Summer is usually the worst time to buy a new iPhone. Not this year

Every summer, many tech enthusiasts dissuade their friends from buying a new iPhone for two main reasons: price and hardware upgrades. Despite new iPhones introducing more advanced technology, they typically maintain the same price as their predecessors—or, at worst, raise it only slightly along with increasing storage capacity. So, buying a new iPhone just a couple months before the September launch of the new models would mean paying full price for year-old features.

That’s not the case this time around.

Unlike previous years, when this would be the worst time to upgrade, buying an iPhone 17 Pro before the upcoming September launch may secure you a better deal. While the iPhone 18 Pro will undoubtedly bring welcome changes, the overall package may not justify the price.

At what cost?

In case you’ve missed it, Apple just hiked the prices of iPads, Macs, and other products by up to $300 (for the base models). The substantial change, triggered by recent memory and storage supply constraints, curiously excluded the iPhone line. This omission all but confirms that the iPhone’s price increase is scheduled to arrive with the 18 Pro models in late September.

Typically, Apple raises base iPhone prices by $100 every few years and includes extra storage to soften the blow. Things are far from typical now. According to some forecasts, the iPhone 18 Pro may start at a whopping $1,299. For reference, the base iPhone 17 Pro offers 256GB of storage for $1,099. So, even if Apple pushes the base capacity to 512GB, those with minimal local storage needs will potentially have no choice but to pay $200 extra. And if you’re a Pro Max user, you may be looking at a $1,399 bill for the most affordable variant.

People may argue that the other hardware upgrades warrant the higher price tag. Let’s take a closer look at some of the device’s highlights, and you can decide for yourself.

Similar smarts

We’ll start with artificial intelligence due to the sheer number of consumers who deeply care about it. In Apple’s lineup, the RAM plays a major role in deciding what AI features are supported, as many of them function locally. We first saw it with Apple Intelligence’s initial debut—the iPhone 15 Pro with 8GB of RAM ran the smart suite beautifully, while the non-Pro 15 models with 6GB of RAM missed out on it completely. While the iPhone 15 Pro continues to support the latest introductions, including Siri AI on iOS 27, Apple is gatekeeping higher-end perks.

Certain AI features, like Siri’s Expressive Voices, are exclusive to Apple’s top-tier iPhones, iPads, and Macs. In fact, most devices that can run OS 27 won’t be compatible with these advanced additions. The iPhone Air, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max happen to be the only smartphone models to support them, as they pack the required 12GB of RAM. The iPhone 18 Pro will reportedly maintain the same memory, indicating it won’t feature any major exclusive AI tools. With an iPhone 17 Pro, it’s safe to assume that you’ll be getting the same set of artificial smarts as the 18 Pro for years to come.

Comparable cams

iPhone cameras, particularly the wide and ultra-wide, are known for their reliability, producing crisp stills and videos that often stand out. Still, a couple of years ago, the telephoto lens performed poorly in many instances, and the selfie camera felt too unsophisticated. The iPhone 17 Pro finally addressed the main camera shortcomings by refining the tetraprism lens and adding a higher-resolution, square-shaped Center Stage sensor to the front side for orientation switching. While there’s always room for improvement, most users would likely agree that the iPhone’s camera system finally feels whole.

It goes without saying that the iPhone 18 Pro will upgrade the camera further, with the wide lens rumored to adopt a variable aperture for the first time. The front-facing camera’s resolution may also be bumped from 18MP to 24MP. While these enhancements will help produce sharper results, they’re arguably not as transformative as last year’s significant leap forward.

Durable displays

During product introductions, Apple often resorts to catchy marketing lingo when promoting its latest innovations. Many of these features end up going unnoticed soon after, as they don’t necessarily affect the way we use our devices every day. When the Ceramic Shield 2 display was announced with the iPhone 17 Pro, I initially rolled my eyes, not realizing the tripled scratch resistance claim would actually have a noticeable impact. Boy, was I wrong.

Foundry

The iPhone 17 Pro Max is my first ever smartphone to not show a single micro-scratch after months of daily use without a screen protector—it literally looks pristine. The Ceramic Shield 2 is that good. Now that the iPhone’s display is as immersive and durable as most users expect, I see little reason why one would anticipate the 18 Pro’s newer display. Its most notable upgrade could be relatively expendable, shrinking the Dynamic Island to fit more on-screen elements. While a neat evolution, it won’t be as groundbreaking as the iPhone 14 Pro’s shift from a static notch to the original Dynamic Island.

Matching materials

Besides the disruptive RAM, camera, and display improvements, the iPhone 17 Pro was also the model to completely overhaul the exterior shell, retiring titanium in favor of aluminum. As such, disregarding the fresh finish options, the iPhone 18 Pro will offer a similar overall design and possibly even become bulkier. If you buy an iPhone 17 Pro today, it won’t look dated later this year. That’s a statement we wouldn’t have made one year ago and we won’t make next year (given the iPhone XX rumors).

Foundry

Whether paying around $200 more for a tweaked camera and smaller Dynamic Island is worth it totally depends on your priorities. The way I see it, the iPhone 18 Pro is set to act as an overpriced iPhone 17s Pro. Proceed accordingly.