Apple’s flagship iPhone lineup is coming this fall, and a new report claims that one of the models, the iPhone 17 Pro Max, has a thicker body than the iPhone 16 Pro Max it will replace. Which could mean room for a larger battery, it’s claimed — something that’s never been suggested before and is of course very good news.
The leak comes from reliable source Ice Universe. In a post on X, they claim that the upcoming Pro Max will be 8.725mm thick, instead of the 8.25mm thickness of the iPhone 16 Pro Max. That’s slightly more than 0.5mm. I know, small, right? Except that it could be thin enough to be unnoticeable in the hand, but thick enough to accommodate a larger cell inside. Which could be a big improvement.
The leak indicates that the dimensions of the iPhone 17 Pro Max are otherwise identical to the current Pro Max — which is unsurprising, given that the current look only debuted a few months ago and Apple rarely changes the design significantly on an annual basis.
However, it is possible that the camera panel will change, if other reports are to be believed, and that the back of the phone will be partially aluminum instead of being almost entirely glass as it is now. Which could be a more significant design change.
In another post on Weibo, Ice Universe states: “The iPhone 17 Pro Max feels very sturdy, and the increased thickness of the body means the battery must have increased.”
This is speculation for now, as there are other reasons why Apple could change a dimension of the current iPhone, but it is certainly optimistic.
Keep in mind that the iPhone 16 Pro Max has excellent battery life, and my daily usage doesn’t allow me to end my day with less than 30% extra battery in the tank.
But no one ever said, “My phone is great, but the battery lasts too long,” right?
Given that the same leaker also suggested that the supposedly ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air would measure no more than 5.5mm from front to back but would match the dimensions of the Pro Max, we can guess that the Air won’t reach the battery life of the Pro Max, right?