Apple iPhone 17 review: Bigger screen, better battery life and more storage without a price bump? I'm in

Every September, iPhone owners grapple with the same question: Should I upgrade to the shiny new hotrod or hold onto my perfectly good, already-paid-for beater? I've grappled with that myself, having chugged along just fine with a 2021-era iPhone 13. But this year the picture looks a lot clearer: The iPhone 17 packs some serious improvements, including double the storage (256GB) of the base-model iPhone 16, a notable increase in battery life, an upgraded screen and plenty of camera enhancements.

Indeed, the base-model iPhone 17 brings to mind some previous years' iPhone Pro models. Thankfully, it didn't come with a Pro price bump: It still starts at $799 (with carrier; $829 if you buy it unlocked). That's hardly cheap, but the extra storage alone almost makes it feel like a bargain. On the other hand, if you're coming from an older model, is there anything you won't like about this? And are some of these highly touted new features maybe not so great? Here's my iPhone 17 review.

• Related: Apple iPhone 16e review: Is this the iPhone upgrade you've been waiting for?

What's new in the iPhone 17 vs. the iPhone 16?

Unless you're on some kind of payment plan that affords you a new iPhone every year, there's very little reason an iPhone 16 owner should run out and upgrade. That said, let's take a closer look at some of the new and updated features I mentioned above and anything else that might actually impact your iPhone enjoyment.

And just for fun, I'm rating each item thusly:

• Yay:Great improvement, glad to see it

• Meh:Fine, not earth-shattering

• Blech:Overrated, not useful

Battery life and charging: Yay

Apple promises up to 30 hours of video playback on a charge vs. 22 hours on the iPhone 16. That's a massive jump, and although there are a ton of variables that impact overall battery performance, any improvement is welcome. (I think most of us just want the phone to last a full day before having to plug in. I found I typically had at least 30% left by bedtime, and that was with the always-on screen enabled — see below.)

Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 supports up to 40-watt charging; the iPhone 16 was limited to 25 watts. That means you could get up to a 50% charge in as little as 20 minutes. Of course, you'll have to supply your own charger for that; Apple famously stopped bundling AC adapters several iPhones ago. An Apple-branded 40-watt power block will run you $39 , but there are plenty of third-party options available for less (like this two-pack for $16 ).

As for wireless (i.e. MagSafe) charging, that's limited to 25 watts (with a 30-watt or better charger) — about the same as the iPhone 16, but up from 15 watts on the iPhone 15.

Cameras: Yay

New iPhones always bring camera upgrades, and the best one here is the 18-megapixel Center Stage front camera. That's not only a big resolution jump (from 12MP), but also a real usability improvement: Center Stage can take landscape selfies without the need to rotate the phone. And if more faces pop up in the frame, it'll zoom out accordingly to accommodate them. It's a minor perk, but one I really like: No more awkward "claw grip" trying to hold the phone sideways for selfies.

Center Stage also promises to keep you centered in the frame during video calls, though this is pretty limited: You can move a little bit to the left or right, and the camera will track you, but any farther and you're out of frame. It doesn't zoom if you move away from the screen, either, which I found surprising; the camera auto-zooms when staging photos. So this is useful during, say, work calls when you're mostly at your desk, but not when you're cruising around the kitchen during a call with Mom.

At the rear, the iPhone's second camera (the Ultra Wide, used for — you guessed it — wide-angle shots) jumped to a native resolution of 48MP. That's a 4X increase over the iPhone 16's 12MP, significant for things like landscape shots and group photos. Will your photos look four times better? No, but more megapixels typically means sharper images and more options for cropping without resolution loss.

Finally, a new dual-capture mode lets you record front and rear video simultaneously. It's not something I'll use often, but it's nice to have the option. (I can see the value for content creators who want to appear in the video while simultaneously showing what's in front of them.)

Screen size: Yay

Goodbye, 6.1-inch base-model iPhones; the iPhone 17 takes a baby step up to 6.3 inches. The change is virtually imperceptible, but so, thankfully, are the fractional increases in the phone's length, thickness and weight. It still fits comfortably in my hand and pocket. And, again: bigger screen, no price increase. My wallet approves.

Because there's not currently a Plus model in the lineup, you'd have to splurge on the iPhone 17 Air (6.5 inches) or iPhone 17 Pro Max (6.9) if you want something even larger.

Always-on screen: Meh

Previously an iPhone Pro-only feature, this keeps the screen dim but visible when the phone is in standby, meaning you can still see the date, time, widgets and notifications at a glance. I must admit, I had a hard time getting used to this; I'm wired to always turn my screen off before slipping my phone into my pocket or laying it on my desk.

Even after a full week, always-on was nagging my mild-OCD brain: I felt a tinge of alarm at seeing the screen lit up (even dimly) when it was "supposed" to be off. How much extra battery life does this burn off? Opinions — and testing — vary, with one independent study (of the iPhone 14 Pro Max) showing the battery draining nearly four times faster, and another one that same year showing only a negligible impact . Thankfully, the feature is optional — you can toggle it off in Settings, and experiment with it yourself. Some users will love it. Maybe with a bit more time, I will too. 

ProMotion: Blech 

Another iPhone Pro hand-me-down, Apple's ProMotion technology promises higher refresh rates: up to 120Hz, double that of earlier iPhone base-models. That's supposed to translate into smoother scrolling and less eye strain.

I'll state for the record: I don't get it. Yes, scrolling seems a bit smoother somehow, but artificially so — it's much like the soap-opera effect on modern TVs. I don't hate it here quite as much, but it certainly doesn't add anything to the experience. Apple says ProMotion is "more immersive" when you're playing games, but that would be true only of fast-paced action games — and even then, I don't agree. On a screen this size, there's no such thing as immersion.

