A couple of years ago, I picked an iPhone that I hadn’t expected. I originally bought the iPhone 16 Pro Max, but found the screen too large. After using it for a few days, I ended up exchanging it for an iPhone 16 Plus. That phone felt better in my hand and it was much cheaper.
But after using that iPhone for a while, I missed some features from the Pro line and I couldn’t type on that device comfortably. So, when the iPhone 17 line came out, I found myself returning to the Pro line.
I’ve been using the iPhone 17 Pro for a year, and while I shared my initial opinions of it early last year, I wanted to write a iPhone 17 Pro one year later review, to cover everything I’ve felt about the device after thorough use.
On the eve of the iPhone 18 Pro announcement, I have to say that the iPhone 17 Pro is one of the best iPhones I’ve ever used. But is it worth it to purchase today?
Is It The Perfect Size?
While I actually liked my iPhone 16 Plus, I grew tired of the size. The larger screen offered more viewing area and better battery life, but I couldn’t get comfortable with it when I needed to write for longer than a minute or two.
I had used the smaller iPhone before (the iPhone 12 and 13), but I worried that I would struggle with the smaller size.
But let’s be honest, the smaller phone isn’t that small anymore.
The 6.3-inch screen has been plenty for me. Sure, it felt more cramped to type on the keyboard that first week, but I quickly adapted to it. Since then, the iPhone 17 Pro has felt perfect in my hand. I never once felt like the design was too small. Videos and social media take up the entire screen, reading a book feels like a good size, and writing on the screen feels so much better. When I get to sit down and write, but don’t have my MacBook Air with me, I can turn the iPhone horizontal and thumb type with ease. While the typing experience isn’t the best, my hands don’t cramp, and I can reach all the letters without stretching.
The smaller size of the Pro also feels better in my pocket. Obviously, the smaller size takes up less space, but I do notice the difference.
I don’t expect our phones to get any smaller. While the iPhone 17 Pro isn’t as small as say the iPhone mini from a few years ago, it feels better to me than the too large Pro Max size.
Heading into the iPhone 17 event, my main reason for wanting to upgrade came down to size and features, and after a year of use, I’m thrilled with the size of my iPhone 17 Pro.
iPhone 17 Pro’s New Design
When the rumors leaked the new iPhone 17 Pro design, I didn’t like it. I still don’t really like the way it looks. The large camera plateau and the two-tone colors stick out in a way that I think you’ll either love or hate.
For some reason, that large camera plateau just doesn’t appeal to me. I’m sure the way it is laid out now, with the flash and LiDAR moved further away from the actual lens, helps improve the pictures you take. However, it feels giant and like a waste of space right now.
Oddly, I do like the way that protrusion feels when I’m holding the device horizontally. The way my finger rests on it makes it feel oddly comforting as I can place my fingers on it for extra grip.
The two-tone back of the device doesn’t bother me as much as it has others. I went with the silver iPhone 17 Pro model, and I like the white pop of the MagSafe charging area. Although, I know others had a stronger negative reaction to it, and Apple is supposedly altering that element of the design in the iPhone 18 Pro.
But ultimately, it doesn’t matter that much because I throw a case on my iPhone. The case takes some focus away from the plateau, and it completely blocks the two different tones.
I wish I didn’t put a case on my iPhone, though. I love the feel of this design. The curved edges feel spectacular in the hand. I even like the feel of the aluminum, although I wish it was titanium for a little extra strength. I only put the case on my iPhone 17 Pro for two reasons: protection from drops and to keep the phone from slipping out of my pockets.
I’ve fumbled while holding it once or twice, and I also have kids. When we went to Disneyland, and it rained the entire time, I ended up dropping the iPhone onto the hard concrete face down. I expected the worst, but delightfully, there was only a slight hairline crack in the top right of the screen and no more damage. I got the screen replaced using AppleCare, but it made me question whether I needed the case at all.
But I don’t like going without a case because it tends to fall out of my pockets. I like the silicone type cases because they are lightweight, and they provide a little stick in the pocket.
The iPhone 17 Pro feels great in my hand without a case, though. I really want to go without a case because of it, but I can’t. Not for now.
Ultimate Camera System
With the Camera Plateau comes a better camera system. Honestly, I couldn’t tell much of a difference between the iPhone 16 Plus wide camera and this one. I think most of the photos come out looking crisp and colorful. I don’t have a problem with any picture I take with the system. Videos also look outstanding.
The thing that makes the real difference over the past models is that telephoto lens. I missed having it on the Plus, but I made do. However, I find myself using it all the time.
I love that they upgraded the telephoto lens with more megapixels. That allows them to do the cropping zoom that they’ve offered on the past models, but it helps to zoom in so much more. The 4x zoom is usually plenty, but if I’m trying to get something much further away, it is nice to bump up to that 8x lens, and beyond—although that’s rarely needed.
