Apple iPhone 17 Pro Review Roundup: A 'True Pro' Upgrade With 'Best Battery Ever' [Video]

Apple's new iPhone 17 Pro lineup is here, and its bold redesign is more than just skin deep. The first reviews are in, and while the new "Cosmic Orange" color and horizontal camera bar are getting all the attention, critics agree that the most meaningful upgrades are on the inside, with major gains in battery life, a more powerful and cooler-running chip, and Apple's most versatile camera system yet.

The most celebrated feature, by far, is the battery. CNET calls it the headliner, stating, "The iPhone 17 Pro Max has the best battery life of any phone that CNET has ever tested." The review notes that even after a full day of heavy use, the battery still had 22% or more left. Apple rates the Pro Max for up to 39 hours of video playback, according to Wired. This massive improvement is attributed to a larger battery and a new vapor chamber cooling system inside the redesigned aluminum unibody, which Wired notes helps dissipate heat more effectively and sustain performance under load. Reviewers also found that gaming titles like Assassin's Creed Mirage and Destiny: Rising ran more smoothly without the throttling seen on earlier models. Charging speeds are improved as well, with the Pro able to hit 72% in 30 minutes using 35W USB-C charging.




The camera system also received universal praise, with PetaPixel calling it "Apple's most comprehensive and complete creative smartphone to date." The big story is the new telephoto camera, which now features a 48MP sensor that is 56% larger than its predecessor. While the optical zoom is shorter at 4x (100mm), the larger sensor and higher resolution produce a much sharper "optical quality" 8x (200mm) zoom. The Verge notes, "the 5x lens often felt slightly too long for head-and-shoulders portraits; 100mm feels just right." The new 18MP Center Stage front camera was another highlight, which Engadget called "a stroke of genius" for its ability to automatically reframe shots for group selfies without rotating the phone.

The bold redesign, which Tom's Guide says makes the phone look like an "instant classic," ditches titanium for an aluminum unibody. Reviewers found it comfortable to hold thanks to more contoured edges. The new "camera plateau" design also drew praise for creating a more balanced look. Early durability testing suggested the aluminum chassis and Ceramic Shield 2 handled drops well. Interestingly, despite the bigger battery, the Pro Max is about 6 grams heavier than the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

The display was another highlight. The 6.9-inch Super Retina XDR panel with ProMotion impressed reviewers with its 120Hz smoothness, peak brightness of 3,000 nits, and new anti-glare coating. Tom's Guide praised the 120Hz refresh rate, noting it makes everything from videos to scrolling feel "buttery smooth," while Wired praised its improved outdoor visibility.

Benchmarks confirmed the gains from the new A19 Pro chip. Tom's Guide recorded a Geekbench 6 multi-core score of 9,988 and 3DMark Wild Life results that were highly competitive with top Android flagships, noting that performance stayed consistent during stress testing thanks to the new vapor chamber cooling. While performance is class-leading, reviewers consistently flagged that Apple's AI features still lag behind competitors. "It just feels like a giant void," says The Verge.


Other notes from reviews include support for Wi-Fi 7, stronger 5G reception, and richer, louder speakers. The USB-C port supports USB 3 data (up to 10Gbps) and DisplayPort, and it enables ProRes RAW capture to external SSDs, a workflow PetaPixel highlighted as a key professional feature.

The iPhone 17 Pro also gets a $100 price increase to $1,099, but now starts with 256GB of storage—a trade-off most reviewers found reasonable. Ultimately, critics agreed the Pro models are exceptional devices, but that the standard iPhone 17 offers better value for most users. As PCMag concludes, "the iPhone 17 is our Editors' Choice winner and the best iPhone for most people."

The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max are now available for pre-order directly from Apple. Major U.S. carriers are also offering significant promotions, with deals providing up to $1,100 off the new iPhone lineup.