Report: iPhone 17 Pro to Ditch Titanium for Aluminum as Part of 'Major Design Changes'

Apple is planning big changes to its iPhone 17 lineup. While most rumors have focused on the expected iPhone 17 Air, a new report outlines “significant design changes” that will occur across the entire lineup, particularly the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max.

What's coming for the iPhone 17 and 17 Pro

A new report that primarily focuses on the iPhone 17 Air has provided some new details about what's coming for the rest of the iPhone 17 lineup in 2025.

Wayne Ma and Qian'er Liu write for The Information:

Other iPhone models will also see significant design changes next year. For example, they will all switch to aluminum frames over stainless steel and titanium, one of the people said.

The backs of the Pro and Pro Max models will feature a new part-aluminum, part-glass design. The top of the back will include a larger rectangular camera bump made of aluminum rather than the traditional 3D glass. The bottom half will remain glass to support wireless charging, two of the people said.

There are a few key details worth noting here:

The entire iPhone 17 lineup is switching to an aluminum frame for unknown reasons
iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max Get Larger 'Rectangular' Aluminum Camera Bumps
Wireless Charging May Be Affected by Ditching All-Glass Back

We haven't heard much about Apple's plans for the iPhone 17 lineup beyond the Air model up to this point. These details are a great starting point as we head into the new year.

Questions Raised by the iPhone 17 Design Changes

While today's report provides some interesting insights, it also raises a few questions.

For example, what's the rationale behind Apple's switch to all-aluminum frames for its iPhones? The move to titanium is recent, and has been positioned as a premium differentiator for the Pro models until now.

How much bigger and more “boxy” are the camera bumps on the Pro models? And why the switch to an aluminum body?

Are there other design changes we don’t know about yet? The report seems to hint that there will be more.

Top comment from a350h

Liked by 10 people

If they go with aluminum, I have a sneaky suspicion it’s a 100% recycled blend. It may not be completely climate neutral, but it feels environmentally conscious (and kudos to them for that).

I’d be so happy if they extended the camera bump the entire length of the phone like the Pixel. No more table wobble.

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In a year where one flagship model, the 17 Air, is significantly downgrading its camera capabilities, it looks like Apple may be leaning more heavily on the camera features in its Pro lineup.

For many of us who love using our iPhone as a camera but are also intrigued by the super-thin 17 Air, deciding on next year's iPhone will be especially tough.

What do you think of these rumored changes? Let us know in the comments.