I also love having the LiDAR sensor back. While I don’t think it does much, I do use the measure app pretty frequently. Although, I used the app to measure my kids’ heights before we left for Disneyland, and it didn’t seem to measure correctly, which changed a bit of our plan for rides there.
The front camera has changed to a square lens. I’m not sure if it’s just that I’m not taking that many selfies, but it hasn’t been the game changer I thought it might be. It is impressive that the camera can autodetect people and expand to get them in the shot, but I don’t feel like that happens much for me. I also haven’t had to adjust the orientation of a shot that often. For the most part, the camera operates as it did before, except those times that you need it to change—which I feel like is part of the magic. I could have gotten used to that feature and just don’t notice it anymore, or that I just don’t take that many selfies.
The cameras are great on the iPhone 17 Pro. I would expect every new model to be better than the last, but I’ll be happy with these pictures for a few years to come.
Performance Machine
It’s odd to write about the performance of a cell phone these days. Honestly, the chips inside the phones have been so good for so long, that they were ready to power Macs years ago. The MacBook Neo even runs on an iPhone chip, and achieves impressive results while being the cheapest Apple laptop you can buy.
Modern-day iPhones can do just about anything you want to do and not struggle too much. I think the slowdown will come down to converting or processing video and how much RAM your device has.
The iPhone 17 Pro is speedy. Things happen quickly, but do you really notice how much quicker versus something like the iPhone 14 Pro?
However, it is nice that the 17 Pro has more RAM than before. Things do load a little quicker, and it will allow the device to run the newest and best version of Siri AI once iOS 27 comes out.
Besides a few times during the beta for iOS 27, I haven’t noticed my iPhone get warm at all. That’s because of the vapor chamber cooling that helps spread the heat out across the device. This system obviously works, and I’ll be interested to see if they bring it to the other iPhone lines in the future. I’m not sure how small they can make it and still be effective, so it might not ever make it into the iPhone Air, but we shall see.
All-in-all, the iPhone 17 Pro is a speedy device that doesn’t slow down much or get warm that often. I think it will also be a great phone for years to come.
The Little Things
The iPhone 17 Pro has been great for me for the past year. But there’s more to a phone apart from the size, cameras, and power.
Battery Life
Coming from the larger models, I’m not sure what I expected from a smaller device regarding battery. Aside from parts of the iOS 27 beta, I made it through a day without needing to charge. But I would get very close to a dead phone by the end of the day. Using the larger iPhones for the years before (the 14 Pro Max and the 16 Plus) I expected to end the day with 20-30% battery life left. Reality with the iPhone 17 Pro would leave me in the teens.
The battery is good, especially with Adaptive Power turned on. But if you want the longest lasting battery, you’ll have to look at those larger models.
Price
When Apple announced the 17 Pro models, Apple dropped the cheapest storage option. So while they didn’t raise the price, they did get rid of the cheapest model. A 256 GB model cost the same as an iPhone 16 Pro with the same storage, you just couldn’t get in for as cheap a price as the year before.
This year, with the AI bubble, I’m going to be interested in how Apple prices the iPhone 18. The prices of every other device have risen this year because the price of RAM and storage have skyrocketed. Will Apple be able to continue selling the iPhone 18 at the same price? It feels highly unlikely.
So, while the price rose this year for the 17 Pro, I have a feeling it will be more favorable than what’s coming. If you are in the market, I would definitely look at getting the iPhone 17 Pro if you can find one, especially if the 18 Pro price raises. You’ll also be able to find more used and refurbished models which could save you even more.
Siri AI
I’ve been testing Siri AI all summer, and it is great on the iPhone 17 Pro. Of course, it is the current top model, so it better run well.
While it is difficult to tell if Siri AI is using the on-device model or shipping off the request to a data center somewhere, it runs pretty smoothly. It is crazy how much it can pull from your device and know about you, all while keeping it private.
Depending on your stance of AI, I think Siri will be more helpful in the future than any time before.
Would I Recommend The iPhone 17 Pro One Year Later?
For the first time in years, I’m not yearning for a new iPhone as we head into the iPhone event. My iPhone 17 Pro one year later is still going strong. It has been a great, though slightly boring device for the entire run of the year.
A white iPhone 17 Pro lying on a dark surface next to a white case, with the title “The iPhone 17 Pro 1 Year Later Review” in large white text.
Do you have any questions about the iPhone 17 Pro? Ask me in the comments, and I’ll do my best to answer them.
If you’re looking for more iPhone content, make sure you check out my iPhone hub, where I post all my reviews, guides, tips, and more.
Furthermore, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter to get all the updates after the iPhone 18 event and see if I stick to my word about not upgrading!
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