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Apple Said to Cut iPhone Air Production Amid Underwhelming Sales

I'm late to the party, but I knew the Mini Clan would be out in full force on this one! Thank you for not disappointing me!! :)
 
match14 said:
I wonder if it being eSIM only has stopped some people from buying it?
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Is eSIM that terrible in other countries?

I've juggled AT&T and T-Mobile eSIMs back and forth between multiple phones (iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro, and Pixel 6a).

I've triggered eSIM downloads/transfers from within an app (AT&T), website (T-Mobile), via QR code, and even a "hold phones close together" method.

Transferring an eSIM was quicker than taking the phones out of their cases, finding a SIM removal tool or paper clip, physically ejecting and moving the SIM card, and putting their cases back on.

I was worried about eSIM when I first learned about it - I have too many memories of dealing with CDMA carriers like Sprint or Verizon where you had to call them up on the phone and give them both phones' IMEI or serial numbers or whatever to have them initiate a transfer (a process that could take hours or days), versus people on T-Mobile or Cingular that just had to move a SIM card from the old phone to the new one (a process that took minutes).

I could see eSIM being an issue when traveling internationally AND your existing carrier doesn't have roaming plans.
You'd be forced to use an eSIM app or service that may cost way more than just buying a SIM card somewhere.

I have been out of the country, and I simply paid for international data in the AT&T app, so I didn't need to worry about SIM cards.
 
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xpxp2002 said:
A 5.8" iPhone with all the Pro hardware, like the iPhone 11 Pro was, would be a reasonable compromise "sweet spot". But since Apple doesn't make a single phone smaller than 6.1" now, there is no "sweet spot." It's a question of "what will customers tolerate?" Not "what will customers be happy with?" So I just get the model that has the hardware I want and remain irritated and dissatisfied with the size and weight of the lead bricks they continue to churn out every year.
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100% yes, this is accurate. It also means there is no downward pressure—I like a pro max phone, but not if they keep getting bigger each year!
 
match14 said:
I wonder if it being eSIM only has stopped some people from buying it?
Click to expand...
Most people have no clue what eSIM -- or a SIM at all -- is.

They go into the Verizon or Apple store to upgrade, or they order online. The sales people take care of activating the new device or they receive a pre-provisioned phone from online channels in the mail that is ready to activate on first power-on with the SIM or eSIM already installed. Then the consumer never thinks about it again until their next upgrade or replacement where somebody else deals with it.
 
Gr8, maybe some sales will be inteoduced, for regular 17 price would buy it in a heartbeat, air is true next gen
 
I’ll just leave this thread here.



The Air ain’t going anywhere, just the like the MacBook Air didn’t and the iPad Air didn’t. Not a hard concept.

The iPhone Air stole the spotlight this year, big time.

Apple was clearly very proud of the iPhone Airs engineering achievements, and seemingly more enthusiastic talking about the Air in multiple interviews post keynote.

There was a passion regarding the Air that I haven’t seen in them in some time. They seemed very whelmed discussing the pros IMO.


It’s almost 1:1 as far as complaints and dissenting opinions go. Tech “enthusiasts” and “reviewers” were saying the identical things about the original MacBook Air.
 
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con2apple said:
I don't know about you personally, but most people in the world are capable of clicking on a website and then looking at the other products advertised. That's because they have to work for their money and therefore don't blindly buy anything.
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Then there's no need for promotion or advertising, is there? The carriers appear to be less flexible about how they're selling the Air and Apple is not giving its full weight behind it promotionally. That's not a coincidence.
 
Price vs. Perception. It costs more than the regular 17 but performs worse. The single camera makes it automatically perceived as inferior to the average consumer so what’s the logic behind paying $200 more for less?

The biggest plus of the Air is that it’s the best looking phone in the lineup. But looks alone don’t warrant the price.
 
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xpxp2002 said:
I'd argue that it's the opposite of a sweet spot. It's just the least worst choice among a variety of imperfect options.

