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iPhone Air to Launch in China This Week

ShufromChina said:
I would expect certain group of customers will go for it because of its premium look and feel. Those people are the ones who don't mind getting a 2nd or even 3rd phone--all premium ones--and picking one for every occasion. But for those looking to use it as their main phone, I highly doubt it will sell well.
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They could buy the Air and another iPhone model, then tether the Air to the phone which has a physical SIM in it. In China, this is the sort of thing that happens 😁
 
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iMac The Knife said:
I always push for options. It's the value for the price that doesn't hold water here. But, if you want to buy one, go for it. You can do whatever you want with your money.
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I don't disagree with you on the price, but Apple has never been the bang for your buck company. The aesthetics of their devices have ALWAYS been a factor in their pricing, nothing different here.
 
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iMac The Knife said:
I always push for options. It's the value for the price that doesn't hold water here. But, if you want to buy one, go for it. You can do whatever you want with your money.
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However, the value proposition for the price equation varies from customer to customer. Some individuals prioritize the most extensive features at the lowest cost, while others prioritize design and aesthetics above all else. If value for money were the sole criterion, Apple wouldn’t have achieved its current valuation of $3 trillion.
 
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iMac The Knife said:
I always push for options. It's the value for the price that doesn't hold water here. But, if you want to buy one, go for it. You can do whatever you want with your money.
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But it's not just specs per dollar. The iPhone Air is enough phone for me. Why would I want a bigger and thicker phone when I don't need that? Phones aren't just a box of specs. They're things you actually carry around in your life.

We didn't even carry smartphones around until recently. They're relatively new, and to a lot of people they aren't these workhorses that they use for hours every day as their primary computer.

I care about how my phone looks, how it feels in the hand, how it feels in the pocket, what the materials feel like. If every phone in this year's lineup is a good enough phone for me, then of course I'm going to take these other aspects into account.
 
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iMac The Knife said:
I don't think this will sell well in China. To be honest, with the price of the Air for the specs you get, it shouldn't sell well anywhere.
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It’s not for you. Move on. I love mine, I don’t miss the cameras or the giant battery. Compared to my 15 Pro the battery life is about the same and only a little less than the 16 Pro.

iMac The Knife said:
Exactly. They can't be buying it for the specs, because the specs are trash for the price. That's my point.
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If all you consider are battery, speakers and cameras. If you consider size, weight and Industrial design it out does the other models
iMac The Knife said:
I always push for options. It's the value for the price that doesn't hold water here. But, if you want to buy one, go for it. You can do whatever you want with your money.
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Value for your money, not mine. Money well spent.
 
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Does that mean I can purchase an iPhone Air in the US and get an eSIM plan in China if I am a Chinese citizen or permanent resident? I have a phone for Chinese spyware apps and a phone for work and life and photos. However, I don’t want 2 heavy and oversized bricks so while the latter is always the latest pro for the camera, the former is a 13 mini. I’d like to lose non-usb devices, but the monster size of iPhones doesn’t really allow it. The air is still way too big, but at least it’s light.
 
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goshya said:
The iPhone Air in China will include special firmware to prevent the use of foreign eSIMs. I’m not a fan of country-specific firmware, as it restricts features like FaceTime audio calls, disables the option to turn off the shutter sound (Japan), prevents disabling battery sounds, or won’t allow the installation of foreign eSIMs.

As someone working in China, I’ll need to carry two phones once the iPhone adopts eSIM-only functionality in all markets next year. This is because I don’t want a Chinese iPhone due to the above restrictions, and international iPhones won’t support Chinese eSIMs.
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You could simply buy your phone in Hong Kong, they have one physical sim slot (which you could use Chinese SIM) as well as eSIM support for foreign eSIMs.
 
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AlanBeyond said:
China Unicom, China Mobile and China Telecom all announced official eSIM support on their website right after apple's.
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Can you translate Chinese? Because I don't speak Chinese or understand the language. You're special!
 
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AlanBeyond said:
You could simply buy your phone in Hong Kong, they have one physical sim slot (which you could use Chinese SIM) as well as eSIM support for foreign eSIMs.
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This is a discussion on the iPhone Air and it only comes as a eSIM model only worldwide. Apple does NOT MAKE a physical sim for the iPhone Air. So buying in Hong Kong you still get the iPhone Air as a eSIM only.
 
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Mikeske said:
This is a discussion on the iPhone Air and it only comes as a eSIM model only worldwide. Apple does NOT MAKE a physical sim for the iPhone Air. So buying in Hong Kong you still get the iPhone Air as a eSIM only.
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Not only that, the poster speculated regarding what he could do when there were no physical sims on any iPhone.
 
teh_hunterer said:
But it's not just specs per dollar. The iPhone Air is enough phone for me. Why would I want a bigger and thicker phone when I don't need that? Phones aren't just a box of specs. They're things you actually carry around in your life.

We didn't even carry smartphones around until recently. They're relatively new, and to a lot of people they aren't these workhorses that they use for hours every day as their primary computer.

I care about how my phone looks, how it feels in the hand, how it feels in the pocket, what the materials feel like. If every phone in this year's lineup is a good enough phone for me, then of course I'm going to take these other aspects into account.
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It is always specs per dollar, whether you care about specs or not. This is unavoidable. And if you bought the Air, you were taken for a ride in this respect. This is not subjective. Do a little research and you'll understand what I am saying here.
 
Baritone_Guy said:
It’s not for you. Move on. I love mine, I don’t miss the cameras or the giant battery. Compared to my 15 Pro the battery life is about the same and only a little less than the 16 Pro.


If all you consider are battery, speakers and cameras. If you consider size, weight and Industrial design it out does the other models

Value for your money, not mine. Money well spent.
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Move on...good one. If you think buying the Air was money well spent, you've done zero research into the competition. Even the iPhone 17 is a far better value with dimensions that are all but unnoticeable in day to day life. 2.31mm in thickness and 12g in weight between the Air and the iPhone 17 is nothing...this difference is unnoticeable in day to day operation, to anyone not just to me. Now, if it were a 5mm+ and 24g+ difference in thickness and weight, then you would definitely notice a difference in day to day use. This is coming from someone who buys at least 6-8 different flagship smartphones every year (to find the best primary and backup for my use case), so I know that a small difference in size and weight is meaningless in day to day usage.
 
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iMac The Knife said:
Move on...good one. If you think buying the Air was money well spent, you've done zero research into the competition. Even the iPhone 17 is a far better value with dimensions that are all but unnoticeable in day to day life. 2.31mm in thickness and 12g in weight between the Air and the iPhone 17 is nothing
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I have the base phone - love it - but the Air has a bigger screen in a thinner, lighter package.
 
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