My wife recently upgraded from an iPhone 14 to the 17 Pro, and her perspective as a non-tech-obsessed user has been refreshing.

I went through an unboxing and asked her for some things she liked and didn’t like about the phone.

This is the first time that she has owned a Pro phone and there is a lot to like about the new device as well as some questionable design choices with the new aluminum body.

The free video is available on YouTube:

The rounded edges? Apple nailed it. I was skeptical about going back to aluminum, but it feels premium in hand.

Camera Control isn’t a gimmick. Having instant camera access from the side is genuinely useful in real life.

The front camera now shoots wide automatically when more people join the frame. No more awkward “everyone squeeze in” moments.

But the real star? The cameras are a MASSIVE upgrade over the 14. 48MP main and wide, plus that 8x zoom that honestly impressed me.

Live Activities have been clutch for tracking baby nap times through the Huckleberry app. Parents, you know.

The flashlight control from Dynamic Island? Being able to adjust beam width and brightness with a swipe is one of those small features that just works.

Oh, and the new Siri animation looks cool.

If only Siri wasn’t still absolute garbage.

The iOS 26 keyboard is TERRIBLE. Autocorrect might as well not exist. I’m not this bad at typing—something is seriously broken.

Apple finally made the phone thicker with better battery life (we asked for this!).

But here’s the problem: it’s noticeably heavier. Add a case and it barely fits in girl pockets. The enthusiast minority got what we wanted. Everyone else got a brick.

Live Activities randomly bug out and refuse to work in certain apps. Restart fixes it, but still annoying.

Siri remains an embarrassment. Apple seems to have forgotten that user experience used to be at the center of their products.

Random bug: the clock disappears in some full-screen apps like Solitaire. Weirdly specific, but annoying for parents trying to track time.

The 17 Pro delivers real improvements for everyday users upgrading from older models.

But Apple’s AI shortcomings and iOS bugs are getting harder to ignore.

Want the full breakdown with all the details I couldn’t fit here? Check out my paid Substack below for the complete write-up plus an ad-free version of the video.