iPhone 17 Air is Launching Soon, Here Are All the Rumors

[klasma]

Who’s the iPhone Air really for? I get the demand for smaller screens or foldables, but thinner? Seems like it just means less battery and durability. Is this aimed at design-first buyers who want a sleek feel, or is Apple betting there’s a bigger market? Genuinely curious.

Lighter weight. Many people are tired of rather heavy “bricks”, but still want a large screen. The Air will feel less bulky in pockets as well as in the hand.

The dummy model I have is still a bit heavy at 168 grams, but if they manage to get below 150 grams as rumored, it will be getting somewhere.

 

[Dianneeraser]

Who’s the iPhone Air really for? I get the demand for smaller screens or foldables, but thinner? Seems like it just means less battery and durability. Is this aimed at design-first buyers who want a sleek feel, or is Apple betting there’s a bigger market? Genuinely curious.

People who aren’t glued to their phone all day. Have chargers available. Are tired of carrying heavy bricks of phones around. In other words, me.

 

[betasp]

I really want one, but I guarantee it's going to be a 60hz or 90hz screen and I just don't want to do that anymore. I swapped my 16 for a 16 pro just because of that.

 

[Baritone_Guy]

Me. I don’t spend all day on my phone. I take some picture, but a camera is not top of the list. Most of my use is in productivity apps. I have a 16Pro and it is great, but heavy and the screen is a little on the small side for my aging eyes. I regularly hit the end of my day with ~70% battery capacity. I have access to fast charging most places I go.

Something like this is just what the doctor ordered. There will be posts from me in the past asking for an iPhone Air.

I hope they keep it at a premium trim level with react to the screen technology. I like the always on display.

 

[teksurv]

I bought a Samsung S25 Edge to replace a S25 I had. I like the thinness, the large screen and the reduced weight. I have no issues with the battery and I charge to 85% for battery protection. I have to imagine this iPhone Air will be very similar for those who want those features.

 

[scrapesleon]

if the starting price is $399 I might consider the weak battery life joking I would never buy that device

 

[jayducharme]

I’m not sure it’s the most exciting iPhone release in years. Its only new feature is that it’s thinner. I don’t know many people who have been clamoring for a thinner iPhone.

 

[now i see it]

I think the goal was to make a LIGHTER iPhone. And to do that it had to get thinner.
This phone isn’t really about it’s thinness but it’s lightness.
A lot of people will be attracted to that.

 

[russell_314]

Thin, but big as a shovel... Apple, bring back iPhone mini.

Small phones just don’t sell. The iPhone mini is dead

 

[russell_314]

People who aren’t glued to their phone all day. Have chargers available. Are tired of carrying heavy bricks of phones around. In other words, me.

Exactly me too. Looking at a spec sheet, which people in these forms do doesn’t tell the whole story. People look at some numbers like, well this one is 2.4738 and this other one is 2.5691 and they’ll say well you know the numbers are close so basically there’s no difference. Yeah I made up some numbers to make a point. Just like the numbers for the MacBook Air versus MacBook Pro don’t show the real life feel when you pick those laptops up the numbers for the iPhone Pro versus regular iPhone or soon to be iPhone Air don’t show the real life feel.

If you have an iPhone Pro Max, go ahead and pick up (I mean physically lift with your hands not purchase) a regular iPhone. I did and I was amazed at how different it felt in my hand. If Apple can make an iPhone that has similar weight to the regular iPhone, but a larger screen that would be amazing.

 

[QCassidy352]

So confused what problem this is supposed to solve. The people who like small phones (including me) want pocketability and one handed operation. a thin big screen phone with bad battery life and one camera for a premium price is a really weird value proposition.

 

[citysnaps]

So confused what problem this is supposed to solve. The people who like small phones (including me) want pocketability and one handed operation. a thin big screen phone with bad battery life and one camera for a premium price is a really weird value proposition.

How bad? Has Apple published a spec?

 

[frownface]

How bad? Has a spec been published?

apple never publish their battery capacities they just call it "all day battery life" & slap a few asterixes on it to define what that really means.
It's usually teardowns that reveal the true capacity.

