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iPhone 17 might finally fix Apple’s stingy ways with display upgrades

By Nadeem Sarwar Published March 23, 2025

The Apple iPhone 16 Plus's home screen. — Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

Social media is currently flooded with all kinds of rumors and concept renders purportedly depicting the upcoming iPhone 17 series. A few reliable insiders have also backed the claims of a fresh design. However, there’s another upgrade situation that will matter to users on a day-to-day basis.

According to Bloomberg, the baseline iPhone 17 model could finally get a high refresh rate aka ProMotion display. “The device is likely to get some small enhancements to its rear camera, as well as a ProMotion display, which allows for smoother scrolling and animation,” says the report.

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If you’ve been following the competing Android ecosystem, high refresh rate screens are no longer a talking point. Even budget phones that cost as little as $200 will serve you a 90Hz or 120Hz panel. In the Apple ecosystem, you will have to spend at least a thousand dollars to experience that perk on an iPhone, or an iPad.

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The “it didn’t matter” argument

Someone holding an iPhone 16, showing a home screen. — Joe Maring / Digital Trends

Yes, Apple has received its fair share of criticism. And yes, the difference is discernible, especially when you shift from a 90Hz panel to a 90Hz or 120Hz screen. Once you’ve made the jump to a 90Hz panel, the subsequent figures at 120Hz, 144Hz, or even the165Hz panels on one of Asus’ ROG series smartphones.

An argument can be made that your phone interactions will look perfectly fine running on a 60Hz panel, especially if it’s an iPhone. Digital Trends’ Mark Jansen documented his experience of switching back to 60Hz screen on the iPhone 15, and not really missing the high refresh rate convenience.

The situation was not too different with the iPhone 16. You see, an added dash of fluidity with screen interactions is a welcome change. But random stutters and snags ruin that upgrade, especially on non-Pixel Android phones. Apple, on the other hand, does a fantastic job of optimizing the UI interactions, from touch transitions to animations.

A person taking a photo with the Apple iPhone 16 Plus. — Apple’s dual-camera might get overshadowed by the Pixel 10. Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

That, however, doesn’t mean an $800 iPhone doesn’t deserve a high refresh rate screen. If that didn’t matter to users, Apple wouldn’t restrict the ProMotion tech offering a 120Hz peak refresh rate to the expensive “Pro” iPhones and iPads.

There’s a discernible visual perk to be served. It was only a matter of cost-cutting from Apple, until the supply chain brings down the cost of 120Hz panels to such an extent that Apple doesn’t feel the pinch on its profit margins. In 2025, the situation seems to have changed in Apple’s favor, paving the way for high-refresh rate panel on iPhones.

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Nadeem is a tech and science journalist who started reading about cool smartphone tech out of curiosity and soon started…

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More evidence suggests iPhone 17 Air will borrow this Pixel design cue

Alleged concept render of the iPhone 17 Air in black.

There have been no end of rumours surrounding the iPhone 17 Air – or iPhone 17 Slim as it has also been called – and the latest adds some fuel to an existing fire. Previous reports have suggested the slimmer iPhone 17 model will feature a camera module that spans the width of the device, not too dissimilar from what Google offers on its Pixel 9 series though closer to the top of the phone.

The most recent leak supports this idea, with Sonny Dickson sharing an image on X of what he claims is a first peek at a third party case for the iPhone 17 Air. Accompanying the image, Dickson said: "Here’s your first look at a case for the iPhone 17 Air. If you didn’t know an Air was coming, you’d swear it was a Google Pixel case."

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I’ve used the iPhone 16 Pro Max for 6 months. Here’s why I love it

The back of the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max.

I bought the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max when it was announced and have used it every day since then, racking up six months of use, and yet I’ve written very little about it. It’s time to change that, explain why it is technically my only “permanent” phone, and why I think it’s superb.
How I use my iPhone

I have two SIM cards. One is my “main” SIM card which is attached to the phone number I use, and the other is all about data, and they both live in different phones. My main SIM is switched in and out of review Android phones all the time, while the SIM I use mostly for data only lives in my Apple iPhone. They’re both always with me, and since September 2024 I’ve used the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max alongside whatever Android phone I’m reviewing.

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Apple might serve a massive front camera upgrade on iPhone 17

An iPhone 16 laying on a shelf with its screen on.

The domain of Apple leaks is currently obsessed with the controversial iPhone 17 Pro design refresh, which could stir some heated debate with its massive camera hump. A lot of chatter is also focused on the svelte iPhone 17 Air. Yet, it seems there are a few other internal upgrades worth getting excited about.
According to analyst Jeff Pu, Apple will equip all four iPhone 17 series models with an upgraded 24-megapixel front camera. So far, Apple has stuck with a 12-megapixel selfie snapper on its mainline iPhones. Moreover, the company hasn’t ever deployed a 24-megapixel camera sensor, keeping its experiments limited to 12-megapixel and 48-megapixel units in the past few years.
The research note by Pu, which was seen by MacRumors and 9to5Mac, doesn’t go into details about the specifications or feature details of the new 24-megapixel front snapper on the iPhone 17 series. However, we can take an educated guess, based on what Apple accomplished when it switched from 12-megapixel to 48-megapixel rear cameras.

A 24-megapixel sensor will most likely default to pixel-binning for delivering pictures and videos at a lower resolution than the native pixel count. Pixel-binning essentially combines the light data collected by adjacent pixels, creating what is colloquially known as a super-pixel.
The sum total of these efforts are pictures that are more detailed and with more realistic color rendering, especially in low-light scenarios. Depending on how the pixels are combined, the final image is usually a lower-resolution shot, but more pleasing to look at.
For example, the iPhone 16 Pro’s 48-megapixel main camera does 4-in-1 pixel binning to produce 12-megapixel pictures, but you can still stick full-res 48-megapixel shots, too. There’s also an intermediary option to to get the best of both worlds with 24-megapixel clicks.
With a 24-megapixel selfie camera coming into the picture, iPhone 17 buyers can expect improved selfies and better-quality video calls. Moreover, since there are more pixels to collect light data, Apple might leverage it to offer more advanced camera features, too.

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