iPhone 17 tipped for a major upgrade in an unexpected area

The cycle of new iPhone releases is one of the most relentless out there. No sooner has a new model family been unveiled than the rumour mill starts churning once more.

The iPhone 16 range is just barely six months old, but attention is already firmly placed on the upcoming iPhone 17 range. That's expected to launch later this year, and could even include an all-new model in the iPhone 17 Air.

Still, it's not the only surprise addition. According to the latest rumours, all four models in the iPhone 17 collection could come with a 24-megapixel camera on the front. The news comes renowned analyst Jeff Pu (shared by 9to5Mac).

If it proves true, that would be a seismic change for the devices. Each of the current crop makes use of a 12MP TrueDepth camera on the front, which means the resolution would be doubled for the next-gen handsets.

The report doesn't delve into any more detail about the new sensor, though it's fair to assume it would be almost entirely used to offer superior resolution. Apple has used higher-resolution sensors on the rear of its handsets to offer a digital crop zoom which retains sufficient detail, but that seems fairly useless on a front-facing camera.

Still, it does make some sense. These days – with the rise of platforms like TikTok – front-facing cameras are more important than ever, with many documenting their lives through the selfie lens. That added resolution should do a lot to sure up the iPhones status as a go-to handset for content creators and influencers.

With around six months to go before we'd expect to see the new range, there's still time for even more rumours and leaks to emerge. Still, based on what we know so far, it's clear that the iPhone 17 range could go down as one of the biggest turning points in Apple history.