Apple will unveil the iPhone 17 series on Tuesday, but the last-minute rumors keep piling up ahead of the official launch event. A new leak lists the battery capacities for all four iPhone 17 models, which isn’t especially surprising. Every year, the battery capacities for the new iPhones leak ahead of the launch event. Apple never mentions them during the keynote or in the marketing materials on its website. Instead, Apple publishes battery life estimates for each new iPhone model. Teardowns of the actual devices confirm those rumors a few days after the iPhones hit stores. What is surprising is that the eSIM versions will apparently have larger battery cells than the SIM models.
If this new rumor is accurate, the iPhone 17 series will mark the first time Apple uses different battery packs for eSIM and SIM versions of the same iPhone model. Apple introduced eSIM-only iPhones with the iPhone 14 series in 2022, but only for the U.S. market. iPhones launched in other countries featured regular SIM slots. However, Apple didn’t repurpose the internal space dedicated to the SIM card to increase battery life for the U.S. models. Therefore, the eSIM-only and SIM versions of the same iPhone shipped with identical batteries.
The iPhone 17 series will reportedly feature an iPhone 17 Air model that replaces the iPhone Plus. The ultra-thin Air is expected to come in an eSIM-only version in more markets. But the other three iPhone 17 variants in the series would still ship with eSIM and SIM options.
How big are the iPhone 17 batteries?
Leaker ShrimpApplePro (via MacRumors) shared a screenshot on X of what appears to be regulatory filings from China. The document mentions purported battery capacities for all four iPhone 17 models, including differences between eSIM-only and SIM versions of the same device.
The real battery capacity of the 17 series from Chinese regulatory pic.twitter.com/6gG1FrfTUi
— ShrimpApplePro 🍤 ずっと真夜中でいいのに (@VNchocoTaco) September 8, 2025
Here are the iPhone 17 battery sizes, according to the leaker:
- iPhone 17: 3,692 mAh (SIM and eSIM versions)
- iPhone 17 Air: 3,036 mAh (SIM) and 3,149 mAh (eSIM)
- iPhone 17 Pro: 3,988 mAh (SIM) and 4,252 mAh (eSIM)
- iPhone 17 Pro Max: 4,823 mAh (SIM) and 5,088 mAh (eSIM)
MacRumors notes that it has access to the same regulatory database, but it couldn’t find the battery capacities mentioned above. If the figures are real, they confirm some iPhone 17 battery rumors from earlier this year: The iPhone 17 Air battery will sit at around 3,000 mAh, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max will be the first iPhone with a battery exceeding 5,000 mAh.
Will the iPhone 17 Air feature a SIM card?
The figures above also indicate that all iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max will have larger batteries than their predecessors, even those featuring physical SIM slots. Therefore, battery life should see improvements across the board. Here are the battery capacities for the iPhone 16 models:
- iPhone 16: 3,561 mAh
- iPhone 16 Pro: 3,582 mAh
- iPhone 16 Pro Max: 4,685 mAh
While the eSIM iPhone 17 models would have larger batteries than the ones featuring SIM card slots, it’s unlikely buyers will be able to choose which version to buy. That said, it’s interesting to see the iPhone 17 Air listed in two options. While most rumors suggested the iPhone 17 Air wouldn’t have a SIM slot, Apple might make some exceptions. This would explain why the documentation the leaker found includes two battery capacities for the iPhone 17 Air model.
China might be one of the countries where Apple sells the iPhone 17 Air version with a SIM card slot, but that’s only speculation. Apple should clarify everything during its press event on Tuesday.