Apple will unveil the iPhone 17 lineup tomorrow, rolling out four sleek new models with thinner frames, sharper displays, and faster chips.
For most consumers, it's another milestone in Apple's long tradition of annual upgrades. But in the crypto community, excitement is muted.
The iPhone 17 family includes the standard edition, the lightweight 5.5mm thick iPhone 17 Air, and the higher-end Pro and Pro Max, as per tech reviewers .
Apple is expected to boost storage and memory on the premium models, with the Pro versions starting at 256GB and offering 12GB of RAM with A19 and A19 Pro chipsets.
The design is thinner, lighter, and reinforced with aluminum. Pricing chatter points to a starting range of around $799 for the base model and over $1,000 for the Pro.
As for cameras, Pro models will have triple 48 MP sensors with 8K video recording with 8× optical zoom, while base models will likely have a dual setup (48 MP + 12 MP).
For Apple fans, these mark another step in the company's focus on design and performance.
For crypto traders, however, they're just more of the same — polished hardware without any innovation that matters to digital asset users.
What crypto voices are saying
"I don't care if it's half a millimeter thinner,"said Jake Miller, a Bitcoin miner from New York. "There's still no way to run mining or staking apps on an iPhone. Apple banned that years ago. For us, that makes it a fancy camera, nothing more."
In Toronto, crypto trader Michelle Wong struck a similar note. "I use my phone to track prices, sign transactions, and occasionally test wallet integrations. On Android, you can actually experiment with that stuff. Apple locks it down. iPhone 17 doesn't change that at all."
A Singapore-based developer, who goes by the handle Ravi K on Discord, was more blunt. "It's 2025 and Apple hasn't figured out that people want secure crypto storage built in. Why not integrate a hardware wallet? Why not make iCloud optional for private keys? Until they do that, I'm not buying."
From Mumbai, software engineer and Solana enthusiast Arjun Sharma added:
"Give me a built-in validator option or a node runner, then we'll talk. Otherwise, I'll keep my Android."
Why the clash exists
Apple has long had strict rules around cryptocurrency apps, particularly mining.
In June 2018, Apple changed its App Store Review Guidelines to prohibit apps that mine cryptocurrency on-device.
According to reports apps, including third-party advertisements, cannot run unrelated background processes like cryptocurrency mining.
The policy was designed to protect battery life and device integrity, but it has also cemented Apple as a closed garden in an era when openness is the crypto world's rallying cry.
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That divide is clear every time a new iPhone drops. To mainstream consumers, the conversation is about camera quality, aluminum finishes, or chip speed. To crypto traders, those features feel like cosmetic tweaks, detached from the financial and technological revolution they're living every day.
"Apple could own this market if they wanted to,"said Wong. "If they built a secure enclave for keys, if they allowed dApps to run natively, they'd dominate Web3. Instead, they're still pretending it doesn't exist."
Related: What is Bitcoin mining? Explained
The verdict from crypto circles
The crypto crowd isn't boycotting the iPhone 17 but neither are they rushing to line up outside Apple stores. As Miller put it:
"Apple builds the best phone for photos. But for crypto? They're still a decade behind."
For the crypto community, Android is still the OS of choice. Solana Seeker, HTC Desire 22 Pro, Samsung Galaxy Crypto Edition are all based on Android and feature custom Web3 or wallet layers. Even Google launched the Google Pixel 8 with GrapheneOS in April 2019, which is a hardened, open-source fork of Android.
FAQs
Q:Can you mine cryptocurrency directly on an Android phone?
A:Some Android apps let you mine Monero (XMR) or other altcoins, but it's resource-intensive. It wastes battery life, overheats hardware, and makes less than GPUs or dedicated mining rigs.
Q: What's the safest way to mine crypto using Android?
A:Many Android users prefer cloud mining apps or mining pool dashboards, which run computations on external servers. This lets you earn or track rewards without damaging the phone. However, mining softwares can spread scams and malware, so only download apps from trusted sources.
This story was originally reported by TheStreet on Sep 8, 2025, where it first appeared in the MARKETS section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
