Apple’s largest high-end model in the upcoming iPhone 17 series will feature a smaller Dynamic Island, according to Weibo-based leaker Digital Chat Station. The iPhone 17 Pro Max will adopt a “metalens” for Face ID that integrates the transmitter and receiver components, reducing the size and thickness of structural elements.
This technology will also be applied to the next iPad Pro and a rumored foldable iPad. Unlike traditional iPhone cameras, which use curved lenses to bend light toward the image sensor, metalens is an ultra-thin, flat lens with microscopic nano-structures that precisely control and focus light.
The rumor goes against a January report by Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who claimed the upcoming iPhone 17 models would not feature a smaller Dynamic Island. However, another analyst Jeff Pu previously predicted the iPhone 17 Pro Max would adopt metalens for Face ID.
Apple introduced the Dynamic Island on the iPhone 14 Pro models in 2022 and has since made it available on all iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 models, with no changes to its size. The company is expected to unveil the iPhone 17 series next September.
Source: https://www.macrumors.com/2025/02/13/iphone-17-pro-max-smaller-dynamic-island