APPLE is planning major iPhone upgrades – and the new iPad Pro might give us a clue.
Insiders have suggested that Apple is secretly planning a huge design change for the upcoming iPhone 17.
Apple's iPhone is hardly thick: even the large iPhone 15 Pro Max is just 8.25mm deep.
But that seems almost gargantuan compared to Apple's brand new iPad Pro models.
The 11-inch version is 5.3mm thick, while the 13-inch model is even more svelte at 5.1mm.
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Now long-time Apple leaker and journalist Mark Gurman has claimed that a future iPhone model will go on a similar diet.
"Apple has figured out how to make its devices thinner again while still adding major new features," he wrote.
"And I expect this approach to filter down to other devices over the next couple of years.
"I'm told that Apple is now focused on developing a significantly skinnier phone in time for the iPhone 17 line in 2025."
THICK AND THIN
The leaker also added that Apple would also try to make its MacBook Pro and Apple Watch thinner too.
Apple's original iPhone was 11.6mmm thick, and would now feel like an ancient relic in your hand.
The Californian tech giant worked hard to bring that thickness down to just 6.9mm with 2014's iPhone 6.
Now the thickness has crept up a little again as Apple crams more hardware (and better features) into your iPhone.
But this new report argues that Apple is ready to start trimming the iPhone's physical size down again.
It seems unlikely that the screen size will shrink, but the overall thickness of the device should come down.
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This is in line with the new iPad Pro, which sports a giant 13-inch screen just like before – but with a far slimmer waistline.
COMING SOON?
The bad news is that the iPhone 17 is a long way away.
Apple launched its iPhone 15 line-up in September 2022, and we won't get the iPhone 16 until September 2023.
So if you're keen to get an iPhone 17, you'll be waiting until September 2024 at the earliest.
It seems likely that the iPhone 16 will look largely similar to the iPhone 15.
We're expecting many of this year's improvements to come in terms of artificial intelligence features.
Apple made huge announcements about AI at its WWDC event in June, where it revealed a new Apple Intelligence system coming in iOS 18.
The iOS 18 software update is what will likely power the iPhone 16 when it lands.
Upgrades include a smarter Siri, built-in ChatGPT, AI-generated 'Genmoji', and the ability to instantly erase unwanted people from photos that you've snapped.
