iPhone 17 Air: Everything We Know About Apple's Slim iPhone

[Removebeforeflight]

I'd rather have an iPhone 17 mini than any more phablet variations

Yes,
i really do think the time has come for a more compact iPhone again. Lately the manufacturing process has allowed for a slightly bigger screen estate in the same physical casing anyway. Make the housing a tiny bit bigger and I am sure we could end up with 5,6 inch screen. This combined with very lightweight material would make a classy design.

 

[syklee26]

Unless this is the first step toward foldable, I just don't see the reason for making this.

 

[MrCrowbar]

On one hand, I like the lens in the corner for really dramatic shots with the lens just an inch off the ground so there's a lot of perspective and depth of field going on. On the other hand, the occasional finger covering the corner of the quick snapshot is annoying.

Thinner, meh, I'd rather have it lighter and slimmer so it fits comfortably in one hand and no camera bump.
Wouldn't mind an attachment that's basically a wallet case but also an external display so you open it like a book, have 2 full screen apps or hold it landscape and have the keyboard and some controls (like the Macbook Touch Bar) on one screen and full screen content on the other. Have that external display be a little power bank, charged through magsafe and a ribbon cable in the folding case, communicate via wifi and bluetooth (like screen sharing) and you're all set.

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

Hmm. Sounds like Apple is trying to differentiate the Pro and non-Pro lines some more. With Pros being aimed at creatives and this Air lineup for the people who don’t care about the cameras except to have a basic point and shoot.

Personally I’m loving the versatility of the Pro camera setup. A full frame mirrorless is too big and ridiculous to carry around and this one device phone is a good compromise.

Apple will see this >$799 iPhone 17 Air fail if it doesn’t, at worst, get a back camera array that’s on-par with the regular $799 iPhone 17.

Consumers will see the single back camera and equate the 17 Air to a partially budget-tier product and not know whether it’s more or less premium than the standard $799 iPhone 17.

Apple would never do that.

You can’t position single back camera setup as the lowest tier for ten years and then expect to sell a single camera (semi-Pro) iPhone Air for $799-$1199. No chance.

Apple puts iPhones on a very rigid value/$ ladder.

Back camera array on iPhone Air will be dual or triple if it’s >$799. Single camera setup would see iPhone Air starting at <$799 for the base configuration.

 

[redbeard331]

I have a hard time believing this rumor, although a really slim phone, like 3-4mm thick sounds nice, just make the screen huge, and then give it a nice 15-20mm camera lens thickness to fit better lenses and I’d be sold.

 

[iZac]

I think it might be like the old school ipod touches . They tapered off like a macbook air. That would be really neat. Still holding out for a foldable iphone, or a 8210 sized iphone. Or something size of the iphone when app switcher renders the smaller iphone view. I cant believe there isnt an appetite for a smaller device. I do all my computer stuff on a laptop i only need a device for camera messages ringo parking etc. apple watch is still too gimped. How about Apple pocket watch. About 55x55 (half iphone pro size) that basically does everything an iphone can do but screen is half size. Put it on a chain and have a neat flip case. So mich they could do but no we get a sh**y extra camera button. This is weird it goes against the apple way. Im actually surprised thatvwe arent at zero buttons yet.

Ah yeah the 1st generation iPod touch. Rounded back and gentle taper on the front face. It was great, had while I was on contract, so couldn't justify getting an iPhone. I always liked the aluminium frame rather than the chromed edge of the early iPhones - boy, that's a style I'm glad died.

Honestly I'd also love a squared phone too, like - just snap a new Motorola RAZR in half. I hate wide phones for the one handed typing, but maybe it'd be fine if they weren't so tall.

 

[Darren.h]

an even slimmer iPhone. a nightmare to fix. breaks easy I bet.

like how easy you can bend a new iPad.

 

[DBZmusicboy01]

I would rather pay for an iPhone Ultra than a crippled iPhone that will have less features than the Pro Max.

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

Thinking a bit about the rumours of relocated main camera (with one lens), and upgraded front camera...

Has anyone seen any phones where these are (more or less) one camera, where both the front and back lenses are connected, via prisms to more - vertically installed - lenses and sensor?

