It was recently revealed that the iPhone 17 is Apple’s most popular lineup of all time, and the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max sit at the very top of that lineup. Yet those who looked closely at the US models were also intrigued by a mysterious strip of plastic on the top of the phone. This strip is on the top edge of the phone, not far from where the power button was on the iPhone 5s and earlier. It really stands out against the all-aluminum body and certainly seems to be hiding some sort of hidden functionality.
Many users guessed the feature correctly, as it turns out that the strip on the top of the iPhone 17 Pro is just a window for a 5G mmWave antenna. Surprisingly, the slot is absent on models outside of some markets. This is because the antenna is only needed in regions that rely on mmWave, such as North America, for 5G high-speed internet.
While this solves the main mystery, other questions remain: why didn’t previous models have the antenna in this position? Why did Apple change the design? Well, it all comes down to the fancy new all-aluminum body that iPhone 17 Pro reviews are praising. Aluminum prevents radio signals, so the slot was most likely a necessity.
Where did previous iPhones hide the 5G antenna?
Without the band on the top of the iPhone 17 Pro (made of an RF-transparent material), users would likely complain about slow 5G speeds in urban areas. As a standard in the US, mmWave 5G has been a steady addition to US iPhone models starting with the iPhone 12. But how have those models handled the antenna?
It depends and it’s quite interesting. On the iPhone 12 Pro, for example, the slot was located below the power button. This changed for the iPhone 14, where Apple moved the slot to the top of the right side of the phone. On the new generation Pro model, the slot was located slightly higher. The iPhone 16 Pro had the antenna at the top behind the back panel, presumably to accommodate the new Camera Control button.
What about the base iPhone 17 model? As iPhone 17 reviews have pointed out, the phone sports an aluminum frame, although the back is glass. So a slot at the top would have been an unnecessary addition, and the antenna was simply hidden behind the rear panel. Regardless, the new stripe at the top of the iPhone 17 Pro is a giveaway to an American model. The clever design may have intrigued users after the Pro model was released, but it’s actually a good position for the mmWave 5G antenna. After all, you can’t accidentally cover it with your finger when using the phone, right?
