iPhone 17 Pro Scratches Raise 'Scuffgate 2.0' Fears on Launch Day

Apple’s highly anticipated iPhone 17 launch day has been clouded by a growing number of reports from early buyers and journalists noting cosmetic damage on brand-new devices. The deep blue variant of the iPhone 17 Pro and the black version of the iPhone 17 Air are reportedly showing scuffs and scratches with surprising ease, in some cases straight out of the box or after only a few hours on display at Apple Stores.

eSIM iPhone 17 Pro models have bigger batteries - here’s why

On the 17 Pro line, Apple uses the space freed up by removing the SIM tray to fit a slightly larger battery in eSIM-only units. The gain is around 5–7% capacity, which can translate into a modest bump in runtime. Earlier iPhones (14–16) didn’t get bigger batteries in the U.S.; this appears to be new with the 17 Pro generation.

iOS 26 gives Powerbeats Pro 2 real fitness upgrades

With the release of iOS 26, Apple has unlocked a powerful new set of features for Powerbeats Pro 2 owners, transforming the popular earbuds into a capable, standalone fitness tracker. A companion firmware update rolling out now allows the earbuds to send live workout data directly to the Apple Fitness app, removing the need for an Apple Watch to track key health metrics during exercise.