IMHO they'll get away with it; people who are used to finishing the day with 50-60% battery might now find that they finish the day with 30-40% battery and all will be hunky dory.
The fun doesn't really begin until the device is a year or two old and that (low to start with) capacity has degraded.

 

[batman75]

I predict total flop, one generation phone. Nobody wants a phone with less battery life.

 

[JohnC1959]

So confused what problem this is supposed to solve. The people who like small phones (including me) want pocketability and one handed operation. a thin big screen phone with bad battery life and one camera for a premium price is a really weird value proposition.

Some want light so it's easier to handle. Some want thin because it might look cool and get comments. These aren't GREAT reasons, but neither is wanting to put it in a smaller pocket. But they are both real life reasons that some want and are willing to pay for. So far the number for the smaller phones hasn't been enough. Who knows, maybe that will be true for the thin one or maybe it will sell real well. Time will tell.

 

[JohnC1959]

apple never publish their battery capacities they just call it "all day battery life" & slap a few asterixes on it to define what that really means.
It's usually teardowns that reveal the true capacity.

IMHO they'll get away with it; people who are used to finishing the day with 50-60% battery might now find that they finish the day with 30-40% battery and all will be hunky dory.
The fun doesn't really begin until the device is a year or two old and that (low to start with) capacity has degraded.

Not sure those that are light users will see that much battery degradation. My batteries have all lasted at least three years with pretty much as much life as when new. I never came close to considering replacing a battery

 

[sigma7]

I hope consumers reject this device, thus demonstrating their opposition to battery reduction to achieve a mere thinner design.

 

[AF_APPLETALK]

No 5G mmWave kills the Air for me

 

[citysnaps]

apple never publish their battery capacities they just call it "all day battery life" & slap a few asterixes on it to define what that really means.
It's usually teardowns that reveal the true capacity.

IMHO they'll get away with it; people who are used to finishing the day with 50-60% battery might now find that they finish the day with 30-40% battery and all will be hunky dory.
The fun doesn't really begin until the device is a year or two old and that (low to start with) capacity has degraded.

The thing is, at this point in time, nobody knows. Seems there's a race to believe it will be bad. Apparently because it feels good ragging on Apple.

Apple's own modem chip will be using significantly less power than Qualcomm's, ditto with the A-series chip with one less GPU core.

 

[asdefgaheckel85]

This seems dumb. I would rather have a flush phone, no camera bumps, a little thicker with a bigger battery. Samsung came out with a foldable phone almost 6 years ago! I want a foldable iPhone.

 

[JohnC1959]

I hope consumers reject this device, thus demonstrating their opposition to battery reduction to achieve a mere thinner design.

Why hope for that if they ALSO offer other options? It's very reasonable you may not want this phone but why not accept and let others that want it have the option?

 

[JohnC1959]

This seems dumb. I would rather have a flush phone, no camera bumps, a little thicker with a bigger battery. Samsung came out with a foldable phone almost 6 years ago! I want a foldable iPhone.

A great idea and one that MANY would find at least as dumb as you consider the Air.

 

[123123123]

I have a 17 Air dummy model and it still wobbles a lot. The camera lens on that dummy is about twice as high as the camera bar.

Well, damn.

 

[JohnC1959]

I have a 17 Air dummy model and it still wobbles a lot. The camera lens on that dummy is about twice as high as the camera bar.

Well, damn.

I know this doesn't sound very elegant, but one solution is to get one of those small clear silicone stick-on bumpers that people put on cabinets and such to avoid banging the door. Put it opposite the camera to get some balance

 

[Hobbes42]

The one camera lens is... actually kind of a draw/strength for me and has me considering this phone even though I want a smaller screen? Two camera lenses, max.

Call me crazy, but I kinda agree. I remember my old XR actually took killer photos, and I am not a fan of the huge camera plateau my current 15 Pro has. Also a single camera just looks better.

I might miss the zoom function, but I don't use it very much. A single camera has been good enough for all kinds of photos since 2018, so I have no doubt it'll be absolutely fine. The slimmer, sexier body is also a plus for me. The 15 Pro feels boxier and bigger than that old XR even though the XR was actually bigger and heavier in every dimension. It didn't feel like it though, my 15 Pro does.