iPhone 17 Pro Max Again Rumored to Feature Smaller Dynamic Island Due to Face ID Change - MacRumors
Skip to Content

iPhone 17 Pro Max Again Rumored to Feature Smaller Dynamic Island Due to Face ID Change

The high-end iPhone 17 Pro Max launching next year will feature a smaller Dynamic Island, according to technology analyst Jeff Pu, who has a fairly good track record with Apple rumors. This reiterates information that he first shared in May.

iPhone 17 Pro Max Smaller Notch Feature
In a research note with investment bank Haitong International earlier this month, obtained by MacRumors, Pu said the iPhone 17 Pro Max will adopt a "metalens" for Face ID that results in a "much narrowed" Dynamic Island on the device. He does not expect this change to apply to the smaller iPhone 17 Pro, or any other iPhone 17 models.

While a traditional iPhone camera has curved lenses that redirect light towards the image sensor, a metalens is a thin and flat lens with microscopic patterns etched onto it that can focus light more precisely. In his research note this month, Pu did not provide any specific details about how Apple plans to use a metalens for the Face ID system, nor did he explain how the change would result in a narrower Dynamic Island.

Apple introduced the Dynamic Island on the iPhone 14 Pro models in 2022, and it is also available on all iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 models.

Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 17 series next September, and more details about this metalens may surface over the coming months.

Related Roundups: iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro
Tag: Jeff Pu
Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

astropad fresh coat comparison 4 feature

MacRumors Giveaway: Win an iPhone 17 and Astropad Fresh Coat Anti-Reflective Screen Protector

Friday April 10, 2026 10:50 am PDT by
For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with Astropad to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win one of Apple's iPhone 17 models and a Fresh Coat anti-reflective screen protector from Astropad to use with it. Fresh Coat is a screen protector with an optical-grade anti-reflective coating to minimize glare and provide a better iPhone viewing experience. The technology reduces reflections by ...
better iphone 17 lineup

iPhone 17 Is Apple's Most Popular Lineup Ever

Thursday April 30, 2026 2:01 pm PDT by
Apple's iPhone 17 models are its most popular iPhones to date, Apple CFO Kevan Parekh told the Financial Times. Both Parekh and Apple CEO Tim Cook attributed Apple's stellar Q2 2026 performance to iPhone sales. "The iPhone 17 family is now the most popular line-up in our history... we believe we gained market share during the quarter," said Parekh. Cook told Reuters that iPhone demand was...
iPhone 17 Colors

iPhone 17 Outselling Every Other Phone Worldwide So Far This Year

Wednesday May 6, 2026 2:56 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone 17 was the best-selling smartphone globally in the first quarter of 2026, capturing 6 percent of worldwide unit sales, according to Counterpoint Research's latest Global Handset Model Sales Tracker. The iPhone 17 series dominated the top three spots, with the iPhone 17 Pro Max in second place and the iPhone 17 Pro in third. The previous-generation iPhone 16 also held on at...

Top Rated Comments

Cheruman Avatar
20 months ago
The Dynamic Islet
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
20 months ago
Brace for the Amazing Dynamic Island Mini Pro.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
20 months ago
iPhone 17 Ultra?

* Smaller Dynamic Island
* Upgraded cooling system with vapor chamber technology and graphite sheets
* 12 GB of RAM

All of this is rumored to be exclusive to the Pro Max and not the Pro. I think there's never been so much differentiation between the two Pro models.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BelgianChoklit Avatar
20 months ago
Still can't believe how people just ate the marketing bullkrap of the dynamic island with the 14 pro. It wasn't and never was a feature. Nothing of how Apple uses it where they blend in the pixelless area in those notification bubbles is awesome. All it is is they put more black space around it, that's it. But the amount of people who just went nuts about how awesome it was still shocks me to this day.

The only thing I like about it on my 15 Pro is that it looks more modern, that's it.

I wonder how they're going to market it getting smaller.
"Now more of the black space in notification bubbles are pixels"?
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MedRed Avatar
20 months ago
I'm ready for Apple to get back to innovating instead of being just another tech company. I hope the slower than expected iPhone 16 sales are a wakeup call.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
20 months ago
Apple Innovation 😁
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)