(This isn't the first time I've noticed such a lack of screen differentiation, by the way: Earlier this year, I looked at the base-model iPad (A16) alongside a ProMotion-equipped iPad Pro and couldn't see a bit of difference between the two.)

The iPhone 17's screen is also supposed to be able to get up to 50% brighter when outdoors. Indoors, I couldn't see any real-world difference in screen brightness when toggling between the iPhone 17, the iPhone 16e or even the iPhone 13. I know because I set them all side-by-side and looked at apps, web pages, photos and more — first with the brightness set at 50%, then cranked to maximum. In fact, the 17 had a slightly yellowish cast to it; the white backgrounds on various web pages looked noticeably whiter on the iPhone 16e and 13. So if anything, the 17 actually seemed a bit less bright.

That said, as the saying goes, your mileage may vary. Sensitivity to color perception and scrolling smoothness varies from person to person, with some folks finding the latter to be a must-have on a phone screen . To that end, you might want to visit your local Apple Store (or a wireless carrier kiosk) to compare and contrast with your own eyes (don't rely on YouTube videos, for instance). 

Storage: Yay

As noted up top, you now get 256GB for the price of 128GB. That's a lot more room for photos, videos, games, movie downloads and so on. And as someone who literally has about 130GBs worth of all that stuff, I definitely needed the extra space.

The bad news is that if you want to jump up to 512GB, it'll cost you an extra $200. I was hoping the upcharge would stay at $100, which was the cost of doubling from 128GB to 256GB. I know it's not logical; it's just what I was hoping.

What's different about the iPhone 17 vs. older iPhone models?

A lot. Whether it's buttons you didn't have before, a different charging port, a shape-changing cutout at the top of the screen or a screen that looks, well, different somehow (see ProMotion, above), the iPhone 17 definitely mixes things up. And if you're coming from an iPhone SE, say goodbye to the Home button; now you'll unlock your iPhone by swiping up from the bottom of the screen — and letting the front camera recognize your face.

Here's a rundown of some of the most notable iPhone 17 features (most of them carryovers from earlier models), what I think of them and how they'll impact you. Note that I'm approaching this from the perspective of an iPhone 13 user; there may be some minor differences if you own something a little older (or newer).

Action button

Farewell, mute switch; in its place (still just above the volume controls), the Action button. By default, it does the same thing — toggles Silent Mode on or off — but you can reprogram it for one of about a dozen other functions instead: camera, flashlight, magnifier, voice memo and so on.

These are handy shortcuts, no question, but Apple stubbornly limits you to just one of them. You can't assign a second function to, say, a double-press of the button. Or a third function to an extra-long press. This is such a missed opportunity; I'd love to have quick access to the flashlight, but I'm not willing to give up the Silent Mode toggle, which I use frequently. (Thankfully, you can add some of the others as shortcuts to your standby screen, and even more to the swipe-down Control Center.)

Camera button

Introduced on the iPhone 16, this flush-mount button (technically known as "Camera Control") resides on the lower-right edge of the phone — right where my ring finger tends to land, resulting in way too many accidental presses. (Thankfully, you can tweak it so it requires a double-press to activate, rather than the default single press.)

The button performs a lot of different functions depending on when — and how — you press it. By default, it opens the Camera app, then snaps a photo when you press it again. (In other words, it becomes a shutter-release button.) You can also long-press to record a video.

But here's where it gets awkward: a light press activates a shortcut menu for a selected setting — say, zoom or exposure — and then swiping the button with your finger lets you make adjustments. A longer light-press lets you access different settings to then swipe-adjust.

This definitely takes some getting used to, and while this toolset is less "in the way" than the screen-overlay menus you normally navigate to adjust these settings, it's also less intuitive. I can't say it was any faster or more convenient, either. Rather, I found myself constantly irritated by a button I consider superfluous. Some users may like it, or even love it, but not me.

USB-C Charging

If you currently own an iPhone 14 or earlier, you're using Apple's proprietary Lightning cable to charge it. With the iPhone 15, Apple switched over to industry-standard USB-C. That means it's time to recycle your old cables and stock up on new ones. (Take note, too, that the included cord has USB-C connectors at both ends, meaning you might need new USB AC adapters as well.)

Dynamic Island

Gone is the fixed "notch" that was carved into the top of the screen; now it's an interactive, animated black capsule known as the Dynamic Island. It still houses the front camera and various sensors, but now it can also display a snippet of live information like a countdown timer, football score or DoorDash delivery status. It'll dynamically expand (and then retreat) for things like Face ID recognition. And a long-tap while you're listening to music will enlarge the pill to a large playback-control window.

It's a nifty addition and a clever way to level up an area of the screen that previously worked solely behind the scenes.

Everything else

There's more to consider here, including the new iOS 26 operating system , new Apple Intelligence updates and so on. If you're coming from an older phone, many areas of the interface may seem foreign. But that's par for the course; like it or not, Apple changes things, whether needed or not. Some new learning is to be expected when you wait three to four years (or more) between iPhones.

iPhone 17: Should you buy it?

This is always a challenging question to answer, because it's a fair assessment to say the iPhone 17 is Apple's most capable non-Pro iPhone to date — but that's true with every release. There may be some usability changes I don't agree with (cough, Camera button , cough), but generally speaking, you get faster performance, better cameras and so on.

This time around, you also get more storage, better battery life and a slightly larger screen, which alone are reasons to consider upgrading. And given the way prices have skyrocketed on just about everything else, it's an admittedly pleasant surprise Apple didn't bump the iPhone 17 accordingly.

As an iPhone 13 user, I've bypassed the iPhone 14, 15 and 16, never seeing anything compelling enough to make me want to spend another $800. But there are enough improvements here that I'm finally pulling out my wallet: The iPhone 17 is the upgrade for me.