Wouldn't having one sensor (and vertical zoom-lenses) make this module smaller, lighter and thinner, than two separate ones?

 

[daanodinot]

with an aluminum chassis

Kind of funny how they went from aluminum, to steel, to titanium, and back to aluminum. It's not much in the way of progress, but at least you have an excuse to sell a phone every year.

 

[Wieslawo]

The situation looks to me like a copy of what happened after the "TouchID cycle". From the original iPhone to the 8, not much has changed on the front. It was a similar iPhone. This great cycle of 8 models ended with a single iPhone 8, without a Plus variant in favor of a new opening in design, which began with the X. Perhaps Apple wants to do exactly the same now. The regular iPhone 17 and Pro variants will end the long cycle of FaceID phones (I'm not saying that FaceID will disappear, but it's about tidying up), and the alleged Slim will be the new X, something we don't expect, a new opening that will start another cycle of 8-9 models. Then Apple can indeed position it much higher than the Pro.

On the other hand, the company is headed by Tim Cook - a great manager, excellent at spotting mistakes and development dead ends (thanks Tim for the Apple Watch, which turned towards health/sports and for the workhorse MacBook M1 14"), but without an ounce of vision. That's why it may not have been a new X, but something a little different and very thickly covered with marketing icing.

 

[klky]

I think if they're gonna make it slim, it might serve Apple well to also make it a bit smaller for the sake of the device's rigidity. I don't mean mini size but perhaps closer to iPhone X dimensions. With how they've been able to shrink the bezels, the actual display size should still be decent. If they don't purposely gimp it in any significant way, I reckon it would sell pretty well.

 

[TechWhisperer]

iPhone 17 Air = Apple grasping at straws.

 

[2low_tech]

I am looking forward to this device. I can see Apple going to an iphone, iphone Air, Iphone Pro/ Pro Max naming convention and dropping the numbers.

 

[N0ughtsAndCr0sses]

It could be that they’re testing the market. How can you do it better other than feeding the folk with the actual device and see how it goes?

But, Apple, mind that price, baby, or else 😅

 

[antiprotest]

I like the "higher price" feature. Apple's got that down and there will be no bugs there.

 

[Velli]

Several things about these rumours don’t add up:

- Air is typically used as a step down from Pro, not a step up
- Step down in features from Pro doesn’t rhyme with higher price, even if it is slimmer (than an already slim phone). Other than slimness, no premium features has been rumoured.
- “Slim” and “Air” doesn’t fit with basically a plus size display.

I believe that Apple has prototypes of various sizes, and is considering various positioning. My guess is the final product will be a 6-ish inch phone, positioned between the standard and the Pro phones, which might be pulled apart in price to leave space.

 

[JohnC1959]

So basically a less capable fashion accessory phone. This will be the first phone where pretty much nobody puts it into a case.

 

[acblue94]

So this year's iPhone 16 won't get 120Hz? What a joke if that's the case. My old $250 android from 3 years ago had a 120Hz AMOLED panel.

Get the pro then. lol

 

[kiv.atso]

I would gladly switch my iPhone Pro for a new iPhone without camera bump, or at least the one where the bump can be hidden with the case

 

[bluespark]

If battery life is going to be worse then I don't see the point.

Well, that part is easy -- some of us care much more about form factor than battery life. I am definitely in that group -- I miss the much thinner early iPhones and am willing to give up some battery life to have a thinner phone back in my life.

BUT, a sticking point for me would be the rumored single back camera. My phone is my camera, so I want a system at least as good as what the non-pro iPhones have now.

 

[Unami]

In what way would a 120hz make video content smoother? Video is presented at a maximum of 60fps/hz (unless you take into account that ghastly motion smoothing some TVs did by default, by interpolating frames - which the iPhone doesn‘t).

 

[Jamie0003]

Whatever happened to the iPhone “Ultra” rumors? Or is this just more BS spread by analysts to stay relevant lol

 

[Jamie0003]

Please no top center camera. It looks ugly on the pixels.

Also, why is it 2024 and the selfie camera is still so low res.

It would be a game changer if we could get near similar qualities between front and back cameras.

Granted I use Snapchat usually for selfies but still.

You answered your own question there

 

[N0ughtsAndCr0sses]

Also BendGate 2.0


You have been warned!