iPhone Air iPhone Air Lack of Popularity

[Cyberguycpt]

lol. How do you know it isn’t selling like hotcakes? Why are you complaining if Air was never your choice? Do you complain about every device you don’t or can’t own?

I noted In the quote you reacted to that it was possible that they may have made more than the other phones. I Also never complained I asked a question. Did I think the post would get more than a few comments no, I thought a few would chime in with their opinion and it would be over.

 

[TechnoMonk]

I noted In the quote you reacted to that it was possible that they may have made more than the other phones. I Also never complained I asked a question. Did I think the post would get more than a few comments no, I thought a few would chime in with their opinion and it would be over.

I never said how many phones they made for each model. It is impossible to guess unless you have access to complete Apple supply chain. Tim Cook has said that every earnings call, there are too many variables to predict sales.

iPhone 13 supply was tight especially for pro max, folks said Apple made very few and not selling well. In Dec 13 PM was available, then the conclusion was demand fell and isn’t selling well. But when Apple reported results, it was record revenue.

Last year the 16 PM was available for pickup with no wait time, and the rhetoric was no lines so it isn’t selling. Apple again had a great quarter. No one has any idea if its demand or constraints.

 

[Chancha]

A little bit of battery life, a telephoto lens, a speaker and a GPU core. Hardly ‘way too many things’.

My comment that you are replying to was making a point on how the Air cannot be compared to what the X did. The X made advances over the 7 and 8 while virtually not losing anything, then achieving the form factor that it had. The only thing that people could complain about was losing TouchID to FaceID. Remember the X was released along with the 8 in the same year.

Whilst the Air is the reverse, Apple had to shave away features for it to become this thin. Even if it only lose one feature it is already backwards, and we are able to make a list.

 

[kp98077]

I think it looks pretty, but stops there, I had one, returned it today for a 17PM, it was a bit sluggish, got warm, photos we not great, too much of a compromise honestly for me at $1000, what's another $199?! - I am honestly so glad i swapped it out! I was getting big iphone 16e vibes..

 

[Allen_Wentz]

Now if you are an iPhone Air enthusiast this topic may not be for you so you may just want to scroll on.

But as someone who initially thought the Air would be the show stopper this year and sell out for months why do we think this is not the case.

I know the phone it replaced essentially the Plus was already the most unpopular but was it on this level. Meaning during the launch and preorder week was it just readily available. I was a previous Plus buyer until the Pros came out so in my day it was pretty popular.

I know many people are saying how luxurious it feels and looks and all and in my personal opinion I don’t really see it but I thought I was more of an outlier.

So what say you all. What do you think Apple missed with this phone, and do you think it will have a dramatic turnaround and become a best seller?

This OP sounds like clickbait based on no info two days after release. Where do you get your allegations that "Apple missed with this phone" and that the iPhone Air therefore needs "a dramatic turnaround?"

And no, I am not "an iPhone Air enthusiast." I preordered an iPhone Pro Max. But I do think that the iPhone Air is a logical product.

 

[Tevosn]

Phone looks really cool, but given it’s capabilities compared to the other models I think it should have been the lowest priced phone. It does not make sense to me it’s that expensive, and not a phone I could consider purchasing for that reason.

 

[Sami13496]

Now if you are an iPhone Air enthusiast this topic may not be for you so you may just want to scroll on.

But as someone who initially thought the Air would be the show stopper this year and sell out for months why do we think this is not the case.

I know the phone it replaced essentially the Plus was already the most unpopular but was it on this level. Meaning during the launch and preorder week was it just readily available. I was a previous Plus buyer until the Pros came out so in my day it was pretty popular.

I know many people are saying how luxurious it feels and looks and all and in my personal opinion I don’t really see it but I thought I was more of an outlier.

So what say you all. What do you think Apple missed with this phone, and do you think it will have a dramatic turnaround and become a best seller?

What difference does the subjective opinion of a few forum posters really make? If we here, a group of about 10–15 people, now “decide” that the Air isn’t popular, does that actually make it so? If that gives you peace of mind, then ok, we can pretend. But in the end, only several months’ or perhaps even a year’s sales figures will reveal the truth.

 

[Capeto]

This is the first time since the iPhone 13 mini that I opt for a non-Pro iPhone, and personally for me the compromises in the Air were a dealbreaker: less battery, one camera, and the one speaker for $1000 made little sense to me when the base 17 has more for $200 less. I also like to keep my phones in cases and it feels like putting the Air in a case defeats its main purpose for me. However, I fully understand why people like the Air and I think it's undeniable that this is the direction Apple will be going with the iPhone– it's very likely the rumored foldable iPhone is essentially going to be two Airs "fused" side by side, or something similar.

