iPhone 17's Camera Island Design May Get a Radical Overhaul
Rumors suggest Apple might introduce a horizontal camera island for the iPhone 17, departing from its current square layout.
Apple’s iPhone design has seen relatively few changes over the years, particularly when it comes to the rear camera island. For nearly five years, since the iPhone 11 Pro series in 2019, Apple has stuck with a square camera island featuring a triangular lens array. This design, widely known as the “stove top” look, has been present in the iPhone 12, 13, 14, and 15 series, including the recent iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max. However, rumors circulating this week suggest that next year’s iPhone 17 may feature a significant redesign of the rear camera layout.
According to a report from the reputable tipster Digital Chat Station, the iPhone 17 could adopt a completely different camera island shape—a horizontal bar running across the top of the rear panel. This new design, which has been compared to that of the Google Pixel 9 Pro, has reportedly been hinted at by an image of a metal chassis frame that surfaced online. The image, said to have come from a parts supplier, clearly shows a cut-out designed for this “strip runway” style camera island.
The source also provided a render showing what the iPhone 17 might look like with the new horizontal camera array, though the exact configuration of the lenses remains speculative. Digital Chat Station suggests that other Android phone manufacturers may follow suit in adopting similar horizontal camera islands next year, though there is no confirmation of this yet.
The change could provide much-needed aesthetic variety for the iPhone, which has been criticized for its lack of significant design updates in recent years. However, the decision to alter the camera array may not solely be driven by aesthetic preferences. The positioning of the rear cameras is tightly connected to other internal components, such as the logic board and battery. If Apple does move the lenses to a horizontal strip, it could be part of a broader redesign aimed at optimizing internal space, possibly to accommodate a larger battery or other hardware improvements.
Despite these intriguing rumors, it may still be several months before more concrete leaks or details surface to confirm whether the iPhone 17 will feature this radically different camera island design. For now, Apple fans will have to wait for further updates as the 2024 iPhone approaches.