“Upgrading from a two-year-old iPhone is never a foregone conclusion. The iPhone 17 arrives as the mainstream proposition with eye-catching screen, camera and battery claims, and the iPhone 15 is the still-strong device that has been well supported. Here’s a no-nonsense, expert look at what really changes — specs, screen size, cameras, performance — and what those changes mean for your daily life.
Price and configurations
The iPhone 17 begins at $799, the same price that the first iPhone 15 launched at. As for the price of the iPhone 15, well, you can no longer buy it direct from Apple, hence current retail prices will depend on your carrier and the resale market. If pure outlay is the goal, hanging on to the 15 — or kicking the tires on carrier promos on recent models — will be cheaper. The iPhone 17 is an improvement in one regard, and that is based storage. It now starts at 256 gigabytes (with a 512-gigabyte option), which is nice when you’re filling it with Pro-quality photos or shooting constantly. (The 15’s entry-level offering was 128 gigabytes.)
Display and screen size
The non-Pro line sees its biggest generational leap yet. The iPhone 17 jumps to a 6.3inch display at 2622×1206 and an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate. The 6.1-inch display of the iPhone 15 has a resolution of 2556×1179 and a refresh rate of 60Hz. That faster panel, in turn, makes animations, scrolling and gameplay feel conspicuously smoother: Counterpoint Research noted that high refresh rate screens had become mainstream in premium Androids, and by bringing 120Hz to the mass-market iPhone, Apple is finally coming to that party.
Even with these larger canvases, the iPhone 17’s overall footprint remains the same as the iPhone 15, which means you’re getting more viewable space without the bulk. For readers, or gamers (or just anyone who reads and scrolls through social media a lot) 120Hz is the upgrade that you notice constantly.
Performance and battery life
Under the hood, the iPhone 17 features Apple’s A19 chip; the iPhone 15 uses the A16 Bionic. Historically Apple’s A‑series provides double digit gains for the CPU and the GPU in its A series processors in year over year comparisons according to labs such as AnandTech and independent Geekbench aggregates. You can expect speedier photo processing, quicker app installs, and even more headroom for on-device AI tasks on the 17.
Battery claims are bolder, too. Apple says the iPhone 17 is good for up to 30 hours of video watching, compared with up to 20 on the iPhone 15 — a lofty 50% improvement. Real-world results will vary (Consumer Reports typically sees less than vendor-stated loop tests), but an even more conservative read suggests markedly longer endurance. If the battery health warning of 80% on your 15 is beginning to get hit, then the 17 thanks to a fresh cell alongside a more efficient chip, is going to result in a quality-of-life win.
Cameras and creative tools
Both phones are based around a 48MP wide camera, but the iPhone 17 also has a new 48MP ultrawide — up from 12MP on the 15. The practical upside to this is cleaner detail throughout the frame, particularly in landscapes and architecture where ultrawide lenses can smudge edges. And with a higher-resolution capture, Apple’s pipeline could bin pixels for low light or hang onto detail for editing; imaging labs like DxOMark have long proved how higher-res ultrawides buoy texture and suppress noise at the periphery.
On the front, the iPhone 17’s 18MP selfie camera also introduces Apple’s auto-framing Center Stage-style tracking, with the company promising sharper group selfies and steadier video calls. Both phones also have strong video features like Action mode and 4K HDR recording, but creators may appreciate the 17’s additional dynamic range and detail from its new ultrawide when mixing multiple focal lengths in an edit.
Design, durability, and colors
The silhouette is familiar, with the biggest difference in appearance being a vertically stacked dual camera array (versus the 15’s diagonal lenses). Which is odd because, despite the larger screen, weight creeps up only slightly—around 6.24 ounces on the 17 versus 6.02 ounces on the 15. Both devices share the Ceramic Shield glass and everyday splash and accidental dunk resistance.
Finishes shift with each generation. The iPhone 17 comes in Black, White, Mist Blue, Sage and Lavender; the iPhone 15 was available in Black, Blue, Green, Yellow and Pink. And if you go caseless, color might play a larger role than you’d think.
Connectivity and longevity
Both models are USB‑C and offer 5G, MagSafe, and Emergency SOS via satellite, with Roadside Assistance via satellite available in supported countries through partner services like AAA. Apple typically supports its own software across five or six years — even the already-discontinued iPhone XS has received multiple major iOS upgrades after their launch. In other words, the iPhone 15 isn’t in the twlight of its useable life yet, but the 17 will naturally get a longer runway for new features.
Who should upgrade?
Upgrade if you care about the screen. The 120Hz panel alone is huge, and the larger 6.3-inch screen gives you some more breathing room without sacrificing too much pocket space. Photographers and video-first folks will also derive meaningful advantage from the 48MP ultrawide and better front camera.
WaitHold off if your iPhone 15 is still zippy and the health of your battery is strong. The two biggest pain points are likely to be storage pressure and battery degradation, and if those don’t hit then the 15 remains an excellent computer. Base storage requirements have increased with 4K and social video production, so the iPhone 17’s 256GB floor may be the better long-term bet if you’re already starting to feel cramped.
Bottom line: the iPhone 17 presents the most mainstream quality-of-life improvements for an iPhone since Apple introduced the 48MP main camera — mainly because of the 120Hz display, the larger ultrawide sensor and a longer battery life. It’s a no-brainer for heavy users and creators. For everyone else, the iPhone 15 could still carry you through many great years of service.