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iPhone Air The Air just feels great to use, all the hate is so forced.

danpass said:
The Air's 1x is 26mm. My 16P 1x is 24mm (plus ultra wide and tele)
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Ya know, I noticed that on my Mom’s 16 Pro yesterday, didn’t realize the newer Pros were 24mm

I have the Air and still think the 26mm is too wide for most things, but wouldn’t mind if it was 24mm if it also had the larger sensor of the Pro
 
bill-p said:
No. It's very one-sided. Here are examples:

Find one single thread that's not this one that's trying to say Air is superior to Pro Max. None? I rest my case.

It's quite simple really: I also tried Pro Max and Air and ultimately returned Pro Max to keep Air. Did I feel the need to open up a whole new thread to "discuss" why I made that choice? No. But it seems a lot of Pro Max owners are opening these threads just to justify going from Air to Pro Max. The simple question is: why? Can't they just make a decision and move on?
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It’s like people justifying getting an SUV instead of a sports car. Like yeah, obviously the big utilitarian thing has more utility, and you might find it a better value because of that, we get it. Lol
 
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chmania said:
The iPhone Air is likely to be the 12" MacBook of 2016; it may become obsolete within a year.
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Come on, this is not even comparable. The 12” macbook had its own very underpowered Intel chip. Think about how much all the Intel Macs were struggling with thermals in the late 2010s, and now consider how weak it needed to be for a fanless, ultra-thin chassis

The Air has the same chip as every other phone this generation, which is very efficient, and just may underclock more due to thermals. It’s like having a Macbook Air with no fan vs a MBP with the same chip and a fan. Macbook Airs are far from useless, even if they don’t keep up with the Pros
 
bill-p said:
No. It's very one-sided. Here are examples:

Find one single thread that's not this one that's trying to say Air is superior to Pro Max. None? I rest my case.

It's quite simple really: I also tried Pro Max and Air and ultimately returned Pro Max to keep Air. Did I feel the need to open up a whole new thread to "discuss" why I made that choice? No. But it seems a lot of Pro Max owners are opening these threads just to justify going from Air to Pro Max. The simple question is: why? Can't they just make a decision and move on?
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But none of these post are actually bashing the Air. In fact one could be considered to be bashing the Pro.

For example, one of them you referenced I started. My intention was never to bash the Air, it was to start a discussion from someone that usually is all over anything new Apple puts out and expected the demand to be crazy, why it possibly wasn’t.

If you considered these posts bashing maybe it speaks more to the sensitivity of some Air owners.
 
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sleeptodream said:
Come on, this is not even comparable. The 12” macbook had its own very underpowered Intel chip. Think about how much all the Intel Macs were struggling with thermals in the late 2010s, and now consider how weak it needed to be for a fanless, ultra-thin chassis
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There's a fair parallel to the 12-inch MacBook from 2016, which Apple hyped as an ultra-portable marvel but quickly pulled the plug on in 2017 after just 18 months. That laptop felt like a proof-of-concept for thinness at the expense of practicality.

The iPhone Air risks a similar fate: in cramming pro-grade guts into a form factor that's "shockingly strong" thanks to Ceramic Shield 2, but the compromises scream "not for everyone."

Some call it "exhausting" for its half-measures (e.g., tinny audio for podcasts, no ultra-wide for group shots). If it doesn't hit volume (like the MacBook didn't), Apple could quietly sunset the "Air" branding by 2027 or pivot to a foldable iPhone experiment instead.

In an era of AI-enhanced photography and spatial audio everywhere, a mono speaker and solo rear cam feel regressive. Who actually needs this in 2025/26?
 
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chmania said:
There's a fair parallel to the 12-inch MacBook from 2016, which Apple hyped as an ultra-portable marvel but quickly pulled the plug on in 2017 after just 18 months. That laptop felt like a proof-of-concept for thinness at the expense of practicality.

The iPhone Air risks a similar fate: in cramming pro-grade guts into a form factor that's "shockingly strong" thanks to Ceramic Shield 2, but the compromises scream "not for everyone."

Some call it "exhausting" for its half-measures (e.g., tinny audio for podcasts, no ultra-wide for group shots). If it doesn't hit volume (like the MacBook didn't), Apple could quietly sunset the "Air" branding by 2027 or pivot to a foldable iPhone experiment instead.

In an era of AI-enhanced photography and spatial audio everywhere, a mono speaker and solo rear cam feel regressive. Who actually needs this in 2025/26?
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I’m pretty sure the 12-inch MacBook could barely run MacOS. It was running a terribly hot and unoptimized Intel chip in a very small form factor, as someone already pointed out. Of course it failed.

The A19 Pro chip is incredibly powerful but also extremely efficient, it’s able to run the Air without wasting resources, just as it does on the Pro, but with more headroom due to thermal management.

Also, do you really think people who actually care about Spatial Audio are using their phone speakers? Like they’re listening to their music library on the iPhone Pro speakers? Give me a break. Podcasts and FaceTime calls sound perfectly fine.

Lastly, no one needs an iPhone at all, and I’d say the Pro’s range and depth of features very often go unused. Who needs to shoot in RAW or ProRes or have 2 day battery life? It’s so funny how people can just see “it has less stuff than the Pro” and totally write it off.
 
kepler20b said:
value is important to a lot of people.

in today’s world of inflation and rising prices, it’s simply becoming a significant part everyone’s decision making and overall it is bleeding into mainstream culture.

The air suffers from a narrative that you’re getting less while being charged more. That’s not hate, it’s reality when you objectively break down relative costs and value when comparing the base 17 and pro versions.

