Apple is now accepting preorders for the iPhone 17, iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. The devices will hit store shelves next Friday, on September 19 — the same day preorders get delivered.
Update: An hour after the pre-orders started, demand for the iPhone 17 Pro Max is already starting to exceed supply. An order placed now in the U.S. for most configurations of this top-of-line model won’t ship until late September, and others won’t arrive before October.
Apple is already taking preorders for the AirPods Pro 3, Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3. All three will be available at retail starting September 19.
Pro iPhone gets even better this year
Photo: Apple
Apple took the wraps off the iPhone 17 family and the iPhone Air on September 9 at its “Awe Dropping” event. The new iPhones pack some significant upgrades, including a new aluminum design and superior vapor chamber cooling for the Pro models.
Made from unibody aluminium, the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max debut in three colors: deep blue, cosmic orange, and silver.
Beyond the new design, the cameras see a major upgrade as well. The telephoto sensor is now 56% larger and features a 100mm (4x) focal length. Its increased size allows the iPhone 17 Pro to capture optical-quality shots at up to 8x zoom.
Battery life gets a big boost as well, with Apple claiming the iPhone 17 Pro Max delivers the longest battery life ever for an iPhone.
iPhone Air is slim and sexy
Photo: Apple
There’s also the 5.65mm-thick iPhone Air, which pushes the boundary of what a slim phone can achieve. It sports a 6.55-inch 120Hz ProMotion display, an A19 Pro chip, and a single 48MP Fusion rear camera capable of delivering 2x optical image quality.
All three phones sport a plateau at the rear, which houses the camera and other internals. Apple has even redesigned the antenna around the plateau for better signal strength.
The new A19 Pro packs a 6-core CPU, which “is the fastest CPU in any smartphone.” And the 6-core GPU features a new architecture that brings significant performance upgrades of its own. Plus, it now works alongside the 16-core Neural Engine to power AI models and AAA gaming titles for a smoother gameplay experience.
The iPhone Air only supports eSIM, with no physical SIM slot available.
Check out our iPhone 17 Pro vs. iPhone Air comparison to see which one is the better fit for you.
Entry-level iPhone 17 gets a better display and selfie camera
Apple’s base model iPhone gets a bigger and upgraded 120Hz ProMotion display this year. It even supports Always-On Display and comes with Ceramic Shield 2, which cuts down on unwanted glare.
Like other members of the family, the selfie camera gets an upgrade too. The 18MP Center Stage sensor can capture more details in pictures. Plus, it’s no longer necessary to rotate the iPhone to take a landscape selfie.
The rear retains the 48MP primary camera but gets an upgraded 48MP Ultra Wide shooter with macro support.
An A19 chip powers the device, which delivers a 20% CPU performance boost. The GPU is also significantly faster. The entire iPhone 17 family uses Apple’s in-house N1 chip for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS connectivity.
Below is the pricing of the iPhone 17 family and the iPhone Air.
- iPhone 17: $799
- iPhone Air: $999
- iPhone 17 Pro: $1,099
- iPhone 17 Pro Max: $1,199
Apple has bumped the base storage on all models to 256GB this year. The devices start shipping next Friday, September 19.
Preorder now
iPhone 17 Pro: Apple | iPhone Air: Apple | iPhone 17: Apple
Rajesh has been closely following and writing about the latest happenings in the world of mobile for nearly a decade now. While he prefers Android, he does not deny the superiority of Apple’s products and ecosystem.
