Expectations are now firmly set: iPhone 17 Pro will come with a higher starting price and one less storage option.
The latest leak from Weibo joins others in claiming the model will start at $1,049 for 256GB of storage, up from $999 for 128GB on the iPhone 16 Pro.
The change drops the entry-level 128GB configuration entirely, leaving buyers with 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB options. That’s down from four tiers last year.
Apple has used this strategy before. In 2023, the company raised the iPhone 15 Pro Max starting price from $1,099 to $1,199 while making 256GB the new base storage.
At the time, that move allowed Apple to justify a price increase by offering more storage out of the gate. The iPhone 17 Pro appears set to follow the same playbook two years later.
Last week, this leaker suggested a $50 price bump for the Pro lineup but left storage details unconfirmed. Today’s update from Instant Digital confirms the iPhone 17 Pro will start at 256GB, setting expectations ahead of September’s launch. The iPhone 17 Pro Max is still expected to start at 256GB, while the standard iPhone 17 and the new iPhone 17 Air are likely to begin at 128GB.
Pricing for the lineup is expected to start at $799 for the base model, matching last year, with the Air replacing the Plus at $949. The iPhone 17 Pro will come in at $1,049, and the Pro Max at $1,249, each $50 higher than their predecessors. Whether the Pro Max gains a base storage increase remains unconfirmed, but it’s unlikely.
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