One of Apple’s new steps with the iPhone 17 series will be installing a more robust cooling system in the largest and most expensive handset.
The iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature a vapour chamber as an additional passive cooling solution for the first time, instead of just graphite sheets, according to reputed Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
Apple uses hardware and software cooling, such as heat-dispersing graphite sheets, processor frequency throttling, lowering the display brightness, and even shutting down the phone if necessary.
As a result of the heat pipe principle, vapour chambers provide a flat, vacuum-sealed enclosure with a small amount of fluid inside. Upon contact with heat, the finned sink’s fluid evaporates to condense in cooler areas, absorbing the heat. The heat then gets wicked back to the heat source, maintaining a more stable system with less thermal throttling.
With a vapour chamber, the iPhone 17 Pro Max will stay cool under pressure for longer and might be a sign of things to come with its Apple A19 series processor. For the flagship 2025 iPhone, Apple might cook something even faster and more powerful than the A18 Pro chipset that will power the iPhone 16 Pro Max.