I'm sure we'll see the return of the second speaker and camera sooner rather than later, at which point the Air line will offer a lot more value.

 

[Jumpthesnark]

Now if you are an iPhone Air enthusiast this topic may not be for you so you may just want to scroll on.

But as someone who initially thought the Air would be the show stopper this year and sell out for months why do we think this is not the case.

I know the phone it replaced essentially the Plus was already the most unpopular but was it on this level. Meaning during the launch and preorder week was it just readily available. I was a previous Plus buyer until the Pros came out so in my day it was pretty popular.

I know many people are saying how luxurious it feels and looks and all and in my personal opinion I don’t really see it but I thought I was more of an outlier.

So what say you all. What do you think Apple missed with this phone, and do you think it will have a dramatic turnaround and become a best seller?

Please back up anything you state about the Air's "popularity" or lack thereof with facts. Give us numbers. Sales numbers. And your source.

If you don't, this is just you seeing what you want to see. And starting a thread about it. Nothing wrong with that, but it's pretend and nothing more.

 

[awshucks]

I don’t see how an Air wouldn’t be one-handed..?

I’m not saying it is; that’s why I said to get the pro instead if one handed usage is important

 

[one more]

A little bit of battery life, a telephoto lens, a speaker and a GPU core. Hardly ‘way too many things’.

Coming from iPhone 15, I would be fine with Air’s battery, however I would miss the ultra-wide camera and that extra speaker (despite having a pair of AirPods).

 

[canadianreader]

USB2 is absolutely a “MacRumors poster” issue, not a real world issue. I suspect the number of people who plug in their devices to anything other than a charger is single digit percentage. And I say this as someone who has used the faster transfer speeds on the pro phones.

I do local backups and transfer my music so usb2 is a very slow and also outdated. The pro is great it has usb 3.0

 

[darthbane2k]

I think it looks pretty, but stops there, I had one, returned it today for a 17PM, it was a bit sluggish, got warm, photos we not great, too much of a compromise honestly for me at $1000, what's another $199?! - I am honestly so glad i swapped it out! I was getting big iphone 16e vibes..

Once again.. people aren’t buying the air because they can’t afford the Pro.

I used to always get the pro max but until Apple get their ish together in terms of its ergonomics, weight (and now its overall design) - my 16PM will be my last ‘Max’ device. I’m tempted by the Air but will most definitely get the Fold next year.

 

[Webcat86]

I don't think it really is to be honest. It is a smaller battery powering a bigger, brighter screen. The battery health will also likely deplete quicker because of it being physically smaller. Apple can't beat physics even if the Air matched last year's Pro in one specific test.

I was referring to its stated daily span, not its capacity. 27 hours is the same as the 16 Pro.

 

[Chancha]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1967508279829152109

This is Ming Chi Kuo, one of Macrumors' favorites analyst's tweet after the iPhone pre-order opened. The iPhone Air bit reads this:

"The iPhone Air is available in stock at launch, which on the surface looks softer than the iPhone 16 Plus last year (2 weeks delivery time). However, the Air’s 3Q25 build plan is roughly 3x (~+200% YoY) that of the 16 Plus in 3Q24, and there’s no direct historical analog for its positioning in the lineup. A fair assessment of demand will require observing sell-through over a longer period."

While it is still conjecture, he wants to say the Air seems to be selling worse than the 16 Plus, while Apple actually anticipated 3x of how the 16 Plus did. But he remains optimistic since the phone is the kind that may convince buyer when they get hands on it.

There is the Macrumors news article with the 8 page discussion on this piece of news:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/kuo-high-demand-for-iphone-17-models-but-questions-remain-about-iphone-air.2465784/

 

[Paddle1]

I was referring to its stated daily span, not its capacity. 27 hours is the same as the 16 Pro.

That's the "specific test" I was referring to, 27 hours of video playback. In real world use the battery life appears to be different between the two phones so it's understandable that people are acting as such.

 

[Webcat86]

That's the "specific test" I was referring to, 27 hours of video playback. In real world use the battery life appears to be different between the two phones so it's understandable that people are acting as such.

Most of the feedback I’ve seen is that it comfortably lasts a day with normal usage.

 

[Boeingfan]

Now if you are an iPhone Air enthusiast this topic may not be for you so you may just want to scroll on.

But as someone who initially thought the Air would be the show stopper this year and sell out for months why do we think this is not the case.

