4 ways the iPhone 17 can improve on the iPhone 16

It’s almost time, folks: Apple has announced that its annual September event will take place on September 9, and we’re almost definitely going to see full reveals for the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air (or Plus), iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max.

It’s been a long year of rumors and tip-offs since the release of the iPhone 16 series, but we’re now expecting to see major design changes for the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, and an entirely new model in the iPhone 17 Air, which could take the place of the iPhone 17 Plus.

The base-model iPhone 17, in comparison, is likely to be more of an iterative upgrade. The renders and dummy models shared by tipsters over the past months suggest the iPhone 17 won’t look much different from its current-generation counterpart, and with all four models expected to run iOS 26 at launch that leaves internal hardware as the main arena for possible upgrades.

The iPhone 16 was a great phone on release and is a great phone now – it’s the most ‘Pro’ base-model iPhone in years, and brings great new features like the Action Button and Camera Control capacitive button – but there are still things that Apple could improve.

So, without further ado, here are the four ways the iPhone 17 can improve on the iPhone 16.

ProMotion

We’ve written about the refresh rate of the standard iPhone’s display so many times in the past few years that I’ve actually lost count – but just in case anyone in Cupertino is reading this, the iPhone 16’s 60Hz panel is outdated, embarrassing, and a stain on the reputation of an otherwise excellent handset.

This slow refresh rate – which refers to how often the screen replaces the displayed image – is the main reason I recommend the iPhone 16 Pro over the iPhone 16, and while I’m sure this very fact has made Apple plenty of profit, it really is time to move on.

A phone that costs $799 / £799 / AU$1,399 should ship with a high-refresh rate display. If Apple doesn’t want to supply its base-model iPhone with its variable refresh rate ProMotion technology, it should at least fit it with a fixed 120Hz display. 60Hz displays haven’t been standard on flagship phones for at least five years, and even the very cheapest phones on the market often manage 90Hz or 120Hz.

60Hz phone displays belong in the past – scratch that, 60Hz phone displays belong in the trash*. There’s simply no reason to fit the iPhone 17 with such anachronistic tech, unless Apple intends to charge less than $200 for it (*for recycling, obviously).

A faster chipset

The iPhone 17 can score an easy win over the iPhone 16 by shipping with a faster chipset, and unlike the other entries on this list, this one’s almost guaranteed to happen.

I say almost because Apple has launched two consecutive iPhones with the same chipset before. The iPhone 14 launched with the same A15 chipset as the iPhone 13, which caused a bit of a furore. Since the iPhone 14, though, the iPhone has received a string of great performance upgrades, which gives me hope that the iPhone 17 could get a similar boost.

The iPhone 17’s chipset will probably be called the A19, though we don’t know how much more powerful this will be than the iPhone 16’s A18. The A18 was 30% faster than the iPhone 15’s A17 chipset – an upgrade of similar proportions would be impressive, but with how well the A18 performs even a 10% bump would be welcome.

Double-digit RAM capacity

The iPhone 16 has 8GB of RAM – enough for a good bit of multitasking and enough for Apple Intelligence to work, but honestly not that much compared to other present-day flagships.

For example, the Samsung Galaxy S25 and Google Pixel 10 both come with 12GB of RAM, which adds that extra bit of flexibility for AI and in-depth multitasking. Apple is renowned for optimization and the tight integration of iOS with iPhone hardware, but at some point the amount of silicon in a phone is going to make a difference to performance.

There’s not much more to it – I just want to see a bigger number on the spec sheet. Apple is falling behind in the AI race, so having the hardware headroom for Apple Intelligence to grow into would give some peace of mind there.

Fast charging

iPhones have smaller batteries than their Android counterparts, but that doesn’t matter. Apple has shown time and time again that it can optimize its devices well enough to last a full day’s use, no matter its actual capacity. What the iPhone 16 does lack is properly fast charging – Apple doesn’t share power draw specs for its phones, but its generally accepted that the iPhone 16 charges at a maximum draw of about 20W, which is slow compared to other flagships.

For reference, the Galaxy S25 charges with 27W of power, while the Pixel 10 manages 45W. Looking east, we can find Chinese-made flagships from Xiaomi, Oppo, and Honor that charge with anywhere from 80W to 100W of power draw.

Western phone makers opt for more cautious charging specs to prevent overheating and prioritise the longevity of their phones, which is solid reasoning, but the flexibility a fast-charging phone offers is second-to-none. A rating of around 40W would keep the base-model iPhone competitive and make it easier for iPhone fans to get back in the action after a long day of calling, scrolling, and gaming.

There we are then: my four picks for how the iPhone 17 can improve on the iPhone 16. Let us know what you want to see from Apple's next handset in the comments below

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