Been sleeping a rock all day? Apple just dropped the new iPhone 17 range. It comes with standard, Pro, and Pro Max variants, as per usual. But new for this generation is the iPhone Air, which we’ll talk more about later.
First, the basics. The new standard iPhone 17 looks a lot like its predecessor. It’s the Pro and Pro Max that have drastically changed in terms of design. There’s now a platform-like piece at the top of the rear that houses the three cameras. These range-topping versions also have a heat-forged aluminum ‘unibody’ design—yep, that’s almost like car speak—to improve not just durability but also performance and battery capacity.
The new iPhone 17 range also comes powered with an A19 chip as standard, with the A19 Pro equipped in, well, the Pro and Pro Max trims. It’s what Apple dubs its most powerful processor ever in an iPhone, so performance should be something.
Battery life is also impressive. The best so far in any iPhone, as Apple claims.. The standard promises 30 hours of video playback and goes up to 37 on the Pro versions. The new models can also recharge up to 50% in just 20 minutes. That’s with the 6.3-inch Super Retina XDR display on the 17 and the 6.9-inch screen on the Pro Max.
But perhaps what many—specifically, us at Top Gear Philippines—are most curious about are the cameras. Those are 48MP cameras with some exciting new features for what Apple calls its ‘ultimate pro camera system.’ Based on the videos we’ve seen so far, we won’t contest ‘ultimate.’
For starters, there’s now the longest telephoto lens ever on an iPhone, equivalent to a 200mm focal length, and it comes with a new sensor that’s 56% larger than before. It also has 16x optical zoom range. There’s also a new front camera with a new square sensor and Center Stage function that’s perfect for taking selfies. It also has enhanced stabilization now, too, which makes it more fit for us when we’re we’re riding solo at events or on trips and we have to film our spiels alone. Cool.
And if that’s not cool enough, there’s a new Dual Capture function that records footage from both front and rear cameras simultaneously. We’re not exactly sure how that’ll apply to our style of automotive content creation, but we’re sure there are plenty of use cases out there, even for our peers in the industry.
But really, what’s most interesting about the new cameras are their video capabilities. The iPhone 17 Pro allows shooting with ProRes Raw, making this the first smartphone to support the Apple-developed video codec. What’s more, it has a new Genlock feature, which allows precise synchronization of multiple iPhone 17 Pro cameras to create special effects. These and a lot of other features will all be available through Final Cut Camera 2.0.
Now, before we dive any deeper into areas we automotive journalists don’t completely understand, let’s talk about the Air. This is an entirely new model in the range with similar mechanical capabilities as the standard iPhone 17. The difference, as the name suggests, is that this model is “impossibly thin and light.” It’s 5.6mm thin and weighs just 165g. It looks sleek now in the photos, and we imagine it’ll be even more so when we get to hold it up close.
Okay, finally, for the prices. Each model starts with the 256GB variants, with the most affordable one being the standard 17 priced at P57,990. The range tops out with the 17 Pro Max 2TB version which goes for P146,990. You can check out the list below for a better look.
Apple iPhone 17 Philippine prices
- Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max 2TB – P146,990
- Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max 1TB –P116,990
- Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max 512GB –P101,990
- Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max 256GB – P86,990
- Apple iPhone 17 Pro 1TB –P109,990
- Apple iPhone 17 Pro 512GB –P94,990
- Apple iPhone 17 Pro 256GB – P79,990
- Apple iPhone 17 512GB – P72,990
- Apple iPhone 17 256GB – P57,990
Apple iPhone Air Philippine prices
- Apple iPhone Air 1TB –P102,990
- Apple iPhone Air 512GB –P87,990
- Apple iPhone Air 256GB – P72,990
What do you guys think of the new Apple iPhone 17 and iPhone Air? Are any of these worth upgrading to?
