Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

'iPhone 17 Slim' Could Move Rear Cameras to Top Center in Biggest Redesign Since iPhone X

daneoni said:
Yay…even more obsession with thinness.

Will be interesting to see how battery life hold up.
Click to expand...
I doubt Apple is looking to increase battery life on their phones. They have plateaued since a while now and users have found their solutions that Apple seems to think is fine for everyone. Hence the new iPads not increasing in the battery life department. iPad Pro would have a longer battery life had they stuck with the old design, but the new chips allow them to go thinner and still stay on the same battery life. I think the iPhone will take the same route. It will be thinner and lighter. But the battery life will remain the same
 
  • Like
Reactions: Eddie Beeps and NetMage
rp2011 said:
Not trying to silence anyone, and the opinions go both ways. My opinion is that the whining made the Macbook Pro thicker unnecessarily for those who whined about it. I have no issue with using Thunderbolt or dongles for ports I rarely or ever use instead. I doubt Steve Jobs who mandated getting rid of unnecessary or outdated ports would have succumbed to the whiners. The problem is that if you do not keep moving forward and keep building on the old crud such as with Windows making sure all types of old outdated stuff stay compatible, you end up end up slowing progress. You need to keep moving forward.
Click to expand...
MacBook Pro maybe fine for you with dongles, but for me the latest models are far superior with the ports added back in and overall design. It’s a pro laptop, not a MacBook Air or a regular one. We need ports on it for work. Dongles shouldn’t be hanging everywhere. You want a lighter machine, get an Air.

It’s not whining, it’s work productivity for many. And many of us do use those ports.

Extra weight is barely noticeable and the new design is not heavy or huge etc
 
  • Like
Reactions: artifex
transpo1 said:
If this indeed sits above the Pro Max, Apple will unexpectedly push the boundaries of thinness once more, which I believe is a good thing as long as they can find ways to maintain structural integrity and battery life. With the recent iPad Pro release, it seems they may move in that direction.

I would have expected an iPhone Ultra to move in the direction of being thicker and more rugged (like the Watch Ultra) than the Pro phone lineup but perhaps Apple will surprise us all….
Click to expand...
I saw a video yesterday, apparently the new iPad Pro is a little too bendy. Strong yes, but there is a lot of give when you push the screen apparently.
 
  • Like
Reactions: transpo1
I like my Sony Xperia 1V. Unlike my 15Pro, it has no notch or Dynamic Island or punch holes. No camera bump either. There is a dedicated camera button which is placed on the right position. Mark VI which was released recently is even better but as a Second mobile, I don’t need to have the latest.
 
antonrg said:
I doubt Apple is looking to increase battery life on their phones. They have plateaued since a while now and users have found their solutions that Apple seems to think is fine for everyone. Hence the new iPads not increasing in the battery life department. iPad Pro would have a longer battery life had they stuck with the old design, but the new chips allow them to go thinner and still stay on the same battery life. I think the iPhone will take the same route. It will be thinner and lighter. But the battery life will remain the same
Click to expand...
True. Just confusing because they took the sensible approach with the MacBook Pro redesign in 2021.

Its the hope that kills you.
 
With the plus rumoured to be disappearing next year, I wouldn’t be surprised if this is effectively the new regular sized pro, leaving the pro Max to become the ultra and even more high end.

The regular sized pro has always been a bit of a weird one as it’s expensive yet it lacks all of the features of the pro max. I call it the ‘executive’ iPhone. A cool looking high end iPhone would seem to be an ideal replacement for this.

No doubt the regular iPhone’s screen will then get a little bigger that year too (6.3), so it’s starting to get closer in size to the iPhone plus screen.

So:

iPhone SE
iPhone
iPhone ‘slim/sleek’
iPhone ultra

Makes sense to me.
 
Apple needs to rethink the product line to improve the fragmentation. I really think that if Jobs were resurrected today, this would be the first change he would work on.

The idea that iPhone 17 would be an Ultra above the Max sounds like an additional device in an already crowded line-up. There’s a 15, 15 Plus, 15 Pro, and 15 PM, and that’s just the latest model. Also available are the SE, 14, 14 Plus, and the SE.

That’s EIGHT iPhone models on the market right now.

They should probably just retire the Max name. The iPad and Watch don’t have that name. To me it makes sense to have a line-up like this:
- iPhone SE - base model, current “regular” model
- iPhone - current Pro phone
- iPhone Pro - this is the Max size
 
  • Like
Reactions: NetMage
rp2011 said:
Yep. The placement of the camera has always felt strange to me, I figured it was because of space constraints.
Click to expand...
If you hold the phone with your middle fingers supporting the back whilst taking pictures you’ll notice the camera doesn’t get in the way. Like everything Apple there is a very design and ergonomics good reason the camera has never moved locations.
 
