I've Tried Every Iphone 17 Model, And My Golden Rule For Upgrading Is Changing In 2025

This photograph of nan iPhone 17 Pro Max successful Cosmic Orange was taken pinch nan telephoto lens connected an iPhone 17 Pro Max.

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The thought of "tyranny of choice" says that having a group of bully choices is expected to fto everyone find precisely what makes them astir happy, but nan reality is that having truthful galore bully choices tin often lead to anxiety, indecisiveness, and discontent. If we use this conception to nan iPhone 17 lineup, past Apple is rather nan tyrant this year.

After all, nan guidelines exemplary iPhone 17 is much pro than ever and offers nan champion value-for-money successful 2025. The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max person addressed nan 2 biggest anemic spots of past year's Pro models. And nan iPhone Air gives you a chance to usage tomorrow's exertion today. 

Also: Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max review: I've sewage 1 large logic to urge a year-over-year upgrade

I've upgraded my iPhone each twelvemonth since nan first iPhone successful 2007, and I've spent hands-on clip pinch each 4 of this year's iPhone models. And yet, my buying proposal this twelvemonth is wildly different than immoderate different twelvemonth successful nan past. And location are respective reasons why.

Let's unpack it by looking astatine each of nan merchandise lines, arsenic good arsenic who I'd urge arsenic nan perfect upgrader for each one. 

The $799 iPhone 17 suits much group than ever

Do not slumber connected nan guidelines exemplary iPhone 17 this year. 

In caller years I mostly relegated my recommendations of nan guidelines exemplary iPhone to kids, teenagers, first-time iPhone users, and group who conscionable needed a telephone that would activity because their aged telephone had a cracked surface aliases a artillery that wouldn't clasp a complaint -- and they wanted to limit really overmuch they spent connected a phone. 

Not truthful this year.

The truth that Apple poured truthful galore upgrades into nan iPhone 17 was nan astonishment of nan 2025 Apple Event for me. First of all, Apple yet did a awesome facelift to nan iPhone 17's surface technology, kicking it up to 6.3-inches (from 6.1 past year) pinch thinner bezels, 120Hz ProMotion display, 3000 nits of highest brightness, an anti-reflective coating, and an always-on display. 

Also: Apple's iPhone 17 will everlastingly alteration really we return selfies - including connected Android phones

Apple besides upgraded nan cameras connected nan iPhone 17, moving to a 48MP dual fusion camera pinch a 48MP main camera and 48MP ultrawide. Plus, nan iPhone 17 gets nan aforesaid upgraded selfie camera exertion arsenic nan Pros and Air get this year. That's a 24MP quadrate sensor that efficaciously shoots 18MP images successful either image aliases scenery mode and tin now automatically move betwixt nan 2 without forcing you to flip your phone. 

Even better, you tin fto nan camera usage instrumentality learning to find each nan faces successful nan changeable and automatically usage image aliases scenery mode to get nan champion photo. Kudos to Apple for not keeping this caller camera tech successful nan Pro phones only this year. 

The guidelines exemplary iPhone 17 compares very good to past year's iPhone 16 Pro.

Nina Raemont/ZDNET

Apple besides kept nan value of nan iPhone 17 astatine $799 while raising nan guidelines retention from 128GB to 256GB. Last year, 256GB of retention connected nan iPhone 16 would person put nan value of nan telephone astatine $899. From that perspective, Apple efficaciously gave nan iPhone 17 a $100 value cut. Likewise, nan iPhone 17's 2 biggest Android competitors, nan Pixel 10 and nan Samsung Galaxy S25 still commencement pinch 128GB of retention connected their guidelines models and some costs $799. 

Also: Want Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses? You person to book a demo first - and they are going fast

From different perspective, this year's iPhone 17 is astir identical to past year's iPhone 16 Pro, isolated from that it lacks nan telephoto zoom. However, it does adhd nan next-gen selfie camera and nan dual-capture camera. And past year's iPhone 16 Pro started astatine $999 for 128GB of retention and $1,099 for 256GB.

As a result, location are group I would person antecedently recommended to opt for nan iPhone Pro statement who I'm very happy to urge nan iPhone 17 guidelines exemplary to alternatively this year, redeeming them a mates 100 dollars. If you're personification who doesn't usage nan telephoto zoom very overmuch and you're coming from an iPhone 14 Pro aliases an iPhone 13 Pro (or earlier), past I'd urge considering nan iPhone 17 this year. It's a overmuch much powerful and superior telephone now.

The iPhone Air offers a sensation of nan future

The iPhone Air steps into a spot of a cursed spot successful nan iPhone lineup betwixt nan guidelines exemplary and Pros -- a spot wherever nan iPhone 12-13 Mini and nan iPhone 14-16 Plus models each struggled to make overmuch liking complete nan past half decade. 

Like Samsung's Galaxy S25 Edge, nan iPhone Air is considered a exertion objection of conscionable really bladed its engineers tin make a telephone arsenic a precursor to a leap guardant successful foldables -- the Fold 7 successful Samsung's case. 

Here's nan iPhone Air successful 1 of nan caller bumper cases that Apple is making.

Jason Hiner/ZDNET

So nan iPhone Air isn't conscionable haunted by nan past, it's besides opinionated successful nan protector of nan long-awaited foldable iPhone that's wide expected to motorboat successful nan autumn of 2026. 

Also: I replaced my iPhone 16 Pro Max pinch nan iPhone Air - here's my buying proposal now

Still, nan iPhone Air is undoubtedly nan 1 that generated nan biggest wow facet erstwhile holding it successful my hands. It's ace awesome really thin, light, and futuristic it feels. I'd promote you to spell into an Apple Store aliases 1 of nan wireless bearer stores starting connected Sept. 19 to spot if you get nan aforesaid affectional guidance to holding a telephone that is fundamentally nan width of a USB-C port. 

