Other Why assume iPhone 17's are going to be 'the one' to upgrade to after disappointment?

[thadoggfather]

What in particular is going to be so compelling about iPhone 17 iterations? If you just said possibility of 120hz on regular models, and a base storage bump somewhere, fine that's all fine and dandy if either of those were a deal breaker. but to most people and the average user, I don't think they'll be 'holding out' for either thing or even care about that or even aware of what 120hz is, and they might know the storage amount but just shrug it off or bump up their total price to anticipate their storage usage needs and begrudgingly shrug that off too and mosey on like every other year.

..obviously this is a purely speculative thread since the iPhone 16 hasnt' officially launched yet just been announced Monday but. What would you even imagine it could be? And I'm not suggesting there isn't meat on the bone to innovate, that smartphones have peaked and now they can't do anything else because they are a mature product at their base functions... not at all. Just considering this confined within the timeline of iPhone releases from 2017 onwards, not looking to what competition is doing or dabbled in.

If I re-cap this new X era of phones:

2017 X: new style, 5.8 size, first time dual camera sensor in a compact non-Plus form, faceID + wireless charging (and 8 variants in 2017)
2018 XR / XS: new style, 6.1 size, colors, literally an S-cycle in moniker and design for the 'pro tier' X.
2019 iPhone 11 Pro: triple camera intro
2020 iPhone 12 / Pro: new boxy style
2021 iPhone 13 Pro: ProMotion / notch on a diet
2022: iPhone 14 Pro: dynamic island
2023 iPhone 15 Pro: titanium / USB-C / action button
2024 iPhone 16 / Pro: AI / S-cycle without moniker / size bump on pro's. Camera button across the board..
With 16 new camera module design / colors
2025?

2025 seems like the 'Ultra air' or whatever is going to be priced to the moon beyond $1199 base Pro Max. And probably with performance or camera quantity stipulations. Else the regular will be more colors (surely the pill camera cutout won't be a one-cycle thing)? And Pro and Pro Max an SS-cycle? with more ram and deeper AI?
An SE4 that will be an iPhone 14 body at a 'revolutionary' price for SE/mini/older gen model users who can't justify $829 entry point?


I'm also not arguing that you have to be wow'd by iPhone 16 / Pro upgrades, even if iPhone 17 proves to be a bit boring too. You can hold both opinions - idc. Just speculating on what in particular will make 2025 'the one'

 

[BB8]

unless 16 sales are bad I'm not holding out that the 17 will be much different, apple is meticulously drip feeding us features

 

[sunapple]

You could just hold out another generation simply to have a bigger leap in the regular small improvements that have been introduced steadily every year so far. Rumours are summarised here.

Personally I think the Apple 5G modem that could one day enable a single chip for all wireless connectivity enables the next big design change. This is not expected for iPhone 17 however.

 

[russell_314]

What in particular is going to be so compelling about iPhone 17 iterations? If you just said possibility of 120hz on regular models, and a base storage bump somewhere, fine that's all fine and dandy if either of those were a deal breaker. but to most people and the average user, I don't think they'll be 'holding out' for either thing or even care about that or even aware of what 120hz is, and they might know the storage amount but just shrug it off or bump up their total price to anticipate their storage usage needs and begrudgingly shrug that off too and mosey on like every other year.

This is what most people don’t realize in the forms. The average iPhone owner doesn’t follow MacRumors or create forum accounts to talk about their phone. That’s just not a thing.

As to upgrades, they don’t upgrade for one big thing. They upgrade when their contract is up. Yes, I know contracts aren’t a thing but phone companies have found a workaround.

All the tech nerds get upset when there’s not some great innovation or change every year in the iPhone. It’s like they haven’t noticed since iPhone came out, each year is a minor upgrade. The only exception to that might be the iPhone X. This is why you don’t upgrade every year but maybe every three years so there’s going to be a bigger difference. Think of it like cars where the 2025 Ford Mustang is only going to be a slight improvement over the 2024. You wouldn’t buy a new Ford Mustang every year unless you’re just stupid rich and have nothing better to do with your money.

Of course, all this is just my opinion so feel free to disagree or even get angry because it helps your soul 😂

 

[thadoggfather]

unless 16 sales are bad I'm not holding out that the 17 will be much different, apple is meticulously drip feeding us features

Even if they are slightly worse sales, or terrible comparatively.. if Apple forecasted that in particular upfront or cite macroeconomic reasons for poor sales, will they even 'get it' to step it up next go round?

