpods, which all work together really well) because I'm uninterested in using a large phone.
Thinking through my own use case, I just use my phone for messaging, maps, and the occasional app, so I'm not going to need a big screen for consuming content. I also don't want to spend a lot of money on a phone, since I don't need any fancy features. So perhaps that intersection of use cases doesn't make much sense to target?
You won’t find anything smaller in the android ecosystem without sacrificing security. The smallest android phones with good security are the same size as the base iPhone model.
The point of the SE line was never to provide a small phone, it was to provide a cheap phone. The first SE reused their manufacturing process from the 5/5s, and the later SEs used the chassis they were using from the 6 to the 8.
Each new model has an asymptotically smaller feature bump. In 10 years we may have converged on the complete cell phone.
Maybe the recent introduction of foldable phones indicates the opposite. Is it the final blip, or will something similarly disruptive happen every 5-7 years?
I'm surprised that Apple is giving every single iPhone model 256 GB starting capacity. My prediction would've been 256 GB for the Pro and 128 GB for the base iPhone 17. Guess those AI models need space?
It's odd that the Air has 4 GB more RAM than the regular 17 even though it's meant to replace the Plus models from previous years (same specs, same difference in price point, etc.)
Problem with used phones: no guarantee of water resistance. Many of the resold phones got their battery replaced, which itself it a good thing, but they are usually not applying the gasket required for water resistence.
> I would assume this means Apple laptops with integrated cellular modems are on the near horizon.
ROFL. Apple wants to sell as much different devices to a single person as possible. What next, you expect cellular iPads to be able to make calls without tethered iPhone?
I recently started studying metal, so I was watching their metal choices with a bit of curiosity.
Apple switched iPhone 17 Pro from Titanium (used in earlier versions) to aerospace-grade Aluminium for Superior Heat Dissipation.
But for the iPhone Air, they are using Titanium because it's lightweight, strong, and durable.
Aluminum is definitely a softer metal, so using aerospace-grade aluminum makes sense. So, is Titanium not a good thermal conductor? If it is not, then why is it used in the iPhone Air?
Sorry! Their choice is not clear to me. Can someone throw light on it?
74 comments
[ 3.5 ms ] story [ 79.1 ms ] threadThat said, I'm sort of frustrated with iOS overall, and sorely tempted to go back to Pixels, so I can't decide.
I think I could probably squeeze more life out of my phone, but the 17 has a nicer camera, me and my wife are noticing our relatives with newer iPhones have photographs that look slightly (I meant to write NOTICEABLY here) better. As we raise our first child, having a quality camera is definitely important to us.
I was really tempted by the iPhone Air, but the Pro has better camera features. I am actually really excited to see what they will do for the iPads. If they release a thin iPac Mini similar to the iPhone Air, I would immediately buy it. I am not usually a fan of thin, but something in me has always wanted a thin iPad Mini, not sure why, but I'm waiting for it still.
Great demo, the most impressive demo had to have been the Airpod Pros translation piece.
Edit: Needed to annotate that I wrote 'slightly better' but its not just slightly, we both visually noticed a different in quality.
One last note, the 12 Pro was my first iPhone ever. I was on Android since 2009, every Android I had lasted about 2 years. My last one probably would have lasted me 5 years but I was tired and wanted a change at my 2 year mark. I have not regretted my decision to date.
Wonder if we'll ever see folding phones. I'm not concerned with the thickness but the overall foot print that's pocketable would be amazing.
There are more people on HN claiming to use a 13 mini than Apple actually sold.
Being able to turn Liquid Glass off to sth like flat design would be nice but this probably won’t happen.
Now when it comes to the event itself, it felt so cartoonish.
I cannot agree more on the event video. It looks like a pure TV ad for a full hour long. Also, it used to cover more diversity in terms of presenters. Where are they now? I want to hear lovely accents from people all around the world.
What is Thread?
Overall this year seemed much better than last year.
Thinking through my own use case, I just use my phone for messaging, maps, and the occasional app, so I'm not going to need a big screen for consuming content. I also don't want to spend a lot of money on a phone, since I don't need any fancy features. So perhaps that intersection of use cases doesn't make much sense to target?
Maybe the recent introduction of foldable phones indicates the opposite. Is it the final blip, or will something similarly disruptive happen every 5-7 years?
Discuss.
Still good, still works.
I would assume this means Apple laptops with integrated cellular modems are on the near horizon.
ROFL. Apple wants to sell as much different devices to a single person as possible. What next, you expect cellular iPads to be able to make calls without tethered iPhone?
Apple switched iPhone 17 Pro from Titanium (used in earlier versions) to aerospace-grade Aluminium for Superior Heat Dissipation.
But for the iPhone Air, they are using Titanium because it's lightweight, strong, and durable.
Aluminum is definitely a softer metal, so using aerospace-grade aluminum makes sense. So, is Titanium not a good thermal conductor? If it is not, then why is it used in the iPhone Air?
Sorry! Their choice is not clear to me. Can someone throw light on it?