With the iPhone 17 series on the horizon, one of the biggest questions on everyone's minds is when we can expect to buy the next generation of Apple phones.
The first question to answer is what phones will actually be announced, or at least which are the most likely to be announced. We’re expecting Apple to announce the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max and the iPhone 17 Air. For those looking for news about the first foldable iPhone, we’ll likely be waiting for at least another year for it to launch, but a teaser of Apple's folding phone plans might be possible.
But, returning to the immediate future, what do we know about the possible announcement and release dates for Apple's next generation of smartphones?
Tuesday September 9, 2025: The Apple Event
Speaking of a teaser, Apple's “Awe Dropping” event has been announced, with the event taking place on September 9. The event will have a start time of 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT / 6 p.m. BST. You’ll be able to watch the event live as it happens through a stream on Apple’s website, in addition to its YouTube channel.
While Apple has remained quiet on what the actual lineup will be, we’re pretty confident that the iPhone 17 will be the main focus. Apple usually announces its new phones in September, with last year's iPhone 16 series also announced on September 9 (although that was a Monday rather than Tuesday) last year. So the announcement of new iPhones during "Awe Dropping" would fit with the company's general M.O.
Friday September 12: Preorders expected to go live
Keeping Apple’s usual habits in mind, we can reasonably gauge when customers will be able to preorder the phone. Apple usually aims to have preorders available on the Friday following the event itself. For instance, the iPhone 16's preorders went live on September 13. With that in mind, we'd expect preorders for the iPhone 17 to start on Friday, September 12.
In terms of what time we can expect people to be able to start preordering, Apple usually has them go live around 8 a.m. EST/5 p.m. PST/1 p.m. BST. You'll likely be able to preorder at most major retailers, as well as from Apple's own store.
Friday, September 19 2025: iPhone 17 expected to hit the shelves
What about if you’re not looking to preorder and want to grab the phone when it goes on sale instead? Historically, Apple tends to release its phone to the general public a week after the event, again on a Friday. In this case, that would mean that the iPhone 17 will enter stores on Friday, September 19. However, it is worth noting that stores will aim to supply the pre-orders first, so you might be waiting a while if you don’t plan on doing so.
With all that, it looks like it’s going to be an exciting couple of weeks in the lead-up to the event. If you want to keep track of all the rumors and leaks, then the best thing you can do is to check our iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Air hubs. We aim to keep these as up to date as we can with all the news and rumors as we see them. We’ll also have a Live Blog covering the event closer to Tuesday, so keep your eyes peeled.
More from Tom's Guide
- iPhone 17 vs iPhone 17 Air vs iPhone 17 Pro: Here's all the new rumored features
- iPhone Fold could feature something iPhone users have been missing for years
- iPhone 17 Pro clear case leak reveals a huge design change — here's what the rumors show
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