Would there even be time to reverse course since they have schedules and do hit a date where there is a point of no return for the design features and specs locked in and en route to being mass produced (final engineering sign off, ostensibly, and business approvals, etc.)

--

I think they axed mini line up when iPhone 12 mini sales were bad, but iPhone 13 mini was already pretty much locked in for example.

 

[now i see it]

iPhone 24 will be the one to get

 

[thadoggfather]

You could just hold out another generation simply to have a bigger leap in the regular small improvements that have been introduced steadily every year so far. Rumours are summarised here.

Personally I think the Apple 5G modem that could one day enable a single chip for all wireless connectivity enables the next big design change. This is not expected for iPhone 17 however.

This part is true. Held onto 14Pm instead when 15 came out and I didn't care about action button, even now I don't to be honest, but especially because I knew that the following year would have it possibly across the board with all models baked in. Same with USB-C.

But different color ways being limited to one generation, people who care about that have to choose based on what is now available not what could be or could also be taken away.

Same goes with priorities for the generation: is it the camera? is it substantial battery? is it a performance year? is it a new design? it can be multiple things, but sometimes they have heavier phones for more tech and battery like seems the case with 16 pro and 16 pro max vs 15 pro and 15 pro max.

If I wanted the absolute lightest pro, that's mostly the same as now's offerings, maybe I should have gotten a 15 pro of some kind and just rocked it for the past year and not paid anything this go round to wait for the next 'big one'

or if I hate titanium and think stainless steel pros look and feel more premium, maybe I should have gotten a 14 pro at launch and skipped 15 and even 16 and for the foreseeable future. as an example.
-

I think Ultra Air will scratch the itch for wanting something different, but realizing its all the same after a little while of use.

and the 2025 regulars and Pro's will be an absolute snooze fest. Will make people wish they upgraded this year vs waiting another.

Would love to revisit this thread in a year and see if predictions were anywhere close.

 

[Taco1933]

It's always "the next one." Until it rolls around and only has one major addition. Then it's the next one after that. Until the next big X-style redesign, I don't see why it would change. But I'll still upgrade in 2 years to get those 2 new big additions.

 

[baummer]

There will always be people disappointed in whatever iPhone is announced and look to the next one to meet their expectations. You see it here every year.

 

[thadoggfather]

There will always be people disappointed in whatever iPhone is announced and look to the next one to meet their expectations. You see it here every year.

of course understood. I would expect no less

..But that's a constant not a variable, not gonna change even observing that and even observing people complaining it's garbage and then rushing out to buy it. We can and should always expect that especially for a company whose base is impossibly humongous and with glossed and glittered up rampant consumerism.

I'm most curious about what it is they reasonably think will make 2025 the one. Just saying it is without any clue what it could be, based on no rumors brewing, fine. But I think it's not gonna be crazy compelling. And even if the Ultra Air shakes some things up a little, its price will be prohibitive to be a first gen beta tester of the super slim and light form.

The foldable isn't even on the rumored timeline of 2025. I think that's a late 2026 possibly even 2027 targeted endeavor (again, based on shady vague rumors currently)

 

[3Rock]

iPhone 24 will be the one to get

You see, above? Each year, a phone comes out and each year someone says wait till next year, it will be better. It will never end and by the end of the year when the new one comes out, someone will say the same for the next year. I just don’t listen to anybody anymore until the very end of the year when the new one does come out and then I make my decision on what I see.

 

[caligurl]

i didn't upgrade last year (again) since i wasn't impressed with the upgrades.... i assumed (ya i know) that this year would be better (it's not)... but i'm sick of charging my 13PM multiple times a day..... so i'll upgrade (and not what will mean the 17 is awesome... so i'll have to do a 1 year upgrade! lol!)

 

[NotApplicable]

They won’t be. The 17 line will be a collection of incremental changes. Just like the 15 line. And the 16 line. And… every other recent line.

 

[Mr.JARE_ee]

Actually... iPhone 18 will be the one to upgrade. Next year will just be a minimal bump like increase ram, new color and maybe screen brightness?

