Is iPhone 17 save the company from the competition pressure?

Apple, the American technology giant, is preparing to unveil one of its biggest strategic bets in years, with expectations to launch an entirely new version of the iPhone 17, as part of a serious attempt to restore momentum in the smart phone market, which is dominated by competitors. But the most important question remains: Will the new design be enough to revive the growth in the most profitable Apple product?

IPhone thinner .. A new design for the first revenue engine

According to reports from “Bloomberg”, “Wall Street Journal”, and The Information website, Apple plans to launch a unique version of its kind temporarily known as “iPhone Selim”, which is expected to come with a thinner design by a millimeter compared to current versions. This version is likely to replace the iPhone Plus, to become part of the new iPhone 17 series that is expected to be discovered in late 2025.
This phone is seen as the biggest change in the iPhone design since the launch of the iPhone X in 2017, a phone that then canceled the home page.

Stable sales and accumulated challenges

Although iPhone sales revenues remained almost stable in the first fiscal quarter of 2025, the phone’s performance did not achieve the “Wall Street” expectations, and the company also witnessed a slowdown in the rate of growth of revenue from smartphones compared to its total profits, which increased by 4%.
Apple faces several challenges that directly affect the continuity of the growth of the iPhone sector, most notably the consumer retaining their phones for longer periods, decrease in iPhone sales in the Asian markets, and the rise of competing Chinese companies in the forefront of which is Xiaomi and Huawei, and Apple was late in employing artificial intelligence in its phones in an attractive and clear way

Artificial intelligence .. deferred bet

Apple had been marketed for the iPhone 16 as a first step towards integrating artificial intelligence into its devices, but recently announced the postponement of the full capabilities of these advantages, which raised questions about the company’s readiness to keep pace with this global trend.
Analysts believe that the combination of the new design with smart technologies may represent the last opportunity against Apple to present a real boom in a saturated and sharp competition.

Samsung seizes Apple’s lost chances

Patrick Mopers, CEO of “Moore Insights & Strategy”, said that the pressure on Apple is greater than ever, especially with the success of Samsung to acquire a larger share of the market thanks to its phones with larger screens and leading technologies.
Apple’s thinner design is a direct attempt to confront this superiority, especially in the markets where the exterior is a decisive factor in the purchase decision, such as the Chinese market.

China .. a critical priority in the Apple strategy

Nabila Boubal, director of the analysis team at International Market Research, says that the new iPhone design may have a positive resonance in China, as consumers give great importance to the appearance of the external phone.
Also read: IOS 16.3 update .. Apple seeks to avoid iPhone breakdowns
Despite this, Apple faces major challenges in the Chinese market such as Apple’s revenue decreased in China from $ 21 billion to $ 18.5 billion in the first fiscal quarter, iPhone sales decreased by 25% on an annual basis in China, and the rise of local competitors such as Xiaomi, which exceeded Apple to become the second largest brand for smartphones globally, according to the data of “Countelboint Research”

Are the advantages of iPhone enough?

Some analysts believe that the new design alone will not be sufficient to persuade consumers to replace their phones, especially in light of the slowdown of the replacement cycle, and the users’ retention of their phones for longer years than before.
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According to experts, it needs to provide real added value such as improving the experience of artificial intelligence actually, developing the battery, camera and operational benefits, and launching exclusive benefits that the consumer feels that he gets a “future” phone.

“Apple” between innovation and fear of retreat

While attention turns to what Apple will offer in iPhone 17, the biggest challenge remains to restore growth in the smart phone market in which competition has become more severe than ever.
In the event that the new design and the expected technical advantages cannot attract users, Apple may find itself in a defensive location, in which its leadership gradually loses in favor of companies that precede it in steps in areas such as artificial intelligence, competitive prices, and local assembly in vital markets.