Request a product

Apple iPhone 17 vs Apple iPhone 4S

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

Better figure, where one is clearly better

AppleiPhone 17AppleiPhone 4S
Overview
ReleasedSeptember 2025October 2011
Display
Screen size6.3″3.5″
Resolution2622 × 1206960 × 640
Sharpness458 pixels per inch330 pixels per inch
PanelLTPO OLEDLCD
Refresh rate120 Hz60 Hz
Peak brightness3,000 nits500 nits
Display typeSuper Retina XDR OLED display with Dynamic IslandRetina display; 3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen Multi-Touch display
Pixel density460 ppi326 ppi
Brightness detail1,000 nits max (typical); 1,600 nits peak (HDR); 1 nit minimum500 cd/m² max brightness (typical)
Always-on displayYes–
Screen protectionCeramic Shield 2 frontFingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating on front and back
Display featuresProMotion adaptive refresh; HDR; True Tone; Wide colour (P3); Haptic Touch; 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio (typical); anti-reflective coating800:1 contrast ratio (typical)
Performance
ChipA19A5
Memory8 GB512 MB
Storage256 GB, 512 GB8 GB, 16 GB, 32 GB, 64 GB
CPU6-core CPU with 2 performance and 4 efficiency coresDual-core 1.0 GHz Cortex-A9 (GSMArena); 512 MB of LPDDR2 RAM (iFixit)
GPU5-core GPU with Neural Accelerators; hardware-accelerated ray tracingPowerVR SGX543MP2 (GSMArena)
AI engine16-core Neural Engine–
Cameras
Main camera48 MP8 MP
Ultra wide camera48 MPNone
Telephoto cameraNoneNone
Optical zoomNoneNone
Front camera18 MP0.3 MP
Main camera48MP Fusion Main, 26 mm, ƒ/1.6 aperture, sensor-shift optical image stabilisation, 100% Focus Pixels; 24MP and 48MP photos8-megapixel camera with autofocus, tap to focus, face detection in still images and LED flash
Ultra wide camera48MP Fusion Ultra Wide, 13 mm, ƒ/2.2 aperture, 120° field of view, Hybrid Focus Pixels; 24MP and 48MP photos–
Front camera18MP Center Stage camera, ƒ/1.9 aperture, autofocus with Focus PixelsVGA-quality photos and video at up to 30 fps
Zoom12MP optical-quality 2x Telephoto (52 mm) from the Main camera; 2x optical zoom in, 2x optical zoom out (4x optical zoom range); digital zoom up to 10x–
Video recording4K Dolby Vision at 24, 25, 30 or 60 fps; 1080p Dolby Vision at 25, 30 or 60 fps; Cinematic mode up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps; Action mode up to 2.8K Dolby Vision at 60 fps; slo-mo 1080p at 120 or 240 fps; spatial video 1080p at 30 fps; Dual Capture up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps; HEVC and H.264HD (1080p) up to 30 fps with audio; video stabilisation
Front video4K Dolby Vision at 24, 25, 30 or 60 fps; Cinematic mode up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps; slo-mo 1080p at 120 fps; ultra-stabilised video; Centre Stage for video calls–
Camera featuresPhotonic Engine; Deep Fusion; Smart HDR 5; next-generation portraits with Focus and Depth Control; Night mode; Photographic Styles; spatial photos; 48MP macro photography; Camera ControlPhoto and video geotagging
Battery and charging
Battery3,692 mAh1,432 mAh
Video playback (maker's claim)Up to 30 hoursUp to 10 hours
Wireless chargingUp to 25 WNone
Battery life detailUp to 27 hours streamed video playback; EU energy label class A, 41 hours per charge, at least 1,000 charge cyclesTalk time up to 8 hours on 3G or 14 hours on 2G (GSM); standby up to 200 hours; internet use up to 6 hours on 3G or 9 hours on Wi-Fi; video playback up to 10 hours; audio playback up to 40 hours; 3.7 V, 5.3 Wh, 1,432 mAh (iFixit)
Wired chargingUp to 50% in 20 minutes with a 40W adapter or higher (sold separately)Charging via USB to a computer or power adapter
Wireless chargingMagSafe and Qi2 up to 25W with a 30W adapter or higher; up to 50% in 30 minutes–
Connectivity
Satellite messagingYes–
Mobile network5G (sub-6GHz) with 4x4 MIMO; Gigabit LTE with 4x4 MIMO; UK model A3520World phone; UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA (850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz); GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz); CDMA EV-DO Rev. A (800, 1900 MHz)
SIMDual SIM (nano-SIM and eSIM); dual eSIM supportMicro-SIM (GSMArena)
Wi-FiWi-Fi 7 (802.11be) with 2x2 MIMO; Apple N1 wireless networking chipWi-Fi 802.11b/g/n (802.11n 2.4GHz only)
BluetoothBluetooth 6; ThreadBluetooth 4.0
Ultra WidebandApple second-generation Ultra Wideband chip–
NFCNFC with reader mode; Express Cards with Power Reserve–
Satellite featuresEmergency SOS via satellite; Roadside Assistance via satellite–
USBUSB-C with charging, DisplayPort and USB 2 (up to 480Mb/s); video out up to 4K HDR30-pin dock connector; 3.5 mm stereo headphone minijack; video mirroring and video out up to 1080p with the Apple Digital AV Adapter or Apple VGA Adapter (sold separately); AirPlay Mirroring to Apple TV at 720p
PositioningPrecision dual-frequency GPS (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, BeiDou and NavIC); digital compass; iBeacon micro-locationAssisted GPS; digital compass; Wi-Fi; cellular
Design
TypeStandardStandard
Weight177 g140 g
Thickness7.95 mm9.3 mm
Height × width149.6 × 71.5 mm115.2 × 58.6 mm
Water and dust resistanceIP68–
MaterialsAluminium design; colour-infused glass back (Black, Mist Blue, Sage, Lavender)Glass front, glass back and stainless steel frame (GSMArena)
ColoursBlack, White, Mist Blue, Sage, LavenderWhite, black
ButtonsAction button; Camera Control; side button; volume up/down–
Water resistance detailIP68 (maximum depth of 6 metres up to 30 minutes) under IEC standard 60529–
BiometricsFace ID–
SensorsBarometer; high dynamic range gyro; high-g accelerometer; proximity sensor; dual ambient light sensorsThree-axis gyro; accelerometer; proximity sensor; ambient light sensor
SpeakersBuilt-in stereo speakers–
MicrophonesBuilt-in microphones; Voice Isolation and Wide Spectrum modes–
Software
Operating systemiOSiOS
Software at launchiOS 26iOS 5, with Siri
Software updatesSecurity, corrective and functionality updates for at least 5 years after it stops being sold (EU product information sheet)–
AI featuresApple Intelligence; Visual Intelligence–
Safety featuresCrash Detection–
In the boxiPhone 17, USB-C Charge Cable (1 m), documentation; no power adapter–

More comparisons