I know the phone it replaced essentially the Plus was already the most unpopular but was it on this level. Meaning during the launch and preorder week was it just readily available. I was a previous Plus buyer until the Pros came out so in my day it was pretty popular.

I know many people are saying how luxurious it feels and looks and all and in my personal opinion I don’t really see it but I thought I was more of an outlier.

So what say you all. What do you think Apple missed with this phone, and do you think it will have a dramatic turnaround and become a best seller?

When I do upgrade I just grab the top of the line model so that there’s nothing Apple offer that my handset can’t do (of course notwithstanding the external factors like the Apple Intelligence stuff up). I don’t care about weight, so the biggest screen with the biggest capacity storage is where I’m comfortable and never had any buyers remorse.

 

[Webcat86]

It’s not macro but this is a 2x photo on 48mp using the Air. Hard to say this isn’t adequate.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

And no, I am not "an iPhone Air enthusiast." I preordered an iPhone Pro Max. But I do think that the iPhone Air is a logical product.

What was the logic for the Air in your opinion? I'll be honest I don't get it, with the £999 price point, A19 Pro processor that struggles with heating issues, single camera, poor speaker. For me it looks like Apple released an SE model with a fancier exterior package and plonked it in the middle of the range to bridge the gap. The standard 17 looks like the best deal this year and from the tests I have seen, is the better phone of the two, yet £200 cheaper.

 

[Webcat86]

What was the logic for the Air in your opinion? I'll be honest I don't get it, with the £999 price point, A19 Pro processor that struggles with heating issues, single camera, poor speaker. For me it looks like Apple released an SE model with a fancier exterior package and plonked it in the middle of the range to bridge the gap. The standard 17 looks like the best deal this year and from the tests I have seen, is the better phone of the two, yet £200 cheaper.

Can you elaborate on the heating issues so I can try and replicate them? So far mine has only got hot while transferring from my old phone but I’ve not put it through any strenuous work either

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Can you elaborate on the heating issues so I can try and replicate them? So far mine has only got hot while transferring from my old phone but I’ve not put it through any strenuous work either

I watched a couple of reviewers doing a gaming sim and the processor struggled in the Air, compared to the 17. Its not something I would ever notice as I don't play games, but Apple marketed the Air to be a very capable gaming device. There are more limitations I would be concerned about before that, but I am not the target market for the Air, just giving my 2 pence.

 

[Webcat86]

I watched a couple of reviewers doing a gaming sim and the processor struggled in the Air, compared to the 17. Its not something I would ever notice as I don't play games, but Apple marketed the Air to be a very capable gaming device. There are more limitations I would be concerned about before that, but I am not the target market for the Air, just giving my 2 pence.

I’m not a big gamer either, just the occasional basic game and it’s coped fine with that so far. What are the other limitations you referred to? I’m not trying to be argumentative, I want to try as much as possible while I’m still able to return the phone.

 

[AppliedMicro]

So the other phones are the past?

Kind of, yes.

I think people will gradually gravitate towards the iPhone Air. I think eight months from now the Air will be a much larger percentage of sales

I agree with pretty much everything you wrote - except increasing sales share.

but in reality it’s the perfect iPhone for the non all-day user. Most people are not tech enthusiasts

Question is: how many of these non-enthusiasts long for a thinner phone? And what is their willingness to pay and the perceived value for them? Many non-enthusiasts still want to get a good deal on a phone - which I doubt the Air provides at its current price. The standard iPhone 17 seems the”safer”, less expensive option for them.

And if they ask more tech-inclined friends or family numbers, “oh, but it’s two millimetres thinner and has a bit faster
processor” - I don’t think that’ll overcome that (“but it’s got not only a better camera and more battery life, but also costs less?”)

But on the other hand, if the phone gets you to the end of the day, what’s the point of extra battery life?

Human perception and memory are skewed.
People remember the few times they ran out of battery, and where it was really inconvenient for them.

Seriously though why cant we be supportive here. This is an exciting year as we all won in the department of getting something unique.

As I’ve said before: I’d be more supportive once they give me my new mini.
The Air seems to prove that they could build a mini with decent battery life.

 

[davidjearly]

Coming from iPhone 15, I would be fine with Air’s battery, however I would miss the ultra-wide camera and that extra speaker (despite having a pair of AirPods).

Fair enough, I can at least see an argument with the camera for those who depend on an iPhone for photography - it will never be more than a convenient snap taking device to me. The speaker argument, I just don't understand. I can never imagine the speakers being so important to affect a buying decision as I wouldn't use them for anything that the Air can't comfortably handle.