Does iPhone 17 finally solve the annoying overheating problem? Here are the cold (heh!) hard facts

If you’ve used the newer titanium iPhone models — especially the iPhone 15 Pro — you’re probably painfully aware of the overheating problem that Apple’s phones have. Your iPhone gets too hot, throws up a warning, and simply refuses to work until it feels better again.

Apple, thankfully, somewhat acknowledged this issue during its September 9 event, where the company unveiled the iPhone 17 series. The new flagship iPhone 17 Pro and the iPhone Pro Max models have adopted better cooling technology, but will it make a difference?

While our iPhone 17 review is still being worked on — which is why we don’t have a conclusive answer just yet — there’s a lot we can infer based on how the new models are built. Let’s dive in.

iPhone 17 Pro has better cooling

Apple has, at long last, brought vapor chamber cooling to the iPhone 17 Pro. Previously, all iPhone models had to make do with graphite sheets instead. While that isn’t a poor cooling solution, it’s not nearly as effective as a competently-designed vapor chamber.

The problem only got exacerbated when Apple introduced titanium builds. There was a lot of heat getting trapped inside the iPhone models of the last two years, leading to the consistent overheating and warning messages.

Apple made a big deal about its new vapor chamber at the event, complete with a fancy video about how it worked. But, long story short, this alone would have likely been enough to solve the overheating issues on the iPhone. Apple, however, went further this year.

Back to aluminum

With the iPhone 17 Pro, Apple has ended its very brief foray into titanium phones. While I am a bit bummed about that — titanium genuinely looks super cool — this is ultimately a good thing. Aluminum is much better at dissipating heat away from a phone’s internal components.

Coupled with the vapor chamber, the iPhone 17 Pro models are now cooling themselves a lot better than their predecessors. And there’s still more!

The new design is superb at keeping cool

Many consumers have publicly and loudly expressed their dislike for the iPhone 17 Pro redesign. And, that’s fair. Looks are subjective: for example, I think that the iPhone 17 Pro looks great. But the new design does serve a higher function.

According to popular tech YouTuber Mrwhosetheboss, the new iPhone 17 Pro redesign does something quite clever: it only uses glass where it needs to.

The iPhone 17 Pro is thicker than its predecessor, and also has a look that, as I mentioned above, many of you disliked. This is because Apple is nudging you towards the iPhone Air, and the Pro models are transitioning to becoming actual professional devices that prioritize function over form.

As such, Apple made even more of the iPhone 17 Pro’s body out of metal than glass, which is usually found on the back for better wireless charging but is poor at dissipating heat. That window on the rear of the Pro? This is where the phone absolutely needed glass, and everything else is aluminum.

In theory, this should mean that the iPhone 17 Pro is 200 (yes, two hundred!) times better at getting rid of heat than the iPhone 16 Pro!

So, does the iPhone 17 Pro solve the overheating problem?

As mentioned before, our review is still pending, and so there isn’t one absolutely conclusive answer that I can give you right now. But, if I had to bet money, I’d say that the iPhone 17 Pro has solved the overheating problems.

The vapor chamber, the aluminum chassis, the reduced use of glass, the more intelligent power management in iOS 26, and the more efficient A19 Pro chip all come together to make an excellent phone

While there may still be another unforeseen issue that might make the iPhone 17 Pro overheat anyway, I highly doubt that this will be the case. The iPhone 17 Pro will be a professional phone that will deliver on its promises, whatever it takes.

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