Abstract:

This review covers the newly released iPhone 17 series (17, Air, Pro, and Pro Max) and AirPods Pro 3, detailing a week of hands-on experience, highlighting unexpected improvements, and pointing out misleading aspects. The standard iPhone 17 shows moderate gains in charging speed, a square selfie camera sensor offering versatile capture modes and improved stabilization, and a 30% performance boost from its A19 chip. However, the anti-reflective screen coating is less effective than competitors. The iPhone Air, despite its "Pro" chip, suffers severe thermal throttling, making its performance worse than the base iPhone 17, and features a disappointing single speaker. AirPods Pro 3 deliver a significantly enhanced listening experience with phenomenal noise cancellation but are less comfortable for prolonged use due to a tighter fit. The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max offer improved ergonomics, substantially better signal strength, and advanced cooling designs leading to a 22% performance increase over the previous generation, with the base iPhone 17 even outperforming the last-gen Pro Max. The new 48MP telephoto lens on the Pro models is underwhelming, but portrait mode sees a notable software-driven improvement. Regional battery life discrepancies and questionable accessory designs are also noted.

Reviewing the New iPhone 17 Lineup and AirPods Pro 3

• 0:00 Introduction to the Lineup: The video reviews all new iPhones (17, 17 Air, 17 Pro, 17 Pro Max) and accessories after a week of use, highlighting both improvements and misleading aspects.

• 0:22 iPhone 17 Unboxing & Charging: The unboxing is similar to last year, including a USB-C cable. Charging is moderately faster than the iPhone 16, reaching 26% in 10 minutes compared to the 16's 21%.

• 1:03 Anti-Reflective Coating: The iPhone 17's new anti-reflective coating reduces reflections by about one-third compared to the iPhone 16, but is significantly less effective than Samsung's Galaxy S25 Ultra, which cuts an additional one-third.

• 1:34 Improved Selfie Camera: The iPhone 17 features a new square front camera sensor, allowing for wider shots, improved processing for smoother skin tones, and versatile portrait/landscape photos while holding the phone upright. It also uses "overscan" for better stabilization.

• 3:54 iPhone 17 Performance: The A19 chip in the iPhone 17 achieves a 3D Mark peak performance score of 4,869, which is almost 30% higher than the iPhone 16, with improved stability.

• 4:36 iPhone Air Unboxing & Performance Flop: The iPhone Air features an eSIM-only design and comes in a sky blue color. Despite having a "technically superior" A19 Pro chip, its performance is a "complete flop," with a peak score of 3,863 – 26% slower than the base iPhone 17. Thermal throttling severely limits sustained performance, even with cooling.

• 6:20 iPhone Air Speaker & Portrait Mode: The iPhone Air has a single, front-firing speaker that, while not terrible, is significantly worse and quieter than the dual-speaker setup on other iPhones and flagship phones. Its single camera also hinders portrait mode performance in challenging depth scenarios compared to the iPhone 17.

• 7:24 iPhone Air Design & Accessories: The phone's extreme thinness necessitates a custom 3D-printed titanium USB-C port, which is noticeably off-center. Its standard case is fragile and deforms easily, while a $40 bumper case offers better protection and preserves the phone's thin feel. The MagSafe battery pack is considered contradictory for an "Air" phone, making it bulky and negating its thinness for comparable battery life to a Pro Max.

• 9:36 AirPods Pro 3 Sound & ANC: Priced at $249, these earbuds offer a significantly improved listening experience with a phenomenal sound stage, deeper bass, and highly effective noise cancellation (reducing typing noise by 80% compared to 50% for Pro 2).

• 10:25 AirPods Pro 3 Comfort & Translation: The enhanced noise cancellation comes from a tighter fit and heavier buds, which can cause more pressure and reduce comfort during long listening sessions compared to the Pro 2. Their live voice translation feature shows promise, but the artificial-sounding speech engine needs improvement.

• 11:08 iPhone 17 Pro/Pro Max Design & Accessories: Available in cosmic orange and deep blue, with no black option. New tech woven cases are durable but uncomfortable. Clear cases have an odd white back.

• 12:11 iPhone 17 Pro/Pro Max Ergonomics & Signal: The Pro models are more comfortable to hold due to a redesigned metal-to-glass transition. Signal strength is notably better than previous generations, achieving 5G where old phones only got 4G, and maintaining connection in remote areas.

• 13:02 Pro Models Battery Life & Cooling: Physical SIM versions (like in the UK) have 2 hours less battery life than the eSIM versions referenced in Apple's event. US models feature a "forehead" design for millimeter-wave 5G. Significant engineering efforts have been made for cooling, including a central chip placement and laser-welded vapor chamber.

• 13:53 iPhone 17 Pro/Pro Max Performance: The 17 Pro Max achieves the highest peak performance and stability. The smaller 17 Pro is close behind. Overall, there's about a 22% performance increase over the 16 Pro Max. Surprisingly, the base iPhone 17 now outperforms last year's 16 Pro Max.

• 14:44 iPhone 17 Pro/Pro Max Camera (Telephoto & Portrait): The new 48-megapixel telephoto lens is "underwhelming" and not a "transformational change," often yielding similar or even slightly worse results than the 16 Pro Max at max zoom. However, portrait mode photos show a significant software-driven improvement in detail and skin tones.

• 15:38 Sponsor: The video includes a sponsored segment for the Insta360 Flow 2 Pro gimbal, highlighting its stabilization, multi-functionality (selfie stick, tripod, power bank), and advanced tracking capabilities, including native support for Apple Dockit.

• 20:10 Conclusion: The reviewer invites comments for more information and plans to list the reviewed items on eBay.