Should you upgrade to the iPhone 17 range?

Just when you thought that Apple’s flagship handset was starting to look a little too similar year on year, the iPhone 17 Pro came along with a design unlike any other. The new Pro-level iPhone boasts an eye-catching camera plateau that doesn’t just help to highlight the new sensors, it’s also functional as it houses a ton of extra tech under the hood which leads to some massive gains in battery life.

The colours are also far more engaging than before. The Deep Blue pick that we had in for testing is nice and sophisticated, but the Cosomic Orange alternative really packs a punch, leaning into a level of vibrancy that we haven’t really seen from smartphones in the last few years. It’s just a great-looking phone overall, and a reminder of why Apple’s design team had a hand in putting the company on the map to begin with.

As mentioned before, one of the big leaps this time around is in battery life. From our testing, it was possible to go through a fairly intensive day of use and reach anywhere between 15-30% by the end of it, which is a major uptick on the 10-20% that the iPhone 16 Pro usually left us with. There’s now much faster 25W MagSafe charging as well, which can be a huge help for topping up your phone quickly before heading out on the town.

The real star of the show however is the phone’s camera set-up, comprised of a triple 48MP array on the back. Photos look better than ever, but it’s the ability to shoot Dolby Vision HDR at up to 120fps that’ll be the big draw for content creators. Shooting content to camera is also much easier thanks to the new 18MP Center Stage selfie camera which lets you swap between orientations without physically moving the phone.

This is also the phone to go for if you want processing power that can truly outdo the competition. The upgraded A19 Pro chipset is a true beast of engineering, and we were amazed by how cool the phone could be even when undertaking more intensive tasks, especially when gaming. Just take a dive into the various triple-A games you can find in the App Store and you’ll find a near console-like experience on the go.

If the newer iPhone 17 Pro is a little too expensive for your budget then the iPhone 16 Pro can now be found for much less if you shop around. With features including a three-camera system that mirrors the Pro Max, solid battery life and a powerful processor, the iOS experience doesn’t get much better than this (unless you opt for the iPhone 16 Pro Max).

Measuring in at a slightly boosted 6.3 inches compared to the 15 Pro, it’s still much smaller than the 6.9-inch 16 Pro Max but sports similarly rounded edges and slimline bezels that make for a premium viewing experience. Importantly, it still sits nicely in the hand despite its slightly increased dimensions, making it a perfect antidote to the sea of competing big-screen phones.

The iPhone 16 Pro runs on the top-end A18 Pro chipset that, as usual, offers stunning performance with oodles of CPU and GPU power that can beat most other phones on the market, with a healthy gap between the iPhone 16 Pro and competing Android phones – for now, anyway.

That chipset also powers the Apple Intelligence experience, though we wouldn’t describe it as the reason to upgrade.

Elsewhere, the iPhone 16 Pro features a three-lens rear camera system which includes a 48MP main lens, a 48MP ultrawide lens and a 12MP 5x telephoto lens, so images are crisp and detailed in both well-lit and even low-light conditions.

Other notable changes include a new Camera Control button that allows you to switch between photo modes and take photos, although we found the execution to be somewhat flawed due to an odd placement.

Still, if you want a truly powerful smartphone that offers speedy performance, high-end camera quality and impressive durability then the iPhone 16 Pro is a near-perfect choice.

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Even though they’ve been great options in the past, entry-level iPhones such as the iPhone 16 and the iPhone 15 have usually come with a caveat or two at the point of purchase. This has usually included being locked to a fairly outdated 60Hz display and a set of cameras that leave you wanting a little bit more, but such compromises are a thing of the past now that the iPhone 17 has hit the scene.

With the amount of features onboard and the fact that its £799/$799 asking price is much cheaper than that of the iPhone 17 Pro and the iPhone Air, it’s easy to make the case that the iPhone 17 is the best iPhone for most people. There are quite a few upgrades to note but the biggest one of all is easily the inclusion of Apple’s 120Hz ProMotion display.

This is the first time that an entry-level iPhone has had a 120Hz refresh rate but the difference is like night and day. Everything just looks so much smoother as you zip between apps, and it means that the iPhone 17 doesn’t feel dated right out of the gate. The screen itself is also slightly larger at 6.3-inches so there’s more room for streaming apps to spread out, providing more detail than ever.

On the camera front, there are two key upgrades to speak of. The 12MP ultrawide sensor of old has been replaced with a far more competitive 48MP variant, which can now pack tons of detail in each jaw-dropping shot. Flip the phone over and you get the new 18MP Center Stage front camera which lets you shoot landscape selfies even when the phone is held upright. It’s a small tweak but a game-changer for everyday use.

Smaller but no less substantial upgrades include a boost to the phone’s charging speeds as it can now be topped up at 40W over a wired connection and 25W wirelessly via MagSafe. The iPhone 17 also comes with 256GB by default, and that’s without an increase to the base price so you’re effectively getting double the storage of previous models but for free. With all this in mind, the iPhone 17 isn’t just a great Apple device, it’s also one of the best phones around.

It makes sense that after testing the waters with its ‘Mini’ and ‘Plus’ phones that Apple would eventually try its hand at something resting in the middle – a smartphone with a slightly larger display than the base model iPhone but with a slim chassis that makes it very easy to carry around. Well, that’s exactly what we got in the iPhone Air, and while it’s not quite the all-rounder that the iPhone 17 is, there are some Apple fans who are sure to prefer it.

