On the ninth day of the ninth month in the year 2025, Apple revealed the much-anticipated iPhone 17 Pro. This latest model’s specifications echo the capabilities seen in premium gaming PCs.

A Not So Ordinary Device

With features that include a high-refresh screen, support for hardware-accelerated ray tracing, and tensor cores in its upgraded GPU, one might be led to think this is a pitch for a new gaming machine instead of a smartphone. What’s more, it incorporates vapor-chamber cooling to manage the heat emitted by its powerful A19 Pro chip.

To quote Apple, “deionized water is sealed inside the vapor chamber… allowing it to operate at even higher performance levels.” They assert that this new cooling system enhances the chip’s sustained performance by a whopping 40% over its predecessor, the A18 Pro.

Much like high-end graphics cards in PCs, Apple introduces Neural Accelerators to the A19 Pro’s GPU. These enhancements are designed for advanced machine learning tasks, comparable to dedicated hardware found in gaming GPUs.

But Is It Necessary?

Nonetheless, one must ask if such high-performance features are genuinely needed in a smartphone where user experience often relies more on battery life than raw power. While the iPhone 17 Pro aims to provide a compelling mix of functionality and performance, for many users, low-key devices like the Steam Deck may still reign supreme.

Overall, while the new iPhone offers groundbreaking specs reminiscent of gaming PCs, its necessity in the mobile phone market remains uncertain.