It’s incredible how many people seem to want to make it a point of telling other people to not pick the Air. Such a divisive topic you’ve got Apple users going after each other. Apple must be loving it.
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iPhone Air The Air reviews have dropped and the speaker's junk
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It’s incredible how many people seem to want to make it a point of telling other people to not pick the Air. Such a divisive topic you’ve got Apple users going after each other. Apple must be loving it.
It's made this whole iPhone launch cycle the most fascinating in recent memory for me. Just remarkable!
That’s why the air is not for you, but it may be for others. At home I use my iPads, not my phone, except for calls.
Sure has. I’ve been an iPhone user since the 3G and can’t remember the last time there has been so much buzz. It’ll be interesting to see how it sells.
Me either. That’s the fascinating part. So many people that want nothing to do with the Air talking about it.
All I can think of when I think of using my tinny phone speakers is this song:
iPhone Air review: The thinnest iPhone ever, but at what cost? - 9to5Mac
Every so often, Apple makes a design decision that draws a line in the sand. One that feels like a...9to5mac.com
- The iPhone Air has a single speaker, located in the earpiece at the top of the device. There isn’t a speaker on the bottom like there is on other iPhone models. This was noticeable right away to me. If you regularly listen to podcasts or music using just your iPhone speakers (especially in the shower), you’ll want to invest in a Bluetooth speaker.
It's a no buy from me
A lot of ASUS ROG laptops have vapour chambers. The one I was referring to was the ROG G7502VY, which predated the Zephyrus. These days I have a Zephyrus also.
The lack of surround sound is notable. I still use my 8 and 6S often as video streaming devices and it's clear and obvious which one has a single speaker. No one is saying the Air sounds like trash, I am sure the single speaker is great, however it will be a noticeable downgrade.
I personally watch around 90% of video content on my phone (50% of the time using earphones) so the lack of surround sound is a consideration for me.
Your comment gave me another thought.
Physical size also absolutely plays a role in speaker quality. A bigger enclosures (i.e. the phone’s body) allows more room for resonance and better low-end reproduction. A second speaker would allow the phone to get louder, but not necessarily “better.”
It’s entirely possible there’s a version in the labs with two speakers that doesn’t sound noticeably better. And if that’s the case, then more battery absolutely is the right decision.
You sound like me and probably majority of the rest of the world who don’t frequent MacRumors to stir up things and are not influenced by tech reviewers and make a decision on a purchase that suits needs unique to them 🙂
Sounds very good to me although is that just because I’m hearing it out of my iPhone 16 pros speakers 🤯
Because it's a phone. Even the pro max with stereo speakers are just "adequate" you're not going to get hi fidelity quality sound out of a phone for music or movie watching purposes
The way that Apple sets the sound stage just sounds wrong to me. Like, they go heavy on the loudness, but the majority of the output is tinny and skews heavily towards treble. Like they're over-driving the mid-ranges to compensate for the lack of lows? I don't see any reviewers ever comment on that, but the sound is just so... bad.
I play with model trains, and they use the same type of speaker as the iPhone - in some cases, the exact same speaker as an iPhone - and they tend to hit better lows.
This is exactly what i was getting at earlier with the “space” in the phone. Even if model trains are small, they’re not as small (and cramped with other parts) as the inside of a phone.
I’m assuming a model train can give the same speaker better working conditions (more air volume, tuned enclosure). In other words, the speaker has more usable acoustic space inside the train than it does inside the iPhone.
And the Air has significantly less usable space than previous phones. The more I think about it, the more I suspect the second speaker really wasn’t adding much at all, and that’s why Apple decided more battery was better.
The iPhone Air’s speaker is not the best speaker system of 2025 … who cares?
It’s still worlds better than any speaker system from 10 years ago.
Everything does not have to be the best thing 🙄
It’s still worlds better than any speaker system from 10 years ago.
Everything does not have to be the best thing 🙄
It’s actually worse than what we had before. An earpiece is smaller and quieter than a bottom firing speaker.
I'm picking up my Air tomorrow. I've had a 15 Pro since launch day in 2023. I do absolutely love the speakers on it. I use them whenever I'm doing chores around the house, while watching videos/podcasts while having a meal, and really love how loud and clear they make speakerphone calls (which I do quite often at home).
All that said, I do really want a lighter phone. The 15 Pro, while much lighter than my prior 13 Pro, can still feel quite heavy at times. So the Air being 22 g lighter is very appealing to me.
I will see if I can get used to the mono speaker of the Air, because I think I will love everything else about it.
If not, well, there's always the 14-day return period.
All that said, I do really want a lighter phone. The 15 Pro, while much lighter than my prior 13 Pro, can still feel quite heavy at times. So the Air being 22 g lighter is very appealing to me.
I will see if I can get used to the mono speaker of the Air, because I think I will love everything else about it.
If not, well, there's always the 14-day return period.
The truth will be revealed once regular users buy an iPhone Air and report on their real world experience.
Influencers, YouTube channel owners all have a huge incentive to keep Apple happy by creating reviews that promote the product. Praising the new iPhone is what they do.
Any issues, negative feedback and comments will be minimized as their livelihood relies on remaining in Apples good graces.
Influencers, YouTube channel owners all have a huge incentive to keep Apple happy by creating reviews that promote the product. Praising the new iPhone is what they do.
Any issues, negative feedback and comments will be minimized as their livelihood relies on remaining in Apples good graces.