iPhone Air iPhone Air owners; switched from a Pro or Pro Max model?

[QuarterSwede]

That seems really strange to me that you could feel a difference at the Apple store. What were you doing on these devices at the store that had them running hot?

The Air runs noticeably cooler than my 14PM and 15PM ever did. I'm betting what you noticed is the A19 Pro rather than the vapour chamber. In fact the vapour chamber would make the phone feel hotter in the hand quicker because it's getting the heat away from the chip, into the chassis where your hand can feel it. This just doesn't add up.

Both phones were literally MagSafe charging showing their usual demo/price screens and neither had been used for a while. I use MagSafe daily and know how it heats a phone up. The Pros were so much cooler even my son was surprised. I mean cold to the touch, not even a hint of warm.

The vapor chamber spreads it out so it cools quicker and doesn’t get as hot. Makes sense from a physics perspective.

I just didn’t expect it to feel cold. That was just plain wild. We do live in an high altitude arid climate so it’s possible that it’s just best case scenario type of thing as heat dissipates rapidly here.

 

[teh_hunterer]

Both phones were literally MagSafe charging showing their usual demo/price screens and neither had been used for a while. I use MagSafe daily and know how it heats a phone up. The Pros were so much cooler even my son was surprised. I mean cold to the touch, not even a hint of warm.

The vapor chamber spreads it out so it cools quicker and doesn’t get as hot. Makes sense from a physics perspective.

I just didn’t expect it to feel cold. That was just plain wild. We do live in an high altitude arid climate so it’s possible that it’s just best case scenario type of thing as heat dissipates rapidly here.

OK well that does make sense if they were charging. However I will say that the Air doesn't get anywhere near as hot as the 14PM and 15PM does while charging. I've tested charging from nearly dead, with both MagSafe and USB-C and the phone is just slightly warm to the touch, whereas my last two phones would be an inferno by comparison.

 

[wingennis]

I've gone from 15P to the Air. I love it. I got the Pro models mostly for ProMotion and AOD. I am not a photographer or videographer. It is big, but it is light and ergonomic. The only time I listen to the phone speaker is when the alarm wakes me up in the morning so I'm not at all bothered by the speaker thing. I'm so glad there was a phone this year that gives me all the stuff I want and not what I don't need-including all the Pro weight. I hope everyone else is equally happy with their choice.

 

[Thats_Not_Marcus]

I think that’s exactly why they made the compromises they did. Can’t have it cutting into Pro sales.

I think the cameras and better Ram will always help sell the Pro models admittedly. People want top tier performance and thats great, but those of us that want bigger but not better deserve nice devices too!

 

[Nikos]

What you’re failing to consider is the vapor chamber on the Pros. Just handled them myself at the Apple store and they’re noticeably cooler than the Air or iPhone 17. Like, “oh, this is definitely the phone I’m getting,” noticeable. That’s going to lead to faster sustained performance which is what makes them quicker overall.

I think the 17 Pro feeling cooler also has to do with aluminum generally feeling cooler to the touch than the Air's titanium/glass finish.

I have an Air and 17 Pro Max. The 17 Pro Max still heats up during demanding tasks or gaming. The vapor chamber seems great so far, and it definitely cools way better than the Air either way.

 

[Nikos]

I think the cameras and better Ram will always help sell the Pro models admittedly. People want top tier performance and thats great, but those of us that want bigger but not better deserve nice devices too!

According to Antutu Benchmark, my Air actually has a bit more RAM than my 17 Pro Max. Not sure how reliable the app is for that sort of thing though.

 

[Arran]

If the entire Air was the same thinness throughout, I think I'd be more impressed.

Yeah, like an iPhone 6 or 7?

I still have a working 7 linked to an old iCloud account - just in case I need to access it. It has a teeny-tiny camera bump. I think that's when camera bumps started.

Prior to that, the sixes were pretty-much uniform thickness IIRC.

 

[NvidiaIntelPC]

The Air is very close to the Pro Max. I doubt any Pro Max owner switching to the Air feels they’re missing anything size-wise.

 

[NotApplicable]

I think the cameras and better Ram

Better RAM? Please elaborate.