Everyone is aware of the issues Apple is currently facing because CEO Tim Cook has allegedly pissed off U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump has threatened a 25% tariff on Apple if they don"t manufacture iPhones that are to be sold in America in the country.
Apple is rumored to hike the prices of this year"s iPhone models, thanks to the supply chain issues, again linked to President Trump"s tariffs. On the positive side, Apple is expected to introduce the biggest design change in the recent history of iPhones.
First of all, the iPhone 17 Air (Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge"s competitor) is expected to replace the "Plus" variant in the iPhone 17 lineup. Next, all iPhone models, including the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, are speculated to feature a new camera module on the back.
However, fresh information from Apple analyst Jeff Pu suggests that the base iPhone 17 model will not only be stuck with the same iPhone 16-like camera module but also other aspects as well. In a research note with equity research firm GF Securities (via MacRumors), Pu says that the base iPhone 17 will be powered by last year"s A18 chipset and feature 8GB of RAM.
This goes in line with the information supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that only Pro model iPhones will feature 12GB RAM. Moreover, the Pro models will be powered by the A19 Pro chipset, whereas the iPhone 17 Air will have A19, both of which will be based on TSMC"s 3nm process.
So, this year"s base model may not be much of an upgrade. Apple may bring a 120Hz display to it, though. Apart from the entire lineup is expected to get an upgraded 24MP selfie camera, in-house Wi-Fi chips, and more.