iPhone 17 Lineup Hands On: Air's Thinness vs Pro's Power

[johnsawyercjs]

Agreed. Simply being 'thinner' and a tiny bit lighter isn't enough differentiation from it's more capable siblings. The Air either needs to be smaller and lighter or a folder.

I agree that it would have been interesting for the Air to have had significantly smaller width and height. But its battery would have had to be significantly smaller than Apple has already trimmed it down to be, and already many people criticize its capacity (whether or not that's justified). New technologies like solid state batteries might allow the battery to be smaller while maintaining the milliamp-hours/Watt-hours that the Air's battery currently has, or better, but those technologies are almost certainly going to be used for smartphone batteries only as early as 2026, and it'll be companies other than Apple doing it first. Apple will watch how this goes, and the technology probably won't be Apple-ready (with Apple's added design and testing time to make it work within Apple's specs) until maybe 2027.

 

[Isamilis]

I am considering Air vs Pro. I am coming from regular iPhone. Is there case for Pro that “hide” its bulk feeling (especially from its protruding lenses)? I plan explore more on photography and consider how much Pro can help on that. Otoh, I also like Air for its simplicity and lightweight, solid and bigger screen but I doubt of its camera limitation.

 

[ImSoSad]

Going from stereo speakers to a single speaker? Giving up photography capabilities? Lower battery capacity?

All drawbacks if you have already had those.

The battery life is miles better than my iphone 14 Pro.

The photos are great— major improvements on the sensor and software front with how the camera reacts. Front camera improvements are stunning.

The speaker plays sounds.

I don’t know what to tell you, man. Zero buyers remorse from pretty much the entire iPhone Air thread in the forums if you wanna go check those out.

If you want to talk yourself out of buying the modern phone that you really want so you can live with a giant brick of a phone that’s heavier and bulkier and uglier than its predecessor but you can sit there with your headphones out and your screen pressed to your forehead at max volume to listen to the stereo audio then go ahead, lol.

 

[johnsawyercjs]

I am considering Air vs Pro. I am coming from regular iPhone. Is there case for Pro that “hide” its bulk feeling (especially from its protruding lenses)? I plan explore more on photography and consider how much Pro can help on that. Otoh, I also like Air for its simplicity and lightweight, solid and bigger screen but I doubt of its camera limitation.

For exploring photography, the Pro might be the better choice due to its ultra-wide and telephoto cameras, unless those are cameras you don't anticipate wanting, if you want to focus on portrait photography and mostly other medium-range photos.

As far as a case for the Pro that can "hide" its bulkiness, I'm not sure how that's possible, since adding any kind of case, even minimalist models, will increase its bulk, and if you're wondering about cases that fill out the back of the Pro to make its back more level with the camera bump, there are a few that are something like that (sorry I don't remember the brands or models), but they'll make the Pro even more bulky.

You might want to look online at case manufacturer's websites and see if they have any photos that accurately show what they look like when on a Pro. One manufacturer of decent cases is Benks, at www.benks.com, though clicking on some parts of their website doesn't always take you where you expect to go, but if you persevere, you'll probably get there.

 

[bluecoast]

Saw the new iPhones at the weekend.

Whatever its limitations, the air looks to the rest of range as the iPhone X did back in 2017.

It’s immediately obvious that this is the future direction of the iPhone.

And it’s worth remembering that the full complements of innovations that the iPhone X had, took 3 years to head to the regular iPhone (iPhone 12 - the XR and iPhone 11 were sort of halfway houses).

It’s a glimpse of the future that I won’t be buying just yet. But I’m glad it’s there.

 

[Dolmio]

Agreed. Simply being 'thinner' and a tiny bit lighter isn't enough differentiation from it's more capable siblings. The Air either needs to be smaller and lighter or a folder.

It’s an interesting thought having got the air im not sure I would want it smaller I’m loving the 6.5 screen in a thin form . It fits well in my work pocket and you don’t even notice it . It’s light so using it ( for me ) one handed is no problem. I agree they could have got rid of the port as I charge magnetically anyway so probably unnecessary and could have had the second speaker instead or more battery

 

[FriendlyMackle]

The difference is the lens system.
Lenses are not made for that focal, they are made for the original focal length.
You can crop the sensor as much as you want but you are using only the equivalent part of a lens system that was design for a different focal length. A lens system for a 100mm is different from one for a 200mm.
And yes, if you use a perfectly equivalent sensor with its own lens system (made for that focal) it will be better than the cropped version from the bigger one.

There is a reason why photography brands rarely do this and when they do it is always to be able to use a different format lens (that was made for that sensor size).

A full frame camera could have this feature to use aps-c lenses but not to just "magnify" the full frame ones.

