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In a series of rare events, the iPhone 17 Pro has seemingly appeared publicly ahead of its expected September launch. Late Monday, X user @Skyfops shared two images of what can be assumed to be an Apple employee handling a test development iPhone.
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While the iPhone is encased in a security cover, typically used to hide the device's final design, there's a dead giveaway that the model in question is the unreleased iPhone 17 Pro: the right-aligned LiDAR sensor and flash. Even Bloomberg's Mark Gurman thinks the images look legit.
Leaks and rumors have long pointed to the upcoming series of iPhones featuring a redesigned camera bar, with the same arrangement of cameras on the upper-left corner as previous models, flanked by additional sensors on the right side -- all upheld by a protruding module. For phone enthusiasts, think Poco M4 Pro design.
The rumored horizontal camera bar, considered one of the more significant iPhone hardware changes in recent years, will be a welcome change. It suggests that Apple will give the upcoming iPhone models a noticeable upgrade in camera optics. (It also tells me that the iPhones will rock a little less when set on a table.)
Just yesterday, Jon Rossignol of MacRumors shared a tip that the iPhone 17 Pro will feature a new telephoto lens with up to 8x optical zoom (up from 5x on the existing iPhone 16 Pro). The outlet also mentioned the possibility of an additional Camera Control button on the top edge of the device, which is indiscernible in the X post.
The current iPhone 16 Pro has a left-aligned camera module with the LiDAR sensor and flash embedded within.
With regard to the iPhone 17 Pro, the extra-thick security cover in the shared images is likely in place to hide the new camera bar. A second image in the X post shows the test development device being covered with a privacy screen protector, hence the darker shade when viewed at an angle.
Also: You can download iOS 26 public beta right now - how to install (and which iPhones support it)
As for why exactly the Apple employee is out in public testing the iPhone, your guess is as good as mine. Outdoor applications can span from 5G signal testing, screen brightness, camera quality, and more. What's certain is that this is the first time an employee has been captured in public using an unreleased iPhone, one that we're expecting to learn more about in months' time.
ZDNET has reached out to Apple to try to get more details on the matter and will report back with any new information.
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