  • Like
Reactions: NetMage and rp2011
Might have a higher price tag and smaller dynamic island. But not sure whether Apple will go for any major redesign before the 20th anniversary iPhone in 2027
 
  • Like
Reactions: The Apple Bitch
This makes no sense at all..
Why they would ditch titanium frame on a top model?
Why would they waste the opportunity to release an Ultra model, and go for Slim model instead while charging more?
 
  • Like
Reactions: NetMage
JPack said:
View attachment 2379610

This would probably be one of the few times Apple goes for aesthetics rather than engineering reasons. Right now, the rear camera on iPhone is on the side to avoid the Face ID module in the center.
Click to expand...
The cameras have been there forever, definitely before faceid even existed. Also there is no need to ‘avoid’ anything as the cameras are almost completely outside the body of the phone.
 
User 6502 said:
The cameras have been there forever, definitely before faceid even existed. Also there is no need to ‘avoid’ anything as the cameras are almost completely outside the body of the phone.
Click to expand...

I'm guessing you haven't seen a teardown of a recent iPhone. The rear cameras are definitely in the way of the TrueDepth module.

The first iPhone had the SIM tray at the top. Once the tray was moved on iPhone 4 and a decent front camera was added, there was no room to move the rear cameras to the center.

ifixit_iphone_15_teardown.png
 
  • Like
Reactions: Surf Monkey, Eddie Beeps and NetMage
Soon there will be the first iPhone available that hits 3000$ and people will buy just because for that reason.
 
Algr said:
The objection isn't to it being thin, it is to the inevitable compromises that come with thinness. If it is thinner, it can't have as much battery or as good a camera. (Yes, advancements elsewhere can partially compensate for this, but thin never helps anything.). "Thin" is often the excuse for losing ports and features we like. And it risks bending the phone. It shows Apple's arrogance for telling, rather than asking what we actually want.
Click to expand...
Not necessarily, thick can mean lazy design.
A lot of thin phones have huge battery, and super fast charging. Battery life really isn’t an issue anymore on Chinese Androids
 
  • Like
Reactions: Surf Monkey
Please no

I don’t even use hdmi and SD card slot. I create content but I use usbc everywhere. And some devices uses microSD anyways. I much prefer to keep a usbc dongle for everything I need, than ports on the laptop itself. All my usb-a devices have been replaced. And I haven’t even unpacked the magsafe. I have usbc chargers everywhere.

This is thanks to Apple’s push for usb-c on the macbook pro.

The new macbook pro is soooooo damn ugly
 
Last edited:
  • Haha
  • Like
Reactions: Surf Monkey and NetMage
Increase the bezel size to accommodate front camera elements, and put two lenses on the back — one on the left corner and one on the right, for better spatial video/photo capture. Spatial is the future — give us a way to create the content!
 
  • Haha
Reactions: NetMage
transpo1 said:
If they make an Ultra version of the phone, I believe it should be more rugged with longer battery life than the Pro models (like an Apple Watch Ultra version of the phone). This would serve a person for a certain demographic who want the very best of everything. If Apple instead makes it a very slim device, I’ll be surprised, but I do miss sleeker devices anyway so I’ll keep an open mind….
Click to expand...
I hear ya. But it would have to be VERY specific & niche. Perhaps the idea of making it super rugged for outdoor or action sports people like the Apple Watch Ultra crowd might work. Even tho that seems kinda silly for a phone. But just making it better or more “pro” than a “pro”? Kinda defeats or cheapens the whole term “pro“ if you ask me.
 
So… the lineup is going to be this?

iPhone 17
iPhone 17 Plus
iPhone 17 Pro
iPhone 17 Pro Max
iPhone 17 Slim (or Ultra)

Don’t get me wrong, I like having options. But that seems a bit cluttered.
 
  • Like
Reactions: NetMage and ric22
BanjoDudeAhoy said:
So… the lineup is going to be this?

iPhone 17
iPhone 17 Plus
iPhone 17 Pro
iPhone 17 Pro Max
iPhone 17 Slim (or Ultra)

Don’t get me wrong, I like having options. But that seems a bit cluttered.
Click to expand...
It’s already borderline absurd. Pro shouldn’t have tiers - it should be the best Apple can offer, and as the Max has featured the smaller Pro doesn’t, it should only be available in Max. Then the regular size Pro could be the regular iPhone.
 
  • Haha
  • Like
Reactions: NetMage and ric22
A Pro without a camera bump would appeal to a lot of people. Don't make people pay more just to get rid of the bump, though 😅
 
  • Like
Reactions: Eddie Beeps
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back