Who should buy the iPhone 17 Pro?

While the standard iPhone 17 has been upgraded to offer more value, Apple's Pro line still ensures many improvements in both technology and appearance.

International news sites have recently shared reviews of the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max. These are two high-end devices with screen sizes of 6.3 and 6.9 inches, respectively.

Compared to previous generations, the iPhone 17 Pro's design has many new features, most notably the change in frame material from titanium to aluminum. Apple also upgraded the camera, the A19 Pro processor, and the vapor chamber cooling system for better heat dissipation.

Outstanding design

Writing in GQ magazine, editor Robert Leedham emphasized that the appeal of the iPhone 17 Pro is no less than that of other models, such as the standard iPhone 17 or the iPhone Air.

"This is a quiet but impressive upgrade to the best smartphone currently available," Leedsham said.

Leedham expressed his admiration for the cosmic orange color. Combining the orange hues of Hermès and Carhartt, the iPhone 17 Pro stands out at first glance, and might even sway those considering buying a darker iPhone to use with a protective case.

The cosmic orange color on the iPhone 17 Pro Max. Photo: The Verge .

Besides the color, people can easily recognize the iPhone 17 Pro by its aluminum and glass back, with a long camera module at the top. Apple has equipped it with Ceramic Shield 2 coating, increasing scratch and shatter resistance.

Sharing the same opinion, author John Velasco from Tom's Guide really likes the new iPhone 17 Pro design, including its two-tone look and striking orange color. When viewed from an angle, the aluminum frame has a deep orange color, creating a contrasting effect with the lighter orange of the glass surface.

Regarding the switch from titanium to aluminum frames, Velasco stated that this does not affect the product's structure.

The iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max come in a deep blue color, but no longer in black. Photo: The Verge .

"The device still feels solid, with Ceramic Shield 2 on both the front and back," the author added.

Compared to previous generations, Leedham considers the iPhone 17 Pro's appearance to be cruder and more utilitarian. The glass frame housing the MagSafe magnets looks out of place, but upon closer inspection, it fits the Liquid Glass design language.

The iPhone 17 Pro's camera module protrudes from the rest of the frame, yet still looks symmetrical. Other minor changes include a slightly curved frame instead of a completely flat one, making the device more comfortable to hold.

“Although the color options this year have been reduced to three, I think the Cosmic Orange stands out the most. I took the device out and people really took notice of it,” John Velasco from Tom's Guide emphasized. The iPhone 17 Pro is also thicker than its predecessor, allowing Apple to equip it with a larger battery capacity.

Are vapor chamber cooling systems effective?

Speaking of hardware, the GQ editor highlighted the vapor chamber cooling system on the iPhone 17 Pro, which helps to maximize the power of the A19 Pro chip.

"While not overly enthusiastic about this detail, you can still feel the improvement of the iPhone 17 Pro, at least in benchmark tests."

Compared to the iPhone Air (also with the A19 Pro chip and 12 GB of RAM), the ray-tracing graphics processing is maintained with stable frame rates, and heat dissipation is better around the device. This results in a more comfortable grip when playing games like Hideo Kojima's Death Stranding or Resident Evil 4 Remake ,” Leedham said.

The screen of the iPhone 17 Pro. Photo: Tom's Guide .

Writing on The Verge , authors Todd Haselton and Allison Johnson also praised the cooling system. After 45 minutes of playing War Thunder , the phone warmed up, but not directly over the processor chip, which can be annoying for the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Despite its benefits for performance and heat dissipation, the authors note that the cooling system contributes to the iPhone 17 Pro Max being slightly heavier (233 g). This is higher than the titanium-framed iPhone 16 Pro Max (227 g), but still lighter than the stainless steel-framed iPhone 14 Pro Max (240 g).

According to Tom's Guide , the iPhone 17 Pro's benchmark scores on Geekbench 6 were 3,834 (single-core) and 9,988 (multi-core), surpassing the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 of the Galaxy S25 Ultra (3,031/9,829 points) and significantly higher than the iPhone 16 Pro (3,400/8,341 points).

With its GPU, the iPhone 17 Pro averaged 158.37 fps in the 3DMark WildLife Unlimited test, significantly higher than the iPhone 16 Pro (109.33 fps), although still slightly lower than the Galaxy S25 Ultra (161.66 fps).

According to The Verge , the iPhone 17 Pro Max's battery lasts all day. Without watching videos , the device ran from 7:23 PM until midnight and still had 16% battery remaining. Throughout the day, the researchers kept the screen on for approximately 5 hours and 15 minutes.

