With an ultra-thin design that measures just 5.6mm at its thinnest point, Apple's new iPhone Air tops the iPhone 6 as the thinnest iPhone ever released.
With a 6.9mm frame, the iPhone 6 was prone to bending, although the most egregious examples were often seen in YouTube videos that used excessive force.
The big question: Will the iPhone Air bend?
In a video that Apple provided to Tom's Guide, Apple subjected the iPhone Air to a machine that simulated "130 pounds of pressure" on the middle of the device. The publication said the video shows the device "springs back remarkably well and doesn't show any lasting curve from the experience." You can watch it for yourself in their report.
It appears the iPhone Air should be bend-proof in most if not all real-world scenarios, but we still have to wait for independent, third-party tests.
It does seem pretty safe to say that the iPhone Air will not bend in the same way the iPhone 6 did, and a big reason for that is the device has a titanium frame, whereas the iPhone 6 was made with aluminum. Apple said the iPhone Air "exceeds" its "stringent bend strength requirements," and touted it as the most durable iPhone ever.
The report also includes a few other durability test videos from Apple, including one that tests the Ceramic Shield 2 front cover on iPhone 17 models, which is promised to offer 3× better scratch resistance compared to the previous generation. Another video subjects the iPhone 17 Pro to simulated drop tests. Unsurprisingly, given these videos are from Apple, the results are favorable. Real-world tests will confirm things soon.
The first reviews of the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max have now been published by selected media outlets and YouTube channels, offering a closer look at the device ahead of Friday's launch.
The iPhone 17 Pro models feature one of the biggest design changes to the device in years, moving to an aluminum unibody frame and a full-width rear camera plateau. New color options include Silver, Deep Blue, and Cosmic Orange.
A completely new front-facing camera features an 18-megapixel square sensor, facilitating automatic rotation and Center Stage. There is also a 48-megapixel telephoto camera for the first time, enabling 4x and 8x optical zoom.
The A19 Pro chip enables better performance with Neural Accelerators. A vapor chamber cooling system is built-in for even better heat dissipation.
Other new features include noticeably longer battery life, an improved anti-reflective coating, Ceramic Shield 2, a brighter display, Genlock support, and more.
The two key advantages the Pro models have over the ultra-thin iPhone Air include roughly 20% to 40% longer battery life, and a Telephoto rear camera with 4x and 8x optical zoom. The devices also have an Ultra Wide camera, if you use it.
The iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max can be pre-ordered now. Below, we have rounded up some of the reviews.
This results in a longer battery life for the iPhone 17 Pro according to our battery drain test, reaching a time of 15 hours and 32 minutes. That's a marked improvement over the iPhone 16 Pro’s average run of 14 hours and 7 minutes.
I'm also seeing solid all-day battery life with my real world use. Most of my time on the phone has been spent surfing the web, taking tons of photos with all its cameras, watching videos on YouTube, and getting in a few sessions with Diablo Immortal and Age of Origins throughout my day. I've made a point to not top off its battery during the day, only to find it at about 20% battery life by the end of the night.
CNET took a closer look at the new Telephoto camera:
I thought I'd notice the difference between 4x and 5x, but unless I had the phones side-by-side, I was unaware. The 17 Pro Max's telephoto images are brighter and have better details and resolution than ones from the 16 Pro, which is likely the result of the larger sensor.
And similar to the wizardry Apple uses to make 2x photos look good, the telephoto camera is able to achieve 8x images. Telephoto images at 4x taken under good lighting (like a nice sunny day) can stand toe-to-toe with images from the main camera. But when I took telephoto images in less than ideal lighting, the 4x images held up OK, whereas the 8x images had more noise and softness.
I played one of the most demanding games on the iPhone right now—Assassin's Creed Mirage—and performance was significantly smoother than when I played it on the iPhone 16 Pro last year. The iPhone 17 Pro still got hot, but the heat was spread out over the entire back of the phone, so it didn't feel as uncomfortable to hold while gaming (unlike the iPhone 17 and Air). I maxed out the graphical settings, and the frames per second were noticeably more stable, and I rarely saw stutters at all.
Engadget said the A19 Pro's Neural Accelerators make a meaningful difference to AI tasks:
I do want to commend Apple for the improved performance in Image Playground and Genmoji. It used to take ages for AI-generated pictures or emoji to appear (especially those based on a picture of someone in my photo album), but on the iPhone 17 Pro I was able to get several options in succession before things slowed down. Pictures where I opted to use ChatGPT’s more realistic styles took a lot longer, but by and large I saw a marked improvement in speed here. Those neural accelerators in the A19 Pro’s six-core GPU are certainly pulling their weight.
The AirPods Pro 3 use an Acoustic Seal Test to check the fit of ear tips, according to a new Apple support document. Apple says that the Acoustic Seal Test will ensure that you're using the proper ear tip size for the best sound quality and noise cancellation.
The AirPods Pro 1 and the AirPods Pro 2 have an Ear Tip Fit Test, but Apple updated the process for the AirPods Pro 3. Apple suggests starting with the medium size ear tip. If you can't achieve a good seal, switch to the larger tip. If the ear tip feels too large, switch to a smaller tip.
Apple designed new foam-infused silicone ear tips for the AirPods Pro 3, which it says are softer and less stiff than the AirPods Pro 2 ear tips. AirPods Pro 3 ear tips come in five sizes, including XXS, XS, S, M, and L. XXS is new for this generation.
For heart rate sensing, the AirPods Pro 3 need skin contact. Apple warns that the best ear tip size for heart rate sensor accuracy could differ from the best size for acoustic seal. The AirPods Pro 3 should be positioned toward your face at a 45-degree angle, with the heart rate sensor resting against the ear.
If heart rate recordings seem inconsistent, Apple recommends trying a different ear tip size.
The Acoustic Seal Test can be initiated by connecting the AirPods Pro 3 to an iPhone with iOS 26 or an iPad with iPadOS 26, going to the AirPods Settings, and selecting the Acoustic Seal Test option.
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