After several weeks of alternating through the iPhone 17, 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max, as well as the ultrathin iPhone Air, I’m casting a different vote than in previous years. The non-Pro is no longer the default pick for most people. The entry-level iPhone 17 is so thoroughly expanded and, price-wise, so attractive that it’s the model I now recommend to more upgraders than before (there are some pretty big exceptions that I’ll note later).
That is the opposite of my usual Pro-first recommendation, but the 2025 roster essentially flips the script with significant changes to display, camera, storage and thermals. And even as analysts note that smartphone upgrade cycles in the U.S. have now exceeded three years, value and longevity are more important than ever.
My hands-on verdict: the new default iPhone pick
If you don’t shoot much telephoto zoom and are upgrading from an iPhone 13 Pro, 14 Pro or earlier non-Pro model, the iPhone 17 is the sweet spot. It’s the equivalent of a late-model Pro at friendlier pricing, yet is thinner, has no titanium-era hot-running quirks and lacks the bulk that occasionally dogged earlier flagship generations.
Why the standard iPhone 17 wins for most buyers
The headline enhancements are what you live with every day: screen, cameras and storage. The iPhone 17 leaps to a 6.3-inch panel with slimmer bezels, ProMotion at 120Hz, up to 3000 nits peak brightness, an anti-reflective coating and always-on mode. That additional bit of brightness can be a serious quality-of-life upgrade in bright sunlight, where I’d be able to compose shots and read maps without squinting.
Apple has also thought hard about imaging tech, and didn’t limit that love for the Pro tier.
There are 48MP and ultrawide lenses that capture detail with less noise in the dark than the baseline shooters from last year, and there’s also a new 24MP square front sensor that snaps 18MP portrait or landscape images without making you rotate your device. Automatic orientation and face detection are more than just gimmicks; in my testing, they saved group shots and candid street photos I would otherwise have skipped.
And storage and pricing round it off. The iPhone 17 anchors at $799 but starts at 256GB — double what you used to have in this tier. These things are relative: You get 128GB of storage on a base Pixel 10 and Galaxy S25 still, just as you did in the past, at very close to these price points. Value-wise, that’s as good as a $100 price cut from comparable iPhones a year ago.
What you lose: a true telephoto. If you like to print big or crop aggressively on distant subjects, you will notice that absence. Everyone else gets a device that replicates much of the Pro experience from last year minus the zoom lens — and with a better selfie system.
The Air is a spectacular prototype, not an audience-pleaser
The iPhone Air is the skinniest, lightest iPhone I’ve ever held — almost as thick as a USB-C port. And I love it. Pick it up and it gives you the same “future just arrived” pang that ultra-thin laptops did ten years ago. It’s an engineering triumph and a clue about where Apple might be taking design as it massages its long-rumored folding ambitions.
But the trade-offs are real. In my experience, the Air’s battery is optimized for minimalists, not road warriors, and the camera system ranks a notch below that of the baseline iPhone 17. If you spend hours on end using your phone for navigation or videography or social posting, it will hit limits sooner than you’d prefer. Folks who prioritize thinness over stamina will probably love it; everyone else should consider visiting in-store to pay their respects, nose around a bit and then walk away.
Pro & Pro Max address two long-standing issues
Two things bothered me about the 15 Pro Max and 16 Pro Max: the heat they produced under sustained load, and a zoom camera that didn’t perform up to the level of the excellent main sensor. The 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max tackle both.
First, thermals. Apple went from titanium to aluminum, and around the A19 Pro, it installed a vapor chamber cooling system. Materials engineers have long known that aluminum is a better heat conductor than titanium, and the pairing with vapor chamber tech did a particularly good job of keeping temperatures steadier during 4K recording and intense capture during my early testing. Less thermal throttling, less panic when shooting on sunny days and crowded networks.
Second, zoom. The Pro Max’s tetraprism module now employs a 48MP sensor at 4x (it features logos for both the main lens and image processing, interestingly enough) to offer a “12MP 8x” crop that Apple’s positioning with an emphasis on “optical quality.” As my sample shots reveal, there was much better detail and contrast to be seen at 8x than I’ve ever enjoyed while using any previous iPhone zoom. I’ll put it up against the Pixel 10 Pro XL for long-range shooting in more extensive testing, but this is the first iPhone telephoto that I’m actually stoked to shoot with.
The main question of what size phone to buy, Pro (6.3 inches) or Pro Max (6.9 inches), is mostly about physical dimensions and battery runway. The camera stacks are the same; the Max just lasts longer and fits in your fingers better.
Who should get which model in the iPhone 17 lineup
- iPhone 17: The best for most. Moving up from an iPhone 13/14 Pro or any non-Pro? You get a 120Hz display that’s brighter, better cameras and 256GB by default at a price that undercuts many rivals. It’s the pragmatic, sturdy choice for what market analysts like Counterpoint observe is a three-to-four-year cycle and the new norm.
- iPhone 17 Pro/Pro Max: For creators and power users. If you shoot a ton of video, print photos or were burned by heat on previous Pros, then the improved thermals and far better telephoto make these worth the premium. Choose the Max if you prefer the longest battery life and most professional-looking framing.
- iPhone Air: Only for early adopters. If ultra-thin form is your north star and you’re willing to tolerate short battery life and midtier cameras, you’ll be giddy. The rest of us will enjoy notching the bill — both monetarily and in function — with the iPhone 17 or later.
Here’s one last tip: Keep an eye on carrier and manufacturer trade-in offerings. When generous discounts line up, the Pro models can fall into the iPhone 17 range. If they don’t, I still say my general guideline applies: buy the iPhone 17, enjoy the upgrades that you’ll actually feel on a day-to-day basis and only step up if your photography or workload really requires it.