At just 5.64mm thick and weighing only 165g, there’s no denying it – the iPhone Air is the most slick phone that Apple has ever put out. It almost makes the other iPhones seem chunky by comparison, and the overall design is far more striking than the fairly mundane Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge. Of course, if you are the type of person to use a case with their phone then that profile is instantly diminished, so it’s a phone best used bare in order to get the full effect.

Even though you’d expect battery life to be seriously diminished as a result of the form factor, Apple has done some impressive engineering here as the iPhone Air can still provide the same type of all-day use that you’d expect from the entry-level iPhone models. There’s 20W MagSafe charging on board too just in case the phone needs a quick top-up and you have a wireless powerbank to hand.

Display-wise you’re getting a gorgeous 6.5-inch panel that’s still compact enough to be used comfortably one-handed. There’s 120Hz ProMotion support for a smooth scrolling experience and with a maximum brightness of 3000 nits, you won’t have any problems using this phone in the great outdoors.

As you may have already spotted, there’s only one camera on the back of the iPhone Air as there’s no ultrawide sensor whatsoever, but what you do get is a very capable 48MP wide sensor which can put out some colourful shots with plenty of detail. The phone also benefits from the same Center Stage front-facing camera found on the iPhone 17 range which lets you shoot vertical and horizontal shots regardless of which orientation you’re in.

You might be looking for an iPhone that can deliver all the very best that Apple has to offer, along with the biggest screen you can fit your hands around as well. No problem: that’s what the iPhone 16 Pro Max is for.

It’s bigger than ever, measuring in at an increased 6.9 inches compared to the 6.7 inches of previous models of Pro Max, but much of that is down to impressively thin bezels, meaning its footprint isn’t much larger than before.

Sheer size aside, the 120Hz OLED screen delivers a truly immersive experience when watching films and playing games in a way that smaller-screened devices simply can’t compete with. It also allows Apple to fit a larger battery within, meaning battery life is much better than the iPhone 16 Pro, easily lasting well into the second day of use much of the time.

In all other ways, it’s identical to the iPhone 16 Pro, with the same A18 Pro chipset with support for Apple Intelligence, a new Camera Control button and the same combination of a 48MP main, 48MP ultrawide and 12MP 5x telephoto cameras. It’s just a bigger, more expensive variant.

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The iPhone 17 Pro might be the best iPhone but, for many people, the Pro model simply isn’t necessary. After all, the iPhone 16 is just as capable as the Pro and Pro Max in many areas and comes at a much lower price.

The base model received a significant upgrade with the iPhone 16, not only featuring the Action Button previously exclusive to the Pro and Pro Max models but also the new Camera Control button. And, not to miss out on the AI hype, the regular model also boasts support for Apple Intelligence in regions where it’s available.

What’s more, the iPhone 16 does away with the odd chipset split that left the regular iPhones on year-old chipsets, sporting the A18 chipset for a two-generation jump. That also means that the regular iPhone can play AAA mobile games like Resident Evil Village without issue.

The phone also packs an all-day battery and a bright display, though the 16 Pro has kept its exclusive hold on the 120Hz refresh rate and telephoto camera.

If you want the smoothest screen and most advanced camera on an iPhone, it’s worth spending extra on the iPhone 16 Pro or Pro Max. However, if you’re happy with these sacrifices, the iPhone 16 remains a fantastic smartphone for most people.

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We’ll admit, the iPhone 16e seemed like a strange premise when it was first announced. Priced at £599/$599, the phone is no longer in the more budget end of the market in the way that the iPhone SE was, but when you compare the overall usability of the 16e against Apple’s previous entry-level phone, there’s a lot more here to get excited about.

The biggest update is undoubtedly the move away from the Touch ID, boxy design of old and an embracing of the near end to end display that’s become associated with modern iPhones. Now with a 6.1-inch display, the iPhone 16e is far better suited for gaming and streaming content than the iPhone SE’s 4.7-inch panel ever was.

There’s also the leap to include the super fast A18 Bionic chip which gives the iPhone 16e performance parity with the iPhone 16 and the iPhone 16 Plus. More than that, it provides the iPhone 16e with the power needed to run Apple Intelligence.

Admittedly, at the time of writing, Apple Intelligence isn’t quite the game changing feature that Apple no doubt intended it to be, but we do anticipate it being expanded quite a bit in the years to come, and at the very least the iPhone 16e will be privy to those updates when they appear. In the meantime though, you do get some handy features in the form of suggestions on how to rewrite notes and text messages, as well as notification summaries.

Smaller additions come in the form of a USB-C charging port and having the Action Button just above the volume controls. This extra button gives you quick access to an app or feature of your choosing, so you can quickly toggle things like the flashlight or specific shortcuts, or even just open the camera app.

What is unfortunate is all the things missing from the 16e. There’s no MagSafe compatibility (although there is wireless charging), no Dynamic Island and no ultra-wide camera, all of which you can get on the iPhone 16 which is just an extra £200/$200. Still, if all you need is a great-performing iPhone that’ll last for ages, covers the basics well and costs a little less than usual, then the iPhone 16e is just the ticket.

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