Alright so I've been going back and forth on this for wee...
Alright so I've been going back and forth on this for weeks and I finally want to hear what people actually think.
I've had the iPhone 16 Pro Max since launch. It still works perfectly fine — A18 Pro chip, great cameras, no complaints. But the iPhone 17 Pro Max has been out since September 2025 and I keep seeing it in shops. The price has settled to around PKR 530,000–565,000 (PTA approved, 256GB) which is a lot but not shocking for a Pro Max.
Here's my problem. The iPhone 18 Pro Max is confirmed for September 2026 — that's roughly 3 months away. And from what's leaked so far, this isn't a minor upgrade. The A20 Pro chip moves to 2nm (first time ever for Apple), there's apparently a variable aperture on the main camera which no iPhone has ever had, Face ID moves under the display so the Dynamic Island shrinks significantly, and the battery efficiency should be noticeably better.
So the question is: do I spend PKR 565,000 now on the iPhone 17, knowing the 18 lands in 3 months with features I actually care about? Or is that just upgrade anxiety and the 17 is genuinely good enough for the next 4–5 years?
My situation:
- iPhone 16 Pro Max, bought at launch, working perfectly
- Use it heavily for photography and video (travel content)
- Want to keep the next phone for at least 4 years
- Not in a rush — 16 is fine right now
What are you guys doing? Anyone already bought the 17 and regretting it, or happy with the decision?
Honestly if your 16 Pro Max is working fine, waiting makes zero sense to me. The iPhone 17 is a solid phone but if the 18 is genuinely bringing variable aperture and under-display Face ID, those are not features that come around every year. Apple does one genuinely new thing per generation, maybe two if you're lucky. Both of those landing in the same phone is unusual.
The 2nm chip is the bigger deal for longevity though. If you want 4–5 years out of a phone, you want the most recent chip at purchase. The A20 Pro will be getting iOS updates well into the 2030s. The A19 will too, but one generation behind means one generation less.
Three months is nothing. I'd wait.