Once you "start" from the same sensor and lens system, cropping the sensor only has a small advantage compared to just cropping a photo.

I would really like to understand this better. I know what you’re saying is correct, but I don’t fully understand why.

 

[urnotl33t]

Saw the new iPhones at the weekend.

Whatever its limitations, the air looks to the rest of range as the iPhone X did back in 2017.

It’s immediately obvious that this is the future direction of the iPhone.

And it’s worth remembering that the full complements of innovations that the iPhone X had, took 3 years to head to the regular iPhone (iPhone 12 - the XR and iPhone 11 were sort of halfway houses).

It’s a glimpse of the future that I won’t be buying just yet. But I’m glad it’s there.

Yep. That’s my feeling about it too, flaws and all. Can it be great? I think so, but this isn’t it. Yet. They gotta do something meaningful about these design flaws they’ve created.
Combine the 12 mini with the architecture of the Air, fix the flaws, and BAM! Perfection.
Might have to violate a few laws of physics.

 

[FunkyTang]

Macrumors, you mentioned that the 17 Pro's have slightly more rounded edges making them more comfortable to hold. Does the Air have the same more rounded edges like the 17 Pro, or are they like the 16 Pro?

The Air’s edge has the typical Apple rounded rectangle treatment. So it’s a little squared off compared to the round edge XS Max.

 

[ab2c4]

The Air’s edge has the typical Apple rounded rectangle treatment. So it’s a little squared off compared to the round edge XS Max.

I got to hold all the phones yesterday. I agree about the edges on the Air and to me when you combine the super light weight of the phone with the thinness, it made it much more comfortable to hold than the other thicker heavier phones. I intend to get an Air next month.

 

[FunkyTang]

You say the Air has 1x to 2x optical, but there’s only one lens/camera model. Does it have internal zooming elements like a zoom camera lens?

There is no lens zooming. The 2x on the Air is the middle 12mp of the 48mp.

 

[darngooddesign]

You say the Air has 1x to 2x optical, but there’s only one lens/camera model. Does it have internal zooming elements like a zoom camera lens?

No, it’s a center crop of the sensor.

 

[iTinker]

You say the Air has 1x to 2x optical, but there’s only one lens/camera model. Does it have internal zooming elements like a zoom camera lens?

It's always been kind of a marketing game. With the iPhone 17 Pro you get a 0.5x lens, a 1x lens, and a 4x lens, each now with a 48 megapixel sensor behind them (which defaults to saving 24 megapixel images unless you change the settings). The "2x" and "8x" telephoto options simply "zoom in" to the center 12 megapixels of the 48 megapixel sensor. So anything you shoot at 2x or 8x will result in a 12 megapixel photo instead of a 48/24 megapixel photo.

 

[alfonsog]

I picked up an Air last night, Apple in Naples. They had the Air in all colors and sizes, no 17 regulars, no 17 pros, and a handful of Pro Max's available. Transferred everything from my 15 Pro when I got home. I went to work at 9am and purposely did not charge it all day and it got to 20% at 8pm. My 15 pro would have needed to be charged by 2pm so I think it's going to be fine. I don't really watch TV or Movies on my phone, the speaker is ok, still better than say the iPhone 1. The front facing camera is miles better for FaceTime and selfies. When I go travel I'm avoid taking many pictures as I like to experience the moment; if I take a photo it's usually a selfie of me with Stonehenge or Eiffel Tower or the Berlin Wall in the background. I might miss taking spatial videos a little bit but really the only ones I keep going back to on the AVP are the ones I took at EDC Las Vegas last year. I do scan lots of sheet music but it is good for that. If I was making movies I'd get the pro but otherwise I really enjoy how light this is.

 

[Wando64]

It's the 17 Air.

I am confused as to how to classify your continued posts on this subject.
At first I thought you were just confused, and so many explained that the name of a phone is chosen by Apple, and your preferences are not relevant.
Then I thought you might be trying to make a joke. Às we all different levels of education and sense of humour I accept you might be amused by it.
Now I am more inclined to think that you are intentionally trying to provoke people, or in other words Trolling.

Perhaps you could steer me towards the correct interpretation?

In the meantime, for the sole purpose of ensuring that this post remains on topic, I would like to correct your statement and say that the name, as chosen by Apple, is iPhone Air (not that I am expecting this will make any difference to you).

 

[darngooddesign]

I am confused as to how to classify your continued posts on this subject…

Don’t worry about it.

 

[Wando64]

Don’t worry about it.

It’s OK. I’ve already made up my mind about it.

 

[darngooddesign]

It’s OK. I’ve already made up my mind about it.

As have I about everyone who dropped the number from the 17 Air.