iPhone 17 potential launch date revealed

With Samsung’s summer Galaxy Unpacked event behind us, the next major smartphone launches are Google’s Pixel 10 series and Apple’s iPhone 17 series. The Pixel 10 series is widely rumored to be announced at a Made by Google event on August 20. The iPhone 17 series, however, has several possible dates.

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple might launch the iPhone 17 series during the week of September 8. Since Apple usually announces its iPhones in the first half of September after Labor Day (which falls on September 1 this year), this makes sense. Gurman notes that Apple rarely holds announcements on Fridays, ruling out September 12, and avoids events on September 11. This leaves Monday, September 8, Tuesday, September 9, and Wednesday, September 10, as the most likely candidates.

Last year, the iPhone 16 series was announced on Monday, September 9. Still, in previous years, Apple has announced iPhones on Tuesdays as well. Gurman believes that Apple will probably hold its event on either Tuesday, September 9, or Wednesday, September 10. So if you’re an Apple fan eagerly anticipating the iPhone 17 series, you should circle those days on your calendar in September. While we’re in the heat of summer now, September will pop up before you know it.

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This year’s iPhone launch will have a couple shakeups

Namely, the iPhone 17 Air and a new camera design for the iPhone 17 Pro

Apple Hub / Pocket-lint

When the iPhone 16 series was announced last year, the phones looked almost identical to their predecessors, aside from the addition of the Camera Control Button and the vertical cameras on the iPhone 16. Based on leaks that have surfaced over the past six months, it seems Apple is finally making some big changes this year.

The iPhone 17 Air is widely rumored to be the most significant update to the lineup this year, replacing the Plus model iPhone. It is expected to be Apple’s answer to the trend of slim smartphones (like the Galaxy S25 Edge) and to be the thinnest iPhone yet. Leaks suggest it will have around a 6.7-inch display and measure 5.5mm thick (via MacRumors). To put that into perspective, the Galaxy S25 Edge is 5.8mm at its thinnest point (not including the rear cameras). The iPhone 17 Air is also believed to have only a single rear camera, similar to the iPhone 16e.

Additionally, the iPhone 17 Pro is expected to attract a lot of attention if the leaks are accurate. For months, leaked renders have shown the iPhone 17 Pro with a new horizontal camera bar on the back (as seen in the image above). The camera design on the Pro models has mostly stayed the same since the iPhone 11 Pro launched in 2019, only growing larger over time. If the iPhone 17 Pro adopts a rectangular camera bar design, it will be one of the biggest changes to the Pro models in half a decade.

Leaks suggest that the base iPhone 17 will look similar to the iPhone 16 but with some improvements. Specifically, it’s rumored to feature a performance boost with the A19 chipset and potentially include ProMotion, Apple’s adaptive refresh rate technology.

I’m much more excited about the iPhone 17 series than I was for the iPhone 16 lineup, mainly because of all these rumors about upcoming changes. Last year’s iPhone launch felt dull, and I’m looking forward to some exciting updates this year to keep things interesting. Mark Gurman has a strong track record for Apple news, so his prediction of a September 9 or 10 launch for the iPhone 17 seems likely, especially when considering the timing of Apple’s past events in September.

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