You're going to need a new charger to get the fastest possible iPhone 17 Pro charging speeds

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That's another $39

Apple iPhone 17 Pro HANDS ON
The Apple iPhone 17 Pro (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)
  • The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max offer faster charging times
  • You'll also need a compatible charger to get the top speeds
  • Only one matching charger is currently available, from Apple

The Apple iPhone 17 series is now official, but we're still learning some of the finer details of these phones and their specs: and it seems that you're going to need a specific charger to get the fastest charging speeds from the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max.

As discovered by tipster ShrimpApplePro (via 9to5Mac), the impressive charging times of these two premium handsets – up to 50% of a charge in as little as 20 minutes – are down to support for the USB-PD (Power Delivery) system.

In particular, it uses the USB-PD 3.2 SPR AVS specification, and at the moment the only charger on the market that supports the same standard is Apple's own 40W Dynamic Power Adaptor, launched alongside the iPhone 17 phones and priced at $39. What's more, Apple only sells it in certain regions, and it's not available in the EU.

Any ordinary USB-C charger will work with the iPhone 17 Pro and the iPhone 17 Pro Max of course, but you won't get those super-speedy charging speeds that Apple has been talking about without also having Apple's own charger.

Catching up

It's not clear how long it might take third-party accessory makers to push out chargers that support USB-PD 3.2 SPR AVS, but the spec hasn't been out long. Obviously, the more people that get the new iPhones, the bigger the market for update chargers.

The charging speed you'll have to put up with if you don't have Apple's 40W Dynamic Power Adaptor will depend on the charger. According to 9to5Mac, with something like Anker's 45W Nano changer, you would get up to a 50% charge in 30 minutes rather than 20 minutes – so it's not necessarily a huge difference.

We should know much more about the new iPhone 17 series, including charging times, when they've been sent out to users. All four models will be available from Friday, September 19, and preorders are already open.

As well as battery charging times, we're also wondering about battery life on these new handsets, especially on the super-slim iPhone Air – though Apple boss Tim Cook has promised "great" battery life on the handset.

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David Nield
David Nield
Freelance Contributor

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.

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