In just a few weeks, Apple will take the stage and pull the curtain back on the entire iPhone 17 lineup. The spotlight may initially fall on the brand-new “Air” variant — sleek, lightweight, almost experimental — but if you’re paying attention, the Pro Max could quietly become the star of the show.
I’ve been leaning toward the 17 Air myself. It’s lighter, more portable, and, frankly, feels like a breath of fresh air for someone who’s tired of hauling around a brick. Still, there are three specific upgrades coming to the Pro Max that keep making me pause mid-thought. The kind of features that don’t just look good in marketing slides — they might actually change how you use your phone every day.
1. The anti-reflective display that might change sunny days forever
I’m one of those people who measures the quality of their day by how much sunlight they get. Cloudy weather makes me restless. And when it’s bright outside, I’ll always choose a park bench over a café table.
That’s why the rumors of an anti-reflective display on the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max hit me harder than I expected. It’s not a flashy “wow” feature like a folding screen. But for anyone who’s ever squinted at their phone on a beach or tried to frame a photo under the midday sun, it’s potentially huge.
The details are still a little fuzzy — no pun intended — but if Apple’s implementation really reduces glare to the degree some insiders suggest, this could be the upgrade I didn’t know I needed. Especially because it pairs beautifully with the next big change.
2. The biggest battery in iPhone history
Battery life used to be a constant worry. A mental clock counting down in the background of your day. But I’ll admit, the iPhone 16 Pro softened that anxiety for me. Even on the worst days — heavy video recording, navigation running for hours — I rarely scrambled for a charger.
Now, the 17 Pro Max is rumored to push that even further. The device will reportedly be a little thicker, a little heavier, and all in service of housing the largest battery Apple has ever put in a phone.
I wasn’t planning to prioritize battery this year. Then I installed the iOS 26 beta and, well… let’s just say the battery drain reminded me how quickly “all-day” power can vanish when software isn’t fully tuned. I’m sure Apple will fix that before the public release. Probably. But the idea of having the best battery life ever in an iPhone suddenly feels like a security blanket I might want to keep.
3. Camera upgrades that could raise the ceiling again
It’s not exactly news that iPhones have Hollywood-level camera hardware. We’ve seen them shoot full-length films, commercials, music videos. And yet, Apple keeps refining, tweaking, chasing that next bit of realism.
The 17 Pro Max appears to be getting two big sensor upgrades: a 24MP TrueDepth front camera (double the resolution of the current 12MP) and a 48MP telephoto lens (also up from 12MP). Those alone could push detail and low-light performance up a notch.
Beyond that, the rumor mill is noisy — sometimes contradictory — but it’s worth noting the wilder claims: a second camera control button for faster shooting, multi-cam video recording, 8× optical zoom, even a dedicated “Pro” camera app. Not all of these are backed by solid leaks, and perhaps only a couple will materialize this year. But if Apple decides to go all-in, the 17 Pro Max could be the most versatile iPhone camera setup we’ve seen yet.
So… is it enough to sway me?
Honestly, I don’t know. The iPhone 17 Air still feels like the smarter choice for how I use my phone most days. But then I picture a brighter screen under a glaring sun, a battery that refuses to quit, and a camera that might genuinely outpace most standalone gear… and I hesitate.
That’s the thing about Apple’s Pro Max models — they’re not just bigger. They’re the company’s loudest statement about what’s possible right now. And this year, that statement feels harder to ignore.
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