iPhone 17 Air Expected to Have Battery Case Due to 'Worse' Battery Life

[MacRumors]

Apple's rumored iPhone 17 Air model will have "worse" battery life compared to previous iPhone models, according to a paywalled The Information report.

In internal testing, Apple determined that the percentage of users who will be able to use the iPhone 17 Air for a full day without needing to recharge the device throughout the day will be between 60% and 70%, according to the report. For other iPhone models, the report said that metric is apparently between 80% and 90%.

The reduced battery life is due in part to the iPhone 17 Air's ultra-thin 5.5mm design, which would make it the thinnest iPhone ever.

To mitigate this problem, the report said that Apple is planning to release a battery case as an optional accessory for the iPhone 17 Air.

Apple last released battery cases for the iPhone 11 lineup, followed by the since-discontinued MagSafe Battery Pack for iPhone 12 models and newer. A battery case both protects an iPhone and provides additional battery life as necessary.

The report added that Apple's supply chain is uncertain about how much demand there will be for the iPhone 17 Air, given it will be an all-new model with a unique form factor. As a result, the suppliers are initially only dedicating about 10% of production capacity for the iPhone 17 series to the iPhone 17 Air, according to the report.

The report reiterated that the iPhone 17 Air will have only a single speaker, a single rear camera, and no SIM card slot worldwide.

Apple is expected to release the iPhone 17 Air in September.

Article Link: iPhone 17 Air Expected to Have Battery Case Due to 'Worse' Battery Life

 

[sniffies]

"Turn your iPhone Air into iPhone Pro with our fat battery case!"

 

[MacUser16.]

Not surprising that the 17 Air’s battery would suck, but the idea of a battery case sounds cool, but then again, defeats the purpose of the 17 Air

 

[scrapesleon]

I mean that was the sacrifice for making an iPhone thin again

 

[Channan]

Yeah that’s gonna be an instant “no” from me. I’ve really been contemplating the Air but not if the battery life is that bad.

 

[DrJR]

Well…. The “i” in iPhone suddenly means “irony”.

 

[tonmischa]

So the Mini was killed for this? Seriously?

 

[Rodney Williams]

There it is. Again, never know with the consumers, especially the hardcore fans. I'm good for now with my 16 Pro Max. Keep it moving.

 

[Entilzha]

Negative ghost rider, the pattern is full.

I buy the larger iPhone models these days because of battery capacity, and the air just seems like a no-go for me. Hope others will enjoy it, I like my phones like I like my steaks: thick.

 

[NapZzz]

Huh? This is too outrageous.

 

[koolzero]

Brilliant strategy to sell another accessory

 

[abatabia]

I’ll pass then thanks. Don’t need thin. I need battery life.

 

[Cameront9]

Who is going to want this?

 

[Kiwamu]

So the Mini was killed for this? Seriously?

This.

Once all the hardcore users said how abyssmal the mini battery life is, it was dead to the crowd that uses their phone all the time..

Still love my mini, still would love for it to come back...

 

[GMShadow]

So the Mini was killed for this? Seriously?

The mini was killed because few bought it.

Small iPhones are like wagons from car makers - people insist they would buy one if it existed, occasionally a manufacturer takes a chance, and all those people suddenly have 12 reasons it doesn’t count and isn’t good enough.

 

[UpsetTheAppleCart]

I guess this is the solution? Those who don’t need a long lasting battery and would prefer a thinner form factor can enjoy it how it is, and those who insist on million-day battery life can slap a half inch thick case on it.

 

[ignatius345]

Love the idea of an ultra-thin iPhone, but it looks like the battery tech just isn't up to the task of what people want from their iPhones in the course of a day.

I guess this is the solution? Those who don’t need a long lasting battery and would prefer a thinner form factor can enjoy it how it is, and those who insist on million-day battery life can slap a half inch thick case on it.

The way I see it, the idea might be more to have a slim phone for an evening out or whatever, but then you slap on a (hopefully well designed) case which bulks it up if you've got a long day of heavier usage to get through. I personally don't think it's the worst idea in the world.

A lot of people crapping on the idea here, but the fact is you know they're gonna keep making thicker phones with maxed out batteries as they have for many years now. This (if rumors are true) would just be an option for people who skew toward lighter usage. Wouldn't take away from your purchasing options ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[one more]

I mean that was the sacrifice for making an iPhone thin again

“Thin again”? This is the first time they attempt to get it as thin, as the thinnest model so far has been iPhone 6 at 6.9 mm. Once again, Apple seem to be going for a form over function, designing a fashion object, rather than a useful tool. And they were not aware of it while designing and testing this thing?

 

[JTK Awesome]

I’m starting to think that Apple leadership doesn’t know what people want anymore. Too many hardware lines are stuck in an endless cycle of “the same as last year but just a little better.” The big iPhone push this year is going to be a super-thin model (call it “iPhone 17 Air” if you will), which of course will limit space for advanced cameras and bigger batteries. When you ask people what they want out of an iPhone, nearly everyone says a cheaper price, longer battery life, and a better camera (with less photo processing). That’s basically the opposite of where Apple is headed.

💯 IMO.

source: https://www.macworld.com/article/27...e-has-to-be-forced-to-do-the-right-thing.html

 

[racer1441]

Where's the phone for the rest of us... those of us that are more than comfortable having a big ass chunky phone. I'd gladly carry a phone the thickness of a phone with a big otter box case on it if it ment battery life for days.

I don't want thin, I want to not worry about charging for like a week. M series processors got that on Mac, time to do something on the iPad and phones.

 

[Lodovik]

If you have to use it in a case, it loses its thinness advantage but still keeps the compromises. A MagSafe battery pack would be better.

 

[sunapple]

So the Mini was killed for this? Seriously?

Mini was killed for Plus. Plus will be killed for Air. Then Air might be killed altogether by the sound of the rumored (lack of) features.

 

[tonmischa]

The mini was killed because few bought it.

The mini was not bought because the "small phone" market was already saturated by the release of the SE 2 only a few months earlier. (which was the first "small" iPhone for at least 24 months.)
If they had released the mini first and the SE 2 six months later, we would still have a mini.

 

[yabeweb]

Form over function...

 

[7thson]

It’s interesting that Apple will go to this much effort to make “the thinnest iPhone”. I can’t recall anyone saying they want a super thin iPhone, but have heard plenty of calls to get rid of the camera bump with a bigger battery. I’d say they know what they’re doing but lately that’s not necessarily true.