The ergonomics of the base/Pro are terrible since the iPhone 12. They're all too wide and too tall for practical one-handed use. Maybe people wouldn't be so prone to dropping and breaking their phones all the time, and need tank-style phone cases if their phones were an appropriate ergonomic size. Likewise, the sheer existence and success of the Popsocket is a clear sign that phones are too big.

I've bought iPhone Pro models for years for the hardware, but bemoaning the size and weight. I accepted the tradeoffs of losing the telephoto lens and foregoing the ProMotion display with the 12 mini and 13 mini those years because they were so much more comfortable to hold and use.

A 5.8" iPhone with all the Pro hardware, like the iPhone 11 Pro was, would be a reasonable compromise "sweet spot". But since Apple doesn't make a single phone smaller than 6.1" now, there is no "sweet spot." It's a question of "what will customers tolerate?" Not "what will customers be happy with?" So I just get the model that has the hardware I want and remain irritated and dissatisfied with the size and weight of the lead bricks they continue to churn out every year.
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The software doesn’t help things either. No interaction should be above the 50% height mark
 
xpxp2002 said:
Most people have no clue what eSIM -- or a SIM at all -- is.

They go into the Verizon or Apple store to upgrade, or they order online. The sales people take care of activating the new device or they receive a pre-provisioned phone from online channels in the mail that is ready to activate on first power-on with the SIM or eSIM already installed. Then the consumer never thinks about it again until their next upgrade or replacement where somebody else deals with it.
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I'll say this much about eSIM. It seems to have been engineered to work smoothly when transferring in a single carrier in terms of upgrading phones. That has worked for me in the past. Moving between carriers is a nightmare, as I am experiencing today.
 
abatabia said:
It was a nice try but they really need to just cut that line. Mini, plus, now this. All sales bombs? Just do regular and pro max. That’s all that is nee
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abatabia said:
It was a nice try but they really need to just cut that line. Mini, plus, now this. All sales bombs? Just do regular and pro max. That’s all that is needed.
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still need Pro for the smaller size....so Regular, Pro, and Pro Max
 
Innovati0n said:
Samsung ended their thin phone business so it's not just Apple noticing this. The problem with the thin as possible phone is that you're giving up features while still spending top dollar. And if you use a case which many people do, the thin part becomes irrelevant too.
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not to mention Thin doesnt even mean not bulky. You can be thin and still very long and wide, so still not pocket friendly like the mini was.
 
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zachz said:
They should’ve made an Air mini… or an Air Pro mini to make the naming and lineup even more fun and confusing. But really, a mini of any sort would’ve been nice instead of another big phone that is small in the wrong way
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couldnt agree more with you. Thin doesnt mean not bulky in the pocket with length and width
 
Have them all Pro and Pro Max but Air is the one I really like best of all! It’s the really feature phone with titan! I don’t need the zoom or as an musician listening on crap phone speakers so what is the big deal with Air speaker ? It sound more then okey buy AirPods instead of crying!
For the people who love the 200 pounds iPhone 17 Pro that is so fat and think they have an Harman Kardon soundbar or an Canon DSLR come on!!
 
After trying out both 17 Pro and Air for almost two weeks, I decided to continue with the Air. Even if Apple decides to stop production, I know I will enjoy this phone for few years. I have always had bigger phones: 6 Plus, 6S Plus, XS Max, and 15 Pro Max, with the exception of 12 Mini that I enjoyed for almost three years. Air feels big but also small at the same time. If I have to live through the same fate as 12 Mini then so be it.

Like I have said multiple times, it all depends on what one needs. "To me", this Air works great. I take my mirrorless system pretty much everywhere we travel so the phone cameras really do not mean much except for few times. If I really need a longer focal length then my wife's 17 Pro will be there. Btw, I don't know if many folks know regarding how telephoto lens works on iPhones. The phone only uses the telephoto lens if there is enough light. If there is not, it uses the main lens and crops in to equivalent focal length (digital zoom).

As far as battery life is concerned, I had no complaints regarding 12 Mini's battery life for almost three years so this Air is going to be even better.
 
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