There's nary uncertainty that it's 1 of nan astir awesome technological achievements of 2025. But should you bargain it? 

Korean popular prima Jeong Yunho and Tim Cook look astatine nan iPhone Air astatine nan September 2025 Apple Event.

Jason Hiner/ZDNET

For nan immense mostly of iPhone upgraders, I'm still going to opportunity nary -- not erstwhile nan guidelines exemplary iPhone 17 has amended cameras and costs less. And if you're a existent powerfulness user, past you're not going to beryllium satisfied pinch nan artillery life aliases nan cameras connected nan iPhone Air. 

But if you're personification who loves to unrecorded connected nan cutting separator of tech and tally up of nan pack, you're astir apt going to beryllium beautiful giddy erstwhile you put your hands connected nan iPhone Air. You're astir apt personification who would person loved to deterioration Google Glass aliases nan Apple Vision Pro and you're 1 of nan starring candidates to get nan iPhone Fold successful 2026. The iPhone Air will fto you unrecorded successful that future. Just make judge you bid nan if you regularly usage your telephone for much than astir 4 hours a day. 

The iPhone 17 Pro Max solves large problems

The iPhone 16 Pro Max and nan iPhone 15 Pro Max are 2 phones that I've loved utilizing during nan past 2 years. I particularly loved utilizing nan main camera connected these phones to return much photos than immoderate different smartphone camera aliases moreover my master Sony mirrorless camera complete nan past 2 years. 

But I besides struggled pinch nan aforesaid 2 problems connected some of those phones. 

Also: I tried Apple's 2 large AI features announced astatine nan iPhone 17 arena - and some are crippled changers

First, nan zoom camera was simply not up to nan aforesaid modular of value arsenic nan main camera -- arsenic overmuch I wanted it to beryllium because I emotion zoom photography. Shots taken connected nan 5x telephoto (first introduced connected nan iPhone 15 Pro models) were okay for societal media, but nan value would typically autumn isolated erstwhile I started editing them. So I regularly had to scope for my Sony mirrorless whenever I wanted high-quality zoom shots. Meanwhile, I've been printing high-quality photos from nan iPhone's main camera for complete a decade.

The iPhone 17 Pro successful Deep Blue.

Jason Hiner/ZDNET

The different large problem I had pinch nan 2 titanium iPhone 15 and 16 Pro Max phones complete nan past 2 years was regular overheating. Whenever I was doing a batch of photograph aliases video shooting, erstwhile I was successful crowded municipality areas pinch anemic wireless signals, aliases erstwhile I had nan telephone retired successful nan sun for extended periods, these 2 Pro Max phones would get incredibly hot. And erstwhile they overheated, nan artillery would commencement to drain very quickly. 

That's decidedly not nan move you want to spot from an expensive, high-end phone.  

I was thrilled that Apple has addressed some problems successful nan iPhone 17 Pro Max -- arsenic good arsenic nan iPhone 17 Pro, which is nan aforesaid nonstop telephone isolated from that it has a 6.3-inch surface alternatively of a 6.9-inch surface and a smaller battery. 

Also: Should you upgrade to an iPhone 17 Pro from past year's model? I americium - here's why

Let's talk astir nan thermals first. Apple has replaced titanium and gone backmost to aluminum for nan casing of nan iPhone 17 Pro Max. Aluminum tin beryllium up to 5-10 times much effective astatine conducting and dispersing power than titanium. But Apple besides added a vapor enclosure cooling system that uses deionized h2o to cool nan phone's A19 Pro spot and let it to tally astatine maximum spot while not overheating. 

I request to do a batch of testing complete weeks and months, but I'm very encouraged that nan iPhone 17 Pro Max addresses nan overheating rumor head-on successful its design.

When it comes to nan telephoto zoom camera, I'm besides encouraged by nan measurement Apple has addressed this successful nan iPhone 17 Pro Max. First, Apple upgraded its tetraprism zoom from a 12MP sensor to a 48MP sensor, matching nan 48MP sensor connected nan main camera. Then, Apple made this a 4x sensor (rather than 5x), which appeared to beryllium a funny downgrade astatine first. 

However, having much pixels enabled an 8x zoom cropped to 12MP, which Apple boldly called an optical value 8x. Fortunately, I sewage to effort it out, and I'm impressed by what I've seen truthful far. Below is an illustration of what nan 8x zoom lens is tin of, and it's higher value than immoderate zoom changeable I've taken pinch an iPhone before. 

Example of a photograph taken pinch nan 8x zoom of nan iPhone 17 Pro Max.

Jason Hiner/ZDNET

Of course, I'll request to do a batch much testing pinch nan Zoom camera earlier I tin opportunity whether it's fresh to return connected much of my mundane Zoom photography. I'm besides going to comparison it pinch nan Pixel 10 Pro XL zoom, which I'm besides testing. Like past year, I scheme to do a dedicated reappraisal of nan caller iPhone 17 Pro camera system, truthful enactment tuned for that.

Also: iPhone Air vs. Samsung S25 Edge: I compared some ultra-thin phones to determine a winner

Nevertheless, I'm now going to make a proposal that I've ne'er made earlier -- pinch an asterisk. If you, for illustration me, knowledgeable overheating and zoom issues pinch nan iPhone 15 Pro Max aliases nan iPhone 16 Pro Max, you whitethorn want to see a much rapid-than-usual upgrade to nan iPhone 17 Pro Max this year.