Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
Apple is reportedly planning some big design changes for next year’s iPhone 17 lineup. The changes include a smaller Dynamic Island and a “more complex” aluminum design.
The company might even revamp its lineup with the addition of the iPhone 17 Slim.
2025 iPhones could pack some big upgrades
These claims come from Haitong International Securities analyst Jeff Pu in a note shared with 9to5Mac. He believes Apple will reshuffle its lineup in 2025 and replace the iPhone 17 Plus with a “Slim” model. As the name indicates, the Slim model will seemingly stand out in the lineup with its “slim design.”
The non-Pro variants will include the iPhone 17 with a 6.1-inch display and the iPhone 17 Slim with a 6.6-inch panel. This corroborates a recent rumor suggesting the iPhone 17 Plus might have a smaller display than the iPhone 15 Plus. The Pro lineup will have the 6.3-inch iPhone 17 Pro and the 6.9-inch iPhone 17 Pro Max.
Interestingly, Pu says Apple will debut a “more complex” aluminum design on the iPhone 17, 17 Slim, and 17 Pro in 2025. The iPhone 17 Pro Max will continue using titanium and feature a narrow Dynamic Island. These two features will remain exclusive to the Max model.
The use of “metalens” technology for the proximity sensor will allow the company to reduce the Face ID sensor’s dimensions. In turn, this will reduce the size of the Dynamic Island.
iPhone 17 Pro could sport 12GB RAM
Internally, the analyst claims the iPhone 17 and its Slim sibling will sport an A18 or A19 chip along with 8GB RAM. The Pro variants could sport an A19 Pro chip and 12GB RAM.
All four iPhone 17 models might feature a 24MP front-facing camera. This should allow for better details and sharpness in selfies. It appears Apple will give all the iPhone cameras a resolution bump to enable them to shoot 24MP pictures. Reputed Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo also made a similar claim about the iPhone 17’s front-facing camera upgrade earlier this year.
Previous rumors suggest all iPhone 17 variants could sport ProMotion displays with always-on support. If these reports turn out accurate, Apple could have some big changes in store for its iPhone lineup in 2025.