Apple is expected to embrace a new camera system design for some models in its upcoming iPhone 17 series, and the latest purported CAD images don't deviate from what we have been hearing lately about Apple's new lineup. If you do not like the sound of an iPhone with a Google Pixel-style camera bar, look away now.
Seasoned leaker Sonny Dickson shared the following images in a post on X (Twitter), commenting: "Everyone seems to be sharing the same iPhone 17 CAD, so I thought I'd share the ones I've seen."
The first image below is said to show the design of Apple's all-new ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air, a thinner and lighter device that is expected to replace the Plus model in the lineup. Consistent with rumors and previous CAD images, the render depicts Apple's embrace of an elongated horizontal camera module along the top of the device's rear.
With limited internal space due to the slimmed down design, the iPhone 17 Air is believed to sport a single-lens rear camera. If that's the case, the device will not be capable of capturing spatial video or spatial photos unless Apple has a new technique in mind for capturing this kind of content. Rumors suggest it will use the same 48-megapixel Wide camera that's in the iPhone 16 models.
At least some iPhone 17 models will allegedly feature a smoother transition between the edges of the camera bump and the back cover, owing to Apple's use of a new glass-and-metal splicing material process. The concave transition between the bump and the chassis shown in the CAD appears to back this claim.
Moving on, the image below is of the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models. Here is where the alleged redesign is at its most dramatic. Apple's Pro devices are expected to move away from the familiar square camera bump to a distinctive larger aluminum camera bar that spans the device's width.
The typical triangular triple-lens array maintains its location on the left, but the flash, LiDAR sensor, and rear microphone are shunted over to the right of the extended bump in a vertical alignment. Whether Apple has adopted this design purely for cosmetic or practical reasons – or a mix of form/function – remains unknown.
The last image of the standard iPhone 17 model offers a design most readers will be more accustomed to. Apple appears to be sticking to its tried and tested dual iPhone camera system for the base model, which may offer some respite for anyone who can't get behind the new camera bar look.
Multiple sources have now backed rumors about the above camera designs in the forthcoming iPhone 17 series. The lineup is expected to arrive around Apple's usual mid-September time frame, so it's very late in the game for the rumors to be off. For all the details about other changes that are rumored to be coming to individual models, follow the tags at the bottom of this article.
