Leaked iPhone 17 CAD images reveal three different camera designs

Macworld

There’s been much talk of camera modules in the iPhone rumorsphere lately: will the iPhone 17 handsets stick to the same rear design as the previous generation, or will they switch to either a thin horizontal bar or a giant band? A new leak gives us a little more clarity about the new iPhone generation arriving this fall.

According to a set of CAD renders posted Sunday to X by the veteran leaker Majin Bu, there will be not one or two but three different camera module designs on show, which might explain the earlier confusion. The two Pro models will have their triple rear lenses embedded in a thick band that runs across the back of the phone, as predicted earlier this month by Jon Prosser. The standard iPhone 17, meanwhile, will stick with the same design as the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus: two lenses stacked vertically, in a small matching module. (That design, if you’ll recall, was a change from the diagonal arrangement on the iPhones 13 through 15.)

But the last model in the set, the much-anticipated ultra-slim iPhone 17 Air, appears set to feature yet another design. Rumors predict that the 17 Air will have just one camera lens on the rear in order to reduce componentry and keep down the size and weight of the chassis. This single lens, according to the new renders (and corroborated by a possible prototype case leaked by the same source last month) will be contained within a slim horizontal bar.

In other words, based on the latest information, all three of the theories in my opening paragraph are set to be correct. (It’s an easy job, this prediction lark.) You can also see a rectangle below the camera array on the Pro models that is expected to be made of aluminum, while the non-Pro models stick with glass across the back.

For all the latest news and rumors about this fall’s new handsets, bookmark our regularly updated iPhone 17 megaguide. And if you don’t want to wait seven months for your next phone, take a look at our roundup of the best iPhone deals to pick up a bargain on the current range.