Rumors suggest the iPhone Plus model is going away permanently, but the iPhone 17 Slim specs are escaping their grasp as we speak. The smartphone’s name has not been confirmed, but the more details we hear about the potential iPhone Slim, the more curious we get about the device. Just as the temporary name suggests, Apple’s Slim iPhone strategy will involve a thinner, sleeker smartphone that is still packed with most of its features but with a greater emphasis on design. Here’s everything we know so far.
Image: Apple’s Guided Tour of iPhone 15 & iPhone 15 Pro
Rumored iPhone 17 Slim Specs Take on a New Shape
All the details we know about the iPhone 17 Slim come largely from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, an expert in the field who’s known to get things right. According to him, the iPhone Plus only contributes to around 5-10 percent of the company’s smartphone shipments, which doesn’t give them sufficient reason to keep working on the devices that its customer base does not want. This has potentially led them to graduate away from the Plus line of devices.
The Apple Vision Pro headsets haven’t been selling too well either but while they aren’t dropping that particular product entirely, there are rumors of a cheaper version of devices. In this case, contrary to expectations, the iPhone 17 Slim may not be cheaper. Before we get into that aspect of the device, let’s understand the iPhone 17 Slim features.
The main selling point of the devices is that they’re going to be thin. Beyond that, the device should feature a 6.6-inch screen with a 1260×2740 resolution OLED display that will make it slightly smaller than the current iPhone 15 Plus. A titanium frame can be expected although it may not be as sturdy as the current Pro devices. The Information suggests the device will have an aluminum chassis, but analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes a titanium frame will make an appearance, albeit with a lower percentage of titanium than the current iPhones.
Internal Upgrades on the iPhone 17 Slim
With Apple’s first 5G chip to make a debut, the iPhone 17 Slim specs also mention an A19 SoC similar to that on the iPhone 17 Pro but not as advanced. Apple Intelligence should most likely feature in all of the company’s products going forward, and the iPhone 17 Slim will be no different, but again, we cannot guarantee it’ll be capable of everything that the Pro model features.
These details add to the confusion around the device as many expect the iPhone 17 Slim will be the most premium model, making it the most expensive of the bunch. Something just isn’t adding up. Maybe there’s a switch to a solid-state battery or some other internal specs that we haven’t picked up on yet.
iPhone 17 Slim Camera Details
Apple enthusiasts who believe in the supremacy of the iPhone camera might be disappointed to find the device with only one rear camera, but we’re certain the company won’t entirely compromise on its quality. The device is expected to have a single wide-angle rear lens after doing away with the secondary ultra-wide lens, a detail that makes sense considering the device’s ambitions to cut down on size.
However, according to MacRumors, the camera setup might have multiple rear cameras that will be relocated to the “top center” of the device. This shift feels almost too jarring on an iPhone. Change is good though, and we’re interested to see if the company does experiment with this form factor.
It should be easier to fit a single camera in there and we’re always willing to accept a single lens that does its job well rather than the unnecessary 2MP camera that smartphone makers throw in there just to say the camera setup is elaborate. Quality over quantity, we always say. The iPhone 17 Slim may also feature a 24MP front camera with a six-element lens. For comparison, the iPhone 15 has a 12MP front camera with five plastic lens elements.
The iPhone Slim Features Aren’t Convincing Enough Yet
All this talk of the iPhone 17 is making us forget that the iPhone 16 hasn’t been released yet. We might be asking for too many details too soon in Apple’s slim iPhone strategy considering we’re only just getting set for an iPhone 16 release this September. The iPhone 17 Slim specs will become clearer closer to September 2025, which is when the phone should be released. Rumors about a potential Apple flip phone also keep circulating on and off, but it’s unlikely that we’ll see any concrete evidence of it this year.
Conceptually, the iPhone 17 Slim specs sound okay, but if the company is planning to price it higher than the iPhone Pro Max, there has to be a greater appeal to it other than just a skinnier device. If the computing power, memory, and battery life remain unchanged, at least the camera module and Apple Intelligence features will have to be out of this world to push more buyers to open up their wallets.
The shaky performance of the Vision Pro headset is enough to indicate that a classy design isn’t everything, and even those loyal to the brand identity have to draw the line somewhere when it comes to expensive purchases. Despite our conviction, however, Apple’s minimalistic aesthetic could unexpectedly turn things around and find a consumer base that is satisfied with the thin form and upgraded design being the only major change.
The advertising for the company’s thinnest iPad Pro model ever went dramatically wrong, so when they do finally release the iPhone 17 Slim, their marketing strategy is going to be just as closely watched as the device itself.