 

[thadoggfather]

i didn't upgrade last year (again) since i wasn't impressed with the upgrades.... i assumed (ya i know) that this year would be better (it's not)...

thats exactly my point lol. at least one of my points:

some people hold out this year not saying 'll be sick of current phone by then' or 'my battery will be useless by then and ready to upgrade' and both seem logical.

but people who hold out with false expectation next year is the year to swipe (the credit card), when the next thing comes out and its totally incremental or maybe even more incremental than the previous even, regret might sink in of all that time wasting waiting on something that never was gonna happen in the first place.

Actually... iPhone 18 will be the one to upgrade. Next year will just be a minimal bump like increase ram, new color and maybe screen brightness?

its fun to see those threads where people ask the most consequential upgrades on iPhone timeline.

Though most say 4/4s or X or some Plus or Mini extreme sized variant on either side of size spectrum for the unpopular popular option, the spread is all over the place for way lesser expected models. It's all relative depending on what you prioritize: form factor, refinement, performance, battery life, weight, screen size, new functionality, etc etc.

'The one to upgrade' is always a very relative thing most of the time. What if the 2026/2027 foldable breaks in half easily and has garbage battery and weighs a ton? Would that be 'the one' or would a more mature candy bar form the prior year polished to a tee had been 'the one'?

 

[blairh]

What in particular is going to be so compelling about iPhone 17 iterations? If you just said possibility of 120hz on regular models, and a base storage bump somewhere, fine that's all fine and dandy if either of those were a deal breaker. but to most people and the average user, I don't think they'll be 'holding out' for either thing or even care about that or even aware of what 120hz is, and they might know the storage amount but just shrug it off or bump up their total price to anticipate their storage usage needs and begrudgingly shrug that off too and mosey on like every other year.

..obviously this is a purely speculative thread since the iPhone 16 hasnt' officially launched yet just been announced Monday but. What would you even imagine it could be? And I'm not suggesting there isn't meat on the bone to innovate, that smartphones have peaked and now they can't do anything else because they are a mature product at their base functions... not at all. Just considering this confined within the timeline of iPhone releases from 2017 onwards, not looking to what competition is doing or dabbled in.

If I re-cap this new X era of phones:

2017 X: new style, 5.8 size, first time dual camera sensor in a compact non-Plus form, faceID + wireless charging (and 8 variants in 2017)
2018 XR / XS: new style, 6.1 size, colors, literally an S-cycle in moniker and design for the 'pro tier' X.
2019 iPhone 11 Pro: triple camera intro
2020 iPhone 12 / Pro: new boxy style
2021 iPhone 13 Pro: ProMotion / notch on a diet
2022: iPhone 14 Pro: dynamic island
2023 iPhone 15 Pro: titanium / USB-C / action button
2024 iPhone 16 / Pro: AI / S-cycle without moniker / size bump on pro's. Camera button across the board..
With 16 new camera module design / colors
2025?

2025 seems like the 'Ultra air' or whatever is going to be priced to the moon beyond $1199 base Pro Max. And probably with performance or camera quantity stipulations. Else the regular will be more colors (surely the pill camera cutout won't be a one-cycle thing)? And Pro and Pro Max an SS-cycle? with more ram and deeper AI?
An SE4 that will be an iPhone 14 body at a 'revolutionary' price for SE/mini/older gen model users who can't justify $829 entry point?


I'm also not arguing that you have to be wow'd by iPhone 16 / Pro upgrades, even if iPhone 17 proves to be a bit boring too. You can hold both opinions - idc. Just speculating on what in particular will make 2025 'the one'

iPhone 17 lineup will be more interesting for sure.

AOD on the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air.

Nobody knows what the price of the Air will be. Regardless it will sell very well and create a ton of buzz as it is expected to be crazy thin and light.

iPhone 17 Pro line will get a smaller dynamic island and most likely brighter displays.

I think people are way too down on the iPhone 16 line. The non-Pro gets Camera Control and the Action button, which is awesome. The Pro line got bigger screens, Apple Intelligence, and Camera Control.

 

[thadoggfather]

I think people are way too down on the iPhone 16 line. The non-Pro gets Camera Control and the Action button, which is awesome. The Pro line got bigger screens, Apple Intelligence, and Camera Control.

