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The MacRumors Show: iPhone Air Is in Trouble
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I am thinking when Apple switches to Silicon batteries that will accomplish that. A few Android phones are already using them so iPhones will eventually get them.
It is people transitioning from the older generation of phones that are disappointed with the size of newer devices. Going from an SE1 to an SE2 to a 13 mini was as large as I ever want to go. Release a lower cost SE1 small replacement and it'll sell. Market it to people who specifically don't want to be addicted to their phones and want a truly pocketable device. There are plenty of us.
I’m hoping they eventually come out with the Air in two sizes. A 6.1” Air for example would be very light.
It's literally only 0.42 ounces lighter than the iPhone 17.
This, plus the MagSafe battery only charges up to 65% and it’s the same size battery. It’s like they’re selling you another Air battery but can only get 65% of a charge out of it
With a larger screen, and better battery life if you add a battery pack, and my experience with the Air MagSafe battery pack topping up my charge has kept me going all day without ever plugging into a wall.
Every gram counts. Shaving 12 grams off the low end model is impressive.
Should have put it out as a 17 Air MINI for $499. Would have sold like hotcakes. Oh well, sticking with my OGSE.
"Every gram counts." Yet you need to add a battery pack that weighs almost as much as your phone to get normal battery life.
It all depends on your use case, for me the Airs battery is more than enough for the whole day. I dont watch videos or scroll social media or anything like that. I just use it as a phone (shocker) and some light web browsing, emails and various apps. I also do some light gaming at the end of the day and usually still have 30-50% when its time to recharge again. Its also noticeably cooler when running CODM when compared to my old 16PM.
The issue is you can't push out a new product that overtly performs worst than you would expect WHILE charging a new phone price. That's a basic value proposition no no. Steve Jobs was very good about knowing how to price devices for the sales cycle.
Are you saying the air will sell better if Apple makes it something it’s not?
That’s some analysis.
Yep. The Air may be the lightest phone by a tiny margin but isn't the smallest iPhone in today. That is the 16e. Give me an Air smaller than the 16e and I just may get rid of my 13 Mini sooner than I expected. If not no biggie I can hold out for years easy with the 13 mini.
My analogy with the iPhone Air is imagine if Apple got rid of the 13" Air and the smallest Macbook Air was 15" . Thats still a sizable laptop and far cry from the days of 13"...12"/11.5" Macbooks.
Oh well. Time will tell. I know in Japan iPhone Minis are big in used market at least a couple years ago. https://www.channelnews.com.au/pre-used-iphone-minis-growth-surging-in-japan-over-new-iphones/
But if you're carrying the phone and the battery pack, then you're carrying 279 grams, which is 46 grams more than the iphone 17 Pro Max.
Even without the battery, the iPhone 17 is only 177 grams compared to the Air at 165g. That 12 grams of difference is basically two US quarters.
I think most people would rather just get the heavier phones - specifically the Pro at 206g, which has 3 cameras, stereo speakers and better battery life, without the extra weight of a battery pack, for the same price as the Air + Battery.
There will always be people that like a specific product and can make it work for them - like the Air, the trashcan Mac Pro, the Vision Pro, etc. But Apple measures success in tens of millions, if not hundreds of millions of units sold. Over-priced but technologically limited/reduced products might have niche supporters but they will ultimately be mass market failures. It doesn't make the people that like them wrong, it just means that Apple didn't read the room well enough to know what the majority of people actually want.
Samsung's attempt at a thin phone has also failed to make significant sales, so this is definitely a category problem not just a specific apple model problem.
And I believe my OG 2016 SE is thinner than the Air. And lighter. Strange, too, is that my battery (admittedly replaced about 3 years ago) still gets me through the day. Some days are tougher than others, I’ll admit, but mostly good. Folks with the 12’s, 14’s, etc. lamenting “poor battery” this or that on their devices… wow.. wtf has happened in the time between my SE and now? Does iOS have some “while (1): eat_battery;” function on those models?
Every post folks here make about their piss-poor performance makes me cradle and pet my SE more and more.
Because Apple refuses to do what they know will succeed: successful niche or lesser-tier products over-cannibalize the top-tier product (“more margin”, thus ”more profits”). They can do a dang near perfect mini, or Air, and price it correctly, but that will shoot the Pro models in the head. They’re not stupid.. just a tad myopic and a little ballsy.
For the record: I do not agree with any of that, but it’s still true. I’d prefer the properly scaled, priced, and featured niche device. c.f. my 2016 SE.
iPhone air was out of all the iPhone the most exciting release this year. With a great design and a great screen BUT …
The camera takes us back to a long time ago which is not acceptable… regarding the battery life, it’s ok
I hope that they won’t be making the same mistakes with the iPhone Fold which is what I am waiting for … oh and please a pencil mini please or don’t bother …
The camera takes us back to a long time ago which is not acceptable… regarding the battery life, it’s ok
I hope that they won’t be making the same mistakes with the iPhone Fold which is what I am waiting for … oh and please a pencil mini please or don’t bother …
My hunch is that for some (many?) people, something that's less bulky than something else, will seem significantly lighter in the hand than the something else, even if the less bulky thing is only a little lighter. But that perception counts for them, which counts for something.
It's really funny, here in Copenhagen, I've seen 2 iPhone Airs in the wild being used by people, no 17 Pro/Max so far. Of course only very anecdotal evidence.
I would've gotten the Air instead of the Pro Max if it supported Apple Log, this is very niche though I imagine.
I would've gotten the Air instead of the Pro Max if it supported Apple Log, this is very niche though I imagine.
As for the extra cost, having a powerful iPhone that is light and easy to handle, especially in contrast to those brick-like iPhone Pros, to me it's worth it. I do miss that array of cameras that I rarely used, but so far this single camera has been working very well for me. And don't forget, with the higher density sensor, going from the 2x optical zoom to 4X or even 6X Digital zoom still yields a good picture for most of us non professionals. At least that's my experience.
By the way, there is some belief that once word gets out from iPhone Air users, sales will improve. I'll be surprised if that doesn't happen.
By the way, there is some belief that once word gets out from iPhone Air users, sales will improve. I'll be surprised if that doesn't happen.