They’re referring to the lines across and top and bottom, not the lines on the left and right sides as shown in the pics.
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iPhone 17 Pro Leak Reveals Alleged New 5G Antenna Design
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I already raised this question (how will antennas work) in a post (https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/how-will-antennas-work-with-the-iphone-17-pro.2461806/), but unless I’m missing something, this leak doesn’t make sense.
The bottom bands, yes, they isolate different parts of the aluminium frame because they reach the glass area. But the top ones, they reach the camera bump, which is also made of… aluminium? Maybe the bump is a difference piece, but based on leaks and the iPad Pro design, it seems to be an unibody design.
The bottom bands, yes, they isolate different parts of the aluminium frame because they reach the glass area. But the top ones, they reach the camera bump, which is also made of… aluminium? Maybe the bump is a difference piece, but based on leaks and the iPad Pro design, it seems to be an unibody design.
The orange renders are getting better. I like this copper look.
Are you serious. You can't be serious. It looks like the Fiat Multipla of iPhones. Would you buy a Multipla and be like yeah, who cares, all I look at all day is the road and it's the same road on every car.
So we can looking forward to a new edition of “You're holding it wrong”?"
👀
Nostalgia is pushing in
🥹
And like every time I buy one I won’t care how it looks because it will be inside a case 😂
You are not the only one.
But people have gotten used to it. Like cattle to an electric fence.
And the self-proclaimed journalists make sure not to bring up the topic. After all, they want to keep getting iPhones for free... um, I mean, for long-term tests.
I never wear cases on my iPhones, maybe that's why I care about the design of the iPhone.
At the end of the day, Apple isn't aiming their design choices at the people on this board. Reality is, look every year at this board and you'll have people complaining about the design. Doesn't matter what Apple does.
The leak doesn’t say anything specific about the changes to the edge bands, and the render is just some guess. That being said, current iPhones have six antenna bands along the edges, while the render only shows four, removing the top and bottom ones.
However, an earlier frame leak from MajinBu shows some antenna bands, including on the top:
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That render is the ugliest thing I have seen. I hope that design is fake news and doesnt see the light of the day.
With the way the camera bump grows, less and less of the iPhone is inside a case.
I plan on naming my new iPhone in that color...
Turd Ferguson
I like the new design. I always hated the asymmetrical camera bump. This balances it out. At least physically. Frankly i wish they would de-emphasize the camera and recess it flush. I dont need my phone camera to be dslr.
This design only makes sense if the needed the larger bump to accommodate better telephoto camera. In which case I could live with the design. If however they only raised the bump to sell us new cases and so that they could call it a “redesign”… oh boy
I’m on a 13PM & series 10 AW, I’ve got the urge to upgrade to more recent iPhone & perhaps AWU3 but when I look at this design it just makes me think incremental update with a hideous bulge design (even though I’d have it in a case). Also if AWU3 has a marginally smaller bezel update I’ll have lost my way with apple.
Heck I’m starting to look at galaxy flip (even though android gives me the 🤮).
Best save my $€£ and stick with my 13PM.
Apple has reached stagnation now. I wish there was an alternative to apple / android operating systems.
Heck I’m starting to look at galaxy flip (even though android gives me the 🤮).
Best save my $€£ and stick with my 13PM.
Apple has reached stagnation now. I wish there was an alternative to apple / android operating systems.
“iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to use Qualcomm modems for cellular connectivity, before iPhone 18 Pro models reportedly switch to Apple's C2 modem. In addition, the iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to feature an Apple-designed Wi-Fi 7 chip.“
Would read so much better as:
“iPhone 26 Pro models are expected to use Qualcomm modems for cellular connectivity, before iPhone 27 Pro models reportedly switch to Apple's C27 modem. In addition, the iPhone 26 Pro models are rumored to feature an Apple-designed Wi-Fi 7 W26 chip.”
Hopefully one day we get there.
Would read so much better as:
“iPhone 26 Pro models are expected to use Qualcomm modems for cellular connectivity, before iPhone 27 Pro models reportedly switch to Apple's C27 modem. In addition, the iPhone 26 Pro models are rumored to feature an Apple-designed Wi-Fi 7 W26 chip.”
Hopefully one day we get there.
Looks fine to me. The screen is all I see on my iPhone. And I guess the edge of my minimalist case.
