Apple Reportedly Delaying Launch of 5.5-Inch 'iPhone Air' Due to Battery Issues

[Jsameds]

Bad analogy.

A car doesn't ship with soft tires, the air condition set to high, etc

Being stupid is relative. You can suffer from battery drain without being stupid.

Come to think of it, it is a bad analogy. Maybe a better one would be loading a bunch of stuff into your car and then complaining about the low mileage because you can't be bothered sorting through it and getting rid of the stuff you don't want.

The iPhone's battery right out of the box is just fine, you could get a few days out of it if you really wanted to, it's when you bog it down your own stuff without properly organising it that the battery life starts to suffer.

 

[AppleWarMachine]

make it really thin, so we can call it the Air (but it will only have 6 hours of battery life)

 

[ewkp]

my heart is set on the 5.5'' iphone. i REALLY hope i don't have to wait until 2015.

 

[Piggie]

Ok let me get this right.

There is a battery that will power the 4.7" iPhone

The 5.5" iPhone would be the exact same phone, same thickness but a larger in height and width device.

The only power difference would be an extra 0.8" diagonal screen size, same pixel count. So a "tiny" bit larger backlight.

Yet given the larger in X and Y size of the larger model, a battery that's also larger in X and Y can't handle it.

Hmmmmmm, sounds a load of bull.

Or are we to believe Apple don't spec the size of the battery but just look thru a battery catalog in the hope one will fit?

 

[FelixDerKater]

We made it 10% thinner so you can buy a battery case that's 10% thicker and make Mophie 10% richer.

 

[LostSoul80]

iPad Air?!?, Thats a rediculous name theyll never use that!!,!! They have a computer already named like that

Right?

 

[Jsameds]

Hey - I think your suggestions are great. I'm looking at the conversation from a few steps back though - and my original point. It would be great if a customer didn't have to tweak their phone to get a good amount of usage. And I'd sacrifice a MM or two for better battery life. It's a worthy sacrifice to me. So I don't have to start turning things on and off.

Apologies I must have misunderstood somewhere along the line. Anyway, I think it's a balance. Yes Apple have to do their part to allow you get the most juice out of the product as possible, but you also have to take a little bit of responsibility yourself, by keeping the stuff you don't use turned off and also not just piling a load of stuff on there without sorting through the settings to suit your individual needs.

Also the makers of apps too. How is the average Joe supposed to know that Facebook location services are a massive drain? The answer: They shouldn't have to know. The app makers should make their apps as efficient as possible, sadly a lot of them don't.

 

[VulchR]

Do you guys go in the Amazon rainforest or somewhere that you can't plug the phone on the evenings and charge it?

Scottish highlands - a place where having a phone with GPS can be a lifesaver. Just sayin'.

 

[winston1236]

Sorry no new features, but we made it thinner seems to be the new Apple slogan.

 

[D.T.]

I’ve been thinking about the rumors of 4.7 and 5.5” (or larger) devices. If releasing two sizes is being given consideration, I wonder if it might possibly be a new product in two different product lines:

4.7” iPhone, 16:9, runs phone apps
5.x” iPad with cellular voice, like a phone, but 4:3 tablet ratio and runs iPad apps

That sounds like a plausible rumor, I’m going with it, call me an analyst! Post this up on hundreds of blogs! Tweet it! Woo!

 

[sixrom]

my heart is set on the 5.5'' iphone. i REALLY hope i don't have to wait until 2015.

If Apple ever builds this it'll be wildly popular. I'd buy one now, but four months or more is too darn late.

As it is I've already switched to a Nexus 5, liked it so much I added a line and bought a Note 3. All because Apple drove me to.

I've had every iPhone including the 5S but got fed up with the tiny screen. Now with a spacious display on both my Androids and the amazing fast and fun SWYPE keyboard there's simply no contest.

 

[Zatchu]

We Need a Battery that will last! Please don't make the 5.5 phone so thin

Why does the new 5.5 iPhone have to be so thin? If you ask the public that is going to buy the phones what they want they will tell Apple WE want a phone that the battery will last all day with constant use of the internet photo taking watching movies and listing to music, With out having to turn everything off on the phone just to get it to last for over six hours!
Make the 5.5 or what ever size large iPhone thick enough to hold a battery that will last all day Please. Like the iPhone 5 and 5S the battery just don't cut it.
Now that you have a chance to make a difference get it done right and make the phone the same thickness as the IPhone 5 or thicker. With the iPhone being bigger we need a thicker phone so we can hold on to it, not use it as a knife.

 

[MarkMoseley1]

Why does Apple keep wanting to make the iPhone thinner? The iPhone 5s is thin enough. Apple needs to improve the battery life. If they are having the issue with finding a battery for the bigger iPhone 6 then they should keep the same thickness and make the dang thing. I don't want a piece of paper thin metal for an iPhone. And how about improving the camera while your at it too..... And more ram.....

 

[cdmoore74]

Maybe they should ask Samsung on how to make a phone over 5.5”. Pretty sad if this is true.

