iPhone 17 Professional faces "Scratchgate" as early patrons report injury

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TL;DR

Early iPhone 17 Professional and Professional Max patrons and customers are reporting scratches and scuffs simply days after launch. Tech YouTuber JerryRigEverything additionally discovered that the sharp edges across the digicam bump chip are simply broken as a result of Apple’s design selections this yr. Buyers worldwide are reporting scratches on show fashions and early items, with “Scratchgate” now trending on social media platforms.

Simply days after Apple launched its newest flagship handsets, the iPhone 17 Professional and 17 Professional Max, the corporate is going through excessive criticism from early customers. A rising wave of complaints from patrons, buyers heading to choose up the brand new Professional iPhones, and tech reviewers who're placing the units by means of their paces suggests the premium fashions could also be unusually susceptible to scratches and scuffs. The controversy has already earned the nickname “Scratchgate.”

A sturdiness check from Zack Nelson of the favored JerryRigEverything YouTube channel exhibits that the sharp, unprotected corners across the digicam bump scratch very simply. Based on Neslon, the difficulty boils right down to Apple’s design change. The anodized aluminum coating on the iPhone 17 Professional and Professional Max “doesn't keep on with corners very nicely,” Nelson famous. This leaves the telephones’ edges uncovered to break.

“For some cause, Apple didn’t add a chamfer, fillet, or radius across the digicam plateau, and I believe it was intentional, so it appears to be like cooler,” the YouTuber mentioned. “However that call to look cool out of the field goes to plague everybody who owns this cellphone down the highway,” he warned.

Nelson claimed that on a regular basis pocket contents like cash and home keys may rapidly chip away on the coating, leaving seen scars on the brand new iPhones.

Demo unit iPhone 17 Professional scratches on day 1… (it’s not even 24 hours but)

Use a case instantly for those who don’t wait to expertise this sort of situation. I’m very disillusioned with the standard right here pic.twitter.com/zRjIQrl3zA <img class="e_xg" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="calc(min(calc(100vw - 1.875rem), 51.25rem) / 2)" title="Scratched iPhone 17 Pro 1" srcset="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-1.jpeg 1536w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-1-48w-64h.jpeg 48w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-1-1000w-1333h.jpeg 1000w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-1-1080w-1440h.jpeg 1080w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-1-810w-1080h.jpeg 810w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-1-648w-864h.jpeg 648w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-1-285w-380h.jpeg 285w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-1-675w-900h.jpeg 675w" alt="Scratched iPhone 17 Pro 1" src="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-1.jpeg"/><img class="e_xg" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="calc(min(calc(100vw - 1.875rem), 51.25rem) / 2)" title="Scratched iPhone 17 Pro 2" srcset="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-2.jpeg 1536w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-2-48w-64h.jpeg 48w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-2-1000w-1333h.jpeg 1000w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-2-1080w-1440h.jpeg 1080w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-2-810w-1080h.jpeg 810w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-2-648w-864h.jpeg 648w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-2-285w-380h.jpeg 285w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-2-675w-900h.jpeg 675w" alt="Scratched iPhone 17 Pro 2" src="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-2.jpeg"/> <img class="e_xg" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="calc(min(calc(100vw - 1.875rem), 51.25rem) / 2)" title="Scratched iPhone 17 Pro 4" srcset="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-4.jpeg 1200w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-4-64w-48h.jpeg 64w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-4-1000w-750h.jpeg 1000w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-4-1152w-864h.jpeg 1152w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-4-507w-380h.jpeg 507w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-4-675w-506h.jpeg 675w" alt="Scratched iPhone 17 Pro 4" src="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-4.jpeg"/><img class="e_xg" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="calc(min(calc(100vw - 1.875rem), 51.25rem) / 2)" title="Scratched iPhone 17 Pro 3" srcset="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-3.jpeg 1200w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-3-64w-36h.jpeg 64w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-3-1000w-562h.jpeg 1000w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-3-675w-379h.jpeg 675w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-3-300w-170h.jpeg 300w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-3-840w-472h.jpeg 840w" alt="Scratched iPhone 17 Pro 3" src="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Scratched-iPhone-17-Pro-3.jpeg"/> Nelson’s findings are additionally being echoed by customers worldwide. Based on Bloomberg, Apple Retailer demo items in cities from New York to Hong Kong confirmed scratches inside hours of being placed on show. Buyers noticed that the deep blue variants of the iPhone 17 Professional and Professional Max had been notably vulnerable to scratching, whereas the black iPhone Air and Apple’s assertion Cosmic Orange iPhone Professional additionally displayed seen put on.

Bloomberg additionally famous that Apple’s personal MagSafe charger leaves very seen round imprints on the again of the brand new Professional fashions.

Apple switched to a brand new aluminum shell for the Professional iPhones this yr to enhance warmth dissipation and cut back weight. Nonetheless, early proof means that the brand new construct could also be much less resilient to real-world use.

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In China, one in every of Apple’s greatest markets, the backlash about scratches on the brand new iPhones is already trending on platforms like Weibo. Images of scratched iPhone 17 fashions are additionally flooding social media platforms like X.

For now, Apple has not formally responded to the complaints. However with patrons paying premium costs for the corporate’s Professional lineup, strain is mounting on the Cupertino firm to deal with the difficulty.