This is what the incrementalism of technological maturation looks like.
The USP isn’t so much in rapid changes anymore.
Even if you leave Apple it won’t be more different wherever you land and may be worse in important ways.
I don't think this revised design is meant to improve the performance, but rather to maintain the existing performance. The previous rear design was all glass, allowing signal to travel through. New design looks like the top portion has a larger section made out of signal-blocking metal.
Apple's upcoming iPhone 17 Pro models will feature a redesigned antenna system that wraps around the large rear camera bump on the devices, according to the latest rumor from a hit-or-miss leaker known as Majin Bu.
The leaker shared a render of the alleged new design in a post on X today, and they provided additional details in a corresponding blog post.
The plastic antenna lines on iPhones allow wireless radio signals to pass through the otherwise metal frame on the devices. With an antenna line wrapping around the rear camera bump, the iPhone 17 Pro models could have improved 5G, LTE, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth connectivity compared to previous models, given that this antenna line would be longer and would not be covered by your hands when you are holding the device.
iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to use Qualcomm modems for cellular connectivity, before iPhone 18 Pro models reportedly switch to Apple's C2 modem. In addition, the iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to feature an Apple-designed Wi-Fi 7 chip.
The redesigned antenna system will result in fewer antenna lines on the iPhone 17 Pro frame, according to Majin Bu. One of the renders shared by the leaker shows that the device apparently lacks antenna lines on the top and bottom edges.
Majin Bu has a decidedly mixed track record as it relates to Apple rumors, with some of his leaks proving to be true, but others turning out to be complete misses. He was most recently accurate about iPadOS 26 adding a Mac-like menu bar to iPads.
Another leaker has cast doubt on this particular rumor, so keep your expectations in check. Fortunately, Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 17 series in a little less than a month from now, so official details are just around the corner.
Article Link: iPhone 17 Pro Leak Reveals Alleged New 5G Antenna Design
I can count on one hand the amount of times I've ever seen an iPhone being used caseless.
You guys made me curious because I've never noticed this issue before, so I just tried to balance my iPhone on something narrow. My phone is currently sitting on my desk in front of me, balanced on a roll of tape (round side) right on the middle. If there is any imbalance, it's too small for a human to notice. This perceived imbalance is probably more psychological due to the bulkier top or the result of the way we hold the phone, rather than the phone being "top heavy". Looks like apple positions the battery in a way that will result in a balanced phone weight distribution wise.
Considering how much time the thumbs are at the bottom of the screen, the balance needs to be shifted towards to about 1/3 from the bottom.
I'm not sure this is how the antenna's actually work. The common understanding is that the RF lines allow breaks in the metal chassis for signals to pass through. However that doesn't make a whole lot of sense for iPhone's with full glass backs. I always thought the chassis itself was used as an antenna, and the RF lines are breaks to separate different types of antennas...
Edit: Okay, so I looked into this a bit, and I'm not sure we fully know the purpose of these chassis cutout "RF" lines publicly. But looking at teardowns, the chassis lines are not traced or separated internally, meaning they are superficial. And the back glass actually sits on metal shielding. In fact, there's so much shielding throughout that it's hard to believe RF signals are making their way to these chassis cutout lines. Which is why it makes sense that there's a separate "5G" antenna chassis cutout window, but that's not the only one. There's also a second antenna shielding cutout window underneath the back glass adjacent to the logic board.
So the chassis cutout lines are probably used for RF transmission but they are supplemented by shielding cutouts strategically placed throughout the chassis and glass. This is also confirmed on the x-rays. Some really impressive engineering!
Edit: Okay, so I looked into this a bit, and I'm not sure we fully know the purpose of these chassis cutout "RF" lines publicly. But looking at teardowns, the chassis lines are not traced or separated internally, meaning they are superficial. And the back glass actually sits on metal shielding. In fact, there's so much shielding throughout that it's hard to believe RF signals are making their way to these chassis cutout lines. Which is why it makes sense that there's a separate "5G" antenna chassis cutout window, but that's not the only one. There's also a second antenna shielding cutout window underneath the back glass adjacent to the logic board.
So the chassis cutout lines are probably used for RF transmission but they are supplemented by shielding cutouts strategically placed throughout the chassis and glass. This is also confirmed on the x-rays. Some really impressive engineering!
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