It’s a great phone for a permanently bad time in society because it’s asking you to see past the absolute value of components and to imagine a more fulfilling and joyful experience.
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thats jsut nuts.. lol - the air is only $999 vs. the PM at 1199, now thats econ!
 
Let’s also not forget that it’s not the iPhone 17 Air

It’s just the Air.

It absolutely could turn out to be something they just tried or maybe only gets an update every few years or something.

Sort of how SE models were.
 
chmania said:
In an era of AI-enhanced photography and spatial audio everywhere, a mono speaker and solo rear cam feel regressive. Who actually needs this in 2025/26?
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I don’t own an iPhone Air and don’t plan on buying one. But you may be asking the wrong question. Judging by the posts on this site, there are plenty of iPhone owners who don’t care about AI-enhanced photography or spatial audio. Now, it may turn out you are right about the iPhone Air not lasting in the marketplace - there are plenty of iPhone Mini and iPhone Plus owners (including me) who won’t be able to buy another new one because Apple gave up on those models. Just don’t assume that everyone’s priorities are the same - or should be the same. There are still quite a few people who love the Air because it meets their use cases.
 
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Cyberguycpt said:
If you considered these posts bashing maybe it speaks more to the sensitivity of some Air owners.
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No, don’t make excuses. The fact is… Pro owners are far more likely to start comparisons against Air than Air is toward Pro. We can see from the number of threads.

Calling the other side “too sensitive” is now you playing the victim. Do you see how it works both ways?
 
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Apple explicitly positioned the iPhone Air as a standalone "brand new category" of iPhone, not as an iPhone 17 Air or direct variant within the iPhone 17 lineup. It debuted alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max at the September 9, 2025 event, but with its own distinct branding, titanium build, and ultra-thin focus (5.6mm, 165g), it's more like a fresh experiment...
 
tomtad said:
Which also highlights one of the faults of the Air. Maybe Apple has just gone too thin. Were it a couple of mms thicker and had 2 cameras, speakers, longer battery life, then this could be the perfect phone. The problem is they’ve compromised too much.
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Then it wouldn’t be the iPhone Air, more like the iPhone Mid-weight. There are always trade-offs folks—pick your poison.
 
bill-p said:
And unfortunately, the word “limit” appears too many times. That’s the equivalence of “compromise”.

Thus, it’s basically the same as all other reviews: they talk as if the iPhone Air is “not enough”, that it is “limited” compared to what average users “need”.
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Here's what you wrote:

bill-p said:
Go find me one article about Air that does not contain the word "compromise" or "red flag" or "concern".
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I found you exactly that - an article that does not use any of the words you placed in quotes. Mind you, the article also has a lot of good things to say about the Air, but evidently you can't look past any of the criticisms.

Also, "limit" is not exactly the "equivalence" (I think you meant "equivalent") of "compromise". A limit implies a boundary, while a compromise implies a midway point. But we don't need to get into semantics. ;)
 
Resale down the track not going to be too good on an air.
Price is too close to the 17 pro imo, you get a lot more for extra $200AUD.
 
Meedoss said:
Resale down the track not going to be too good on an air.
Price is too close to the 17 pro imo, you get a lot more for extra $200AUD.
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The whole point of the Air is not to have more, it’s to weigh less and feel good to use.
 
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kulan said:
I had a 17 Pro Max delivered on launch day, but it’s 2 weeks later and I had to return it because of the speaker noise issue when charging. That was a little too disappointing to keep the device. While I still think the Pro/Pro Max is the “best” iPhone you can buy, the Air just feels so much better to use.

I really wanted to like the Pro Max, because it is such a beast of a phone and I am ordinarily a spec chaser. Thermals, battery, cameras, performance, it was all top of the line. I would have kept it if it wasn’t for the speaker issue.

Of course this is subjective, but the Pro Max does not seem to be designed for use with one hand. I know some people can only use it with two hands. It’s doable, manageable, but not pleasant. I was often using it flat on a table and hunching over to face the display, almost like it was a mini tablet.

The design of the Pros this year was also pretty disappointing, for someone who has always appreciated the elegant, minimalist design of Apple products. I wouldn’t have wanted to use it without a case. Not because of “scratchgate” or “aluminum sucks” but the glass cutout on the back is really what bothered me. I wish they could have color matched the glass better on the Silver model or made the unibody in a different way.

The Air on the other hand is so sleek, the Space Black is so classy and this phone is just beautiful. I realized I really don’t need all the cameras and battery life on the Pro Max. All I do nowadays is text, call, email, and browse the web, barely taking photos here and there.

The Air is simply a little joy to use for this average use case. I don’t understand why so many people are trying to hate on this phone and point out every single one of its flaws over and over. I think this is actually a sign that Apple did something unique and new, which usually bothers people who are used to seeing more of the same.
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I am a 17 PM user because I need maximum camera competence, but IMO the form of the iPhone Air is a beautiful design.
 
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kulan said:
The whole point of the Air is not to have more, it’s to weigh less and feel good to use.
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The whole point of the Air is to test if it sells well enough for Apple to continue producing such experimental products, nothing else. I doubt there will be another "Air" next year. It's neither the 16 nor the 17—it's just the Air, merely an experiment!
 
CalMin said:
I have a 15 ProMax and the Air is the only one in the current line-up that I'm even remotely interested in. The only thing that's stopping me at this point is that I think I will miss the zoom lens too much.
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I also had the 15 Pro Max and if it wasn’t for the Air I wouldn’t have upgraded cuz the 17 Pro Max was just little incremental improvements. Only uglier.
 
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