The back of the iPhone 17 Pro Max. Photo: The Verge .

After syncing and updating, the battery life of the iPhone 17 Pro Max gradually improved. On the second day, the device had 50% battery remaining after using it from 7:32 AM to 8:43 PM, with the screen on for 5 hours and 11 minutes. The main tasks included working on Slack, texting, browsing the web, and taking photos.

“For comparison, I typically charge my iPhone 16 Pro Max for around 20 hours, while the iPhone 17 Pro Max still has about 50% battery left. This seems like a significant improvement. Of course, it’s still too early to make an accurate assessment, and actual battery life depends on user needs,” the authors wrote.

In addition to battery capacity, Apple has also improved charging capabilities on the iPhone 17 Pro with 40W wired charging, charging 50% of the battery in 20 minutes. Wireless charging is also slightly faster, reaching 50% in 30 minutes when using a suitable 30W wireless charger.

The camera still looks professional enough.

This year, the cameras on the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max are identical, featuring a 48MP sensor for the standard, ultrawide, and telephoto lenses, supporting up to 4x optical zoom (at native resolution) or 8x (with the sensor cropped to 12MP).

Compared to rivals like the Pixel 9 Pro or Galaxy S25 Ultra with 100x digital zoom, GQ author Robert Leedham emphasizes that this is not a major issue.

"In my experience, you need to hold the camera very steady for these zoom features to work. Even then, there are still many AI processes involved in making the photo usable."

"With 8x optical zoom, you'll have more freedom to get close to the subject for portraits and won't need to exert as much effort when shooting landscapes. However, you still need to minimize camera shake to ensure sharp, detailed images," Leedham noted.

The camera cluster of the iPhone 17 Pro Max. Photo: The Verge .

According to The Verge , the 48MP sensor also improves the quality of digital zoom. The 2x sensor crop mode with the main camera is enhanced, resulting in more prominent detail. Of course, the basic image quality is still suitable for sharing on social media.

Sharing the same view, John Velasco from Tom's Guide commented that the iPhone 17 Pro Max's main camera delivers good quality, especially when taking photos in daylight.

“Compared to the Pixel 10 Pro XL, I prefer the iPhone 17 Pro's stronger contrast and richer colors. Both phones have pretty good detail capture, but the iPhone 17 Pro captures finer details more clearly and sharply,” the writer added.

The iPhone 17 Pro's 120-degree ultra-wide-angle camera produces brighter images and offers better exposure in low-light environments compared to the Pixel 10 Pro XL (123-degree wide-angle).

With its telephoto sensor, the 4x zoom photos taken on the iPhone 17 Pro are better than those taken on the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which relies on sensor cropping to achieve 4x zoom.

When switching to 8x zoom, the iPhone 17 Pro uses a sensor crop, reducing the image resolution to 12 MP. With digital zoom, the iPhone 17 Pro supports up to 40x, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max supports 25x.

Some photos taken with the rear camera of the iPhone 17 Pro. Photo: The Verge .

Apple also focused on video recording capabilities on the iPhone 17 Pro, although it's mostly geared towards professional users. Among these features is the ProRes RAW format, which supports recording video at native settings for post-production.

For the average user, the most notable improvement of the iPhone 17 Pro camera comes from the 18MP front-facing sensor, a square design for shooting both portrait and landscape modes without rotating the phone. The Center Stage feature even automatically adjusts the zoom level to capture every subject in the photo.

Not for everyone

In conclusion, the two authors from The Verge "didn't forget" Apple's meager AI feature set compared to other devices.

Haselton and Johnson argue that these should have been standout features on the iPhone, but were relegated to a secondary role. The authors believe the improvements in the iPhone 17 Pro are valuable, but may not be necessary for most average users.

iPhone 17 Pro Max (left) and iPhone Air. Photo: The Verge .

"The iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max are the best iPhones if you're looking for the longest battery life, the best camera, and the most powerful performance in the 2025 iPhone lineup."

These are also top choices if you want orange. However, most people should consider the more affordable iPhone 17, which has the same screen technology and power to meet most needs,” the authors noted.

Meanwhile, Robert Leedham from GQ emphasized that the improvements on the iPhone 17 Pro are all significant, and users will feel it's worthwhile to upgrade.

"This is a truly powerful smartphone, ready for long-term use, and represents Apple's most complete vision for the iPhone Pro line," Leedsham concluded.

Source: https://znews.vn/iphone-17-pro-danh-cho-ai-post1586417.html