I think it's a kinda boring release but at the same time upgrades always appreciated. and I did already trade my 14PM so I am more inclined to get one.

in any case, people can have their cake and eat it too- thinking next year will be the one, 16 is crap. or 17 will be crap and 16 is. its all good in any direction not trying to sway that discussion in any particular way, I appreciate your perspective on 17

but I thought it interesting bc already seeing a relative tidal wave of hype for 17, well beyond what's typical in previous years for the next thing.

I was a little surprised there was no real screen improvements beyond bump to 6.3 and 6.9

thought some of the new shiny OLED iPad tech would've made its way into iPhone or something like that. Same with watch 10 having a nicer OLED display with off axis viewing it would've been right in line.

 

[PeteyNice]

Speaking just about the Pro version, I think next year will have enough RAM to keep it running Apple Intelligence for a lot longer than the 16s plus I anticipate some kind of "fusion camera" for the telephoto. That is probably enough to get me to wait another year.

Sure, the 18 will be better still, but I think that will be a more dramatic redesign which introduces the potential for more bugs.

If the 16 Pro had 12GB of RAM, it would be a no brainer upgrade for me. As it is, I think Apple did base 15 owners dirty and don't want to be in their shoes next year when "Apple Intelligence 2.0" is limited to 17 Pro and Pro Max models.

 

[GMShadow]

thought some of the new shiny OLED iPad tech would've made its way into iPhone or something like that. Same with watch 10 having a nicer OLED display with off axis viewing it would've been right in line.

It's often an issue of scale for production - Apple probably sells 5-6 million iPad Pros a year, while they sell that many iPhone Pros every 2 weeks. The Watch both sells a lot less than the phones *and* is a smaller display which generally means fewer chances for defects.

 

[baummer]

of course understood. I would expect no less

..But that's a constant not a variable, not gonna change even observing that and even observing people complaining it's garbage and then rushing out to buy it. We can and should always expect that especially for a company whose base is impossibly humongous and with glossed and glittered up rampant consumerism.

I'm most curious about what it is they reasonably think will make 2025 the one. Just saying it is without any clue what it could be, based on no rumors brewing, fine. But I think it's not gonna be crazy compelling. And even if the Ultra Air shakes some things up a little, its price will be prohibitive to be a first gen beta tester of the super slim and light form.

The foldable isn't even on the rumored timeline of 2025. I think that's a late 2026 possibly even 2027 targeted endeavor (again, based on shady vague rumors currently)

That’s just it. Ask people who are disappointed or upset about what the phone needs for them to upgrade and most can’t answer other than a nonsensical “I want more innovation” without pointing to examples of what that means.

 

[Sensamic]

I'm looking forward to FINALLY (hopefully, if rumors are accurate) having 120hz on the regular iPhones. They already cost almost 1.000€ in Europe, and still come with 60hz, when a Pixel 8a, at 350€, comes with same 6.1 screen, but with 120hz and more brightness I believe?

I can't stand a 60hz phone after my experience with the iPhone 15 last year. So having promotion in the regular iPhone is a big thing for me, since I don't want to spend 1.000€ on why phone and don't really need the other Pro features.

Then, rumors point out that the regular 17 will also get the bigger 6.3 screen, which combined with the 120hz at a lower price is appealing to me. Maybe also more brightness? Which is important to me since I live in a sunny place all year.

The iPhone Air also sounds really interesting. I hate big phones and would love something around 6.5 inches but super light. Weight is a big factor for me when purchasing a phone. That's why I have the S24+, which is really light for its size, especially compared to iPhone 15 PM or S24 Ultra.

Probably A19 chip could bring even better battery life, another important point. Considering all this, I see no interest in iPhone 16 at this time and will keep my S24+ until next year. Samsung is also doing great with AI features, way faster than Apple and no bull**** leaving those features behind for older models (S23 line getting almost all AI features that arrived with S24 line).

I might also consider the base S25 if battery life improves a lot and comes with a 6.3 inch screen.

 

[ProbablyDylan]

I don't even know for certain if I'll be alive for the "next big one."

 

[klasma]

It will never end

Everything ends, sooner or later. Though probably not for another decade or so.

 

[AlixSPQR]

We will only see minor, incremental upgrades, and tidbits of new stuff, because that's Tim Cook.

 

[RRC]

Smartphone tech has peaked, from here on in it’s only going to be incremental improvements most years.