In the vast landscape of the mobile phone industry, Apple stands out as a unique entity. Despite the significant strides made by other manufacturers in the high-end flagship segment, Apple remains largely unchallenged. While competitors release a myriad of mid-to-low-end models to maintain sales, Apple relies solely on its annual September flagship releases, consistently dominating sales charts and raking in a substantial portion of the industry's profits. This trend shows no signs of abating in the coming years. Recently, the iPhone 17 series models have begun to surface online, offering a glimpse into Apple's upcoming offerings.

A few days ago, CAD-based mockups of the iPhone 17 leaked, but the limited comparison content left much to be desired in terms of understanding the phones' aesthetics. Today, however, leakers have shared a side-by-side comparison image of all four iPhone 17 series models, providing a comprehensive view of their designs from various angles.

Regarding the rear camera setup, the iPhone 17 series introduces an unprecedented diversity within a single lineup, featuring four distinct designs. Notably, the iPhone 17 boasts a relatively compact camera module, whereas the other three models exhibit larger empty spaces around their camera modules. The iPhone 17 Air, in particular, raises questions with its single rear camera, which limits its ability to shoot spatial videos and theoretically makes it less capable in photography compared to the other models. Nevertheless, its camera module is unusually large, leaving one to ponder Apple's design rationale behind this decision.

Upon closer inspection, it appears that the iPhone 17 Air's camera module protrudes more prominently than the others. Given its lack of a crucial photography function, the reason for this added thickness remains unclear. Speculation abounds that Apple may have incorporated undisclosed functional configurations within the iPhone 17 Air's camera module. Whether this is a mere mystery or a calculated move will become evident when the new models are released in six months.

From another perspective, the differences in appearance become even more apparent. The iPhone 17 Air stands out as significantly thinner than the other three models but suffers from a more pronounced camera protrusion. The iPhone 17 Pro Max, on the far left, not only sports a bulging camera but is also the thickest of the bunch, leading to jokes that the iPhone 17 Air's slender profile is achieved by making the Pro version even thicker. With the 16 Pro Max already weighing 227 grams, the increased thickness and larger size of the 17 Pro Max suggest a weight potentially exceeding 250 grams, earning Apple the unofficial moniker of "Apple Half-Kilo," echoing Sony's previous "Sony Half-Kilo" nickname.

Subtle changes are also evident in the front design. The thinnest iPhone 17 Air features a front camera that seems slightly offset to the left. Whether this design aesthetic will resonate with consumers will ultimately be determined by sales figures when the real phones hit the market in six months.

Among these four models, which one piques your interest the most?