iPhone 17 Pro Tipped to Feature L-Shaped Steel-Enclosed Battery With Different Designs for China, US Markets

The launch of the iPhone 17 series is just a month away and the rumour mill is in overdrive, with leaks surfacing rapidly. The battery design of the iPhone 17 Pro has now surfaced and it provides a glimpse of what could power the phone under the hood. It appears to be encased in steel, something which we previously saw on the iPhone 16 Pro. This design element is speculated to result in better heat dissipation among other benefits.

iPhone 17 Pro Battery Design (Expected)

In a blog post, a tipster known as Majin Bu shared a snapshot of the iPhone 17 Pro's battery prototype. It has an L-shaped design to accommodate the logic board and is encased in steel. As per the tipster, this has several benefits linked with it. To begin with, the steel case may provide better heat dissipation and help in thermal management.

The steel enclosure for the battery is also said to provide better structural strength and rigidity to the phone's chassis. It can also be integrated with other functional components, such as Apple's MagSafe charging coil.

iPhone 17 Pro battery for China (left) and US (right) markets
Photo Credit: MajinBu Official

Images shared in the blog post reveal two different variants of the battery. As per the tipster, the Cupertino-based tech giant will integrate batteries with slightly different designs in iPhone 17 Pro units meant for China and the US.

In the units meant for China, the battery size appears to be slightly narrower, with a longer L-shaped cutout. This is to accommodate the physical SIM tray slot which is present on the iPhone models sold in China and other global markets. Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 Pro units for the US market may have a wider battery since Apple does not offer a physical SIM slot, only e-SIM support.

On both variants, the battery's steel casing has a welded edge, according to the tipster, who claims that Apple will use the same electrically induced adhesive debonding technology introduced with the iPhone 16 series to facilitate easier battery replacements. It offers an easy-to-repair design, with the battery being easily removable once a small current is passed through the adhesive.

However, this battery design is said to be a prototype, and it's unclear whether Apple has selected this design for its upcoming iPhone 17 Pro handset, which is expected to debut as early as next month, alongside the iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17, and iPhone 17 Pro Max.