 

[KPOM]

Well for one, Steve Jobs is dead. So it doesn't matter what he would have done. He's not running the show. Second, at 5.5" - you don't want the phone to be too thin. In my opinion, it would feel too brittle. I'm ok with not having a super slim phone. I'd prefer a phone that felt sturdy. Thanks

My point is that the same people who complain about the delay tend to complain that "Steve wouldn't have done this".

My larger point is that Apple is a company where design rules. Once Jony Ive has decided the "right" form factor, they won't go back and make it "just a little thicker" to accommodate engineering. Assuming this "iPhone Air" follow the rounded form of the new iPads, I think a thinner design would work well and wouldn't be brittle at all. My iPad mini is about as durable an Apple device as I've ever had.

 

[wizard]

Then simply use a bigger battery, the iPhone 5S is already thin enough.

Exactly! There is no value in a thin device that is hard to handle.

I kinda expect that this report is a plant though. A thin battery is just a matter of how many wraps the cell material has. Also one could assume that there is far more area for the battery as the PC board size would barely change.

 

[kds1]

Anyone have an idea as to why the flash has gone back to being round rather than the oblong shape it became in the 5S? They are still going to be using the enhanced amber light flash, aren't they?

 

[MacLC]

^^^^. Stop making the darned phones so thin and beef up the battery life. An iPhone that you could use moderately for 2-3 days with having to use a charging case would be amazing.

You mean like the original iPhone?

I used to charge my iPhone 3G twice a week. My next iPhone I had to charge virtually every day with the same usage.

I am into fitness, don't get me wrong. I enjoy being thin myself. However when it comes to technology, I don't like electronic devices referred to as "thin" or "sexy". Some people and some devices look better and function better with a little bit of meat on them. If 2-3mm could double the battery life of a cellphone, then make it 4-6mm thicker.
Amen

 

[wizard]

If Apple ever builds this it'll be wildly popular. I'd buy one now, but four months or more is too darn late.

There is a limited number of people willing to stuff their pockets with a cell phone. The big cell phone fad is already on the downward side of the slope.

As it is I've already switched to a Nexus 5, liked it so much I added a line and bought a Note 3. All because Apple drove me to.

No it is more a question of gullibility and misplaced priorities that drove you to it.

I've had every iPhone including the 5S but got fed up with the tiny screen. Now with a spacious display on both my Androids and the amazing fast and fun SWYPE keyboard there's simply no contest.

Until you realize that carrying a brick around with you has changed your life and not for the better.

 

[cfedu]

My point is that the same people who complain about the delay tend to complain that "Steve wouldn't have done this".

My larger point is that Apple is a company where design rules. Once Jony Ive has decided the "right" form factor, they won't go back and make it "just a little thicker" to accommodate engineering. Assuming this "iPhone Air" follow the rounded form of the new iPads, I think a thinner design would work well and wouldn't be brittle at all. My iPad mini is about as durable an Apple device as I've ever had.

What do u call the iPad 3. They had the ipad 2 design and made it just a little thicker to accommodate engineering

 

[wizard]

How sad, old eyes saw a "d" instead of a "c l"!

Stories don't have to be credible as long as they get clicks.

Good thing iPad has pinch to zoom. Had to read that twice, once magnified to discover what you where saying! #######

 

[theBigD23]

It does surprise me the number of people on MR complaining about the thiness of products. Go pickup a 4s and an iPad 3/4 if you have the newer models and tell me it's not much better.

I'm glad most of you are not designing future products.

 

[iChrist]

Sadly, the real iPhones never look as good as all the mock-ups.

Also, now that there are so many rumors, how many people are gonna hold off on the Sept release thinking something else is coming out in a few months?

Apple's iPhone strategy seems more and more lost every day.

 

[wizard]

Not precisely true! A larger iPhone allows for far more battery area given the the printed circuit board is the same from one size phone to the next. Frankly the PCB would be the same unless Apple added extra features to the "Air".

Quite. The depth of a mobile phone is dictated by the dimensions of a battery that's sufficient to power that phone for an acceptable length of time. Unless Apple have uncovered some magic battery technology that enables them to shave several millimetres off its depth, the iPhone is going to remain as 'fat' as ever.

Batteries, especially LiPol, are made from rolls of materials that in part maximize area to enable the required energy density. So Apple has some room in a large device to make the battery bigger in area without adding thickness. However it can't add enough area this way if it isn't physically possible in the phone. Beyond that one simple wrap around produces a lot more area so thickness is very important.

If super-skinny batteries are feasible at a realistic price then I'm sure there are people who would be willing to pay a $100+ premium for a skinnier phone.

At some point though is there any real value in thinner? It would be nice if it was thin enough to roll up or at least be flexible. We are so far away from flexible that I don't see it as a hold up here.

What absolutely no-one will want is a skinny phone that's only been made possible by halving the battery life.

Especially when they need to do everything possible to increase battery life. It is probably iPhones greatest technical shortcoming in that it often needs a mid day boost from a charger.

 

[wlossw]

Se we are going to see an iPhone Mini and and iPhone Air...