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Ultra-Thin 'iPhone 17 Air' Rumored to Include These 12 Features
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That's where I am. Looking forward to a silicone-cased iPhone that's thinner, and thus can be much easier pushed into and pulled out of the pocket of shirts I like to wear. Especially when I'm making photographs in cities.
Right now it's always a hassle with my silicone-case 16PM. Looking forward to trying out a 17 Air at my local Apple Store. And will purchase one if it is indeed easier to push-in/pull-out.
I just want to know if the Air gets the Action and Camera buttons that the rest of the lineup gets. I could see myself upgrading to the form factor when it gets more mature, and adds a second lens.
And the new pros look like bricks, and are likely heavy too. Congrats everyone that yelled and screamed for thicker phones with bigger batteries, you got your wish.
And the new pros look like bricks, and are likely heavy too. Congrats everyone that yelled and screamed for thicker phones with bigger batteries, you got your wish.
That serves several engineering functions. Larger sensors mean the lenses need to be positioned further away but a thickened body would add considerable weight. The top-left positioning allows you to stabilise the phone with your left middle finger when shooting in landscape.
A flush camera would look nice but would need a thicker phone or reduced performance. This would add extra battery room but ultimately be too heavy for the wrists of a 95th percentile customer.
- A massive freaking hideous camera bump, that for some reason nobody wants but everyone gets
Have human wrists really degenerated that much in the last 3 decades? Really?
A Motorola MicroTAC weighed 12.3 ounces with the small battery, you could get a bigger battery. It was considered a lightweight phone. An iPhone 16 Pro Max weighs less than 8.
iPhones could EASILY be heavier without being "too heavy". And a thicker phone is easier to hold.
I get this, but if it’s stripped down like the ‘e’ who exactly are they targeting. Cannibalizing their own user base who is already paying for a Pro seems like a losing strategy.
Surprisingly, it might be a good option for elderly individuals with poor eyesight and hand pain. I bought a 14PM for both my mom and mother-in-law, who are in their 70s, and they love it—except for the weight. Their phone is their primary and only device for web browsing, entertainment, communication, and viewing and taking family photos.
The 17Air would be a great device for them since it's thinner, lighter, and has a large screen that allows for enlarged text. They also never use the ultrawide or telephoto lens, so its absence wouldn’t be a drawback. Plus, having a 120Hz display is just icing on the cake.
That phone was 25 years ago that was ONLY used for voice calls. People today use their phones to call, web browsing, watching videos and movies, taking pictures, gaming, and etc.. I can understand why having a thick 348 gram phone is no longer desirable, especially as people carry them in their jacket and pant pockets all the time.
As someone who, aged 39 at the time had the iPhone 14 Pro trigger latent arthritis due to its steel frame in understand perfectly. Since getting rid of it a few months later it quickly rescinded.
Phones are now a lot bigger than that iPhone 8 and therefore have irregular weight distribution for one handed use.
We also use smartphones for much, much longer periods than we ever did the bricks of yesteryear.
The reason we have camera bumps and iPhones (or any phone really) the thickness they are is down to the innumerable prototypes Apple will create during the development process, arriving at an ideal compromise of weight and dimensions.
Apple are a trillion-dollar company and there is a practical reason behind every single detail on their devices most of us don’t even think about when we use them.
I teach product design and thus train people how to spot these little details. Take the camera control button. Slightly too far along for landscape shooting but actually in just the right spot for portrait, the dominant form of photography and video for younger generations. Also perfectly set up to just hold your thumb on for Visual Intelligence.
i mean i may change my mind but im on the iphone 15 pro and due for an upgrade this year. i am leaning more and more towards not
It's not even just about the money, but all my two factor authentication from banks, work security...that will have to be reset ... that process alone to me is already not enough to get the very marginal benefits expected.
It's not even just about the money, but all my two factor authentication from banks, work security...that will have to be reset ... that process alone to me is already not enough to get the very marginal benefits expected.
It's almost like there's other people in the world other than you lol. I personally want my iPhone to be as thin as possible, the iPhone 6 was amazing to hold in the hand and easier to reach around the screen, Apple used to be all about thin and they still are to an extent. Not to mention fitting into your pocket without a brick outline poking out. If you want thicker that's fine but maybe don't be so ignorant to the fact there are with people out there that want a super thin phone otherwise Apple wouldn't be releasing it
Maybe a single speaker will reduce the general public's need to listen to their phones for everyone to hear in public places.
So you keep the 120hz display in a 5.5mm body and a MONO speaker. This is going to be one of the worst multimedia and content consumption devices in a very long time.
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the ultra-thin device.
Overall, the "iPhone 17 Air" sounds like a mixed bag. While the device is expected to have an impressively thin and light design, rumors indicate it will have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, a single speaker, and an A19 chip instead of a more powerful A19 Pro chip.
While there have been some concerns that the iPhone 17 Air's thin design could result in limited battery life, the device might end up beating expectations. There are three rumored features for the iPhone 17 Air that could contribute to longer battery life than one might imagine, including a higher-density battery, Apple's power-efficient C1 modem, and the lack of an Ultra Wide camera providing more internal space for a larger battery.
Below, we recap 12 key rumors for the "iPhone 17 Air" as of March 2025:
Bookmark our iPhone 17 Air roundup to stay up to date with more rumors in the coming months.
- The thinnest iPhone ever, measuring just 5.5mm at its thinnest point, but possibly up to 9.5mm with the rear camera bump included
- 6.6-inch OLED display with Face ID and a Dynamic Island
- ProMotion support for up to a 120Hz refresh rate
- A19 chip instead of A19 Pro chip
- 8GB of RAM for Apple Intelligence support
- A single 48-megapixel rear camera on an all-new elongated camera bar
- A 24-megapixel front camera
- A single speaker in the earpiece, no bottom speaker
- Apple-designed Wi-Fi 7 chip
- Apple-designed C1 modem for cellular connectivity
- eSIM only, no physical SIM card slot worldwide
- An off-center USB-C port
Article Link: Ultra-Thin 'iPhone 17 Air' Rumored to Include These 12 Features
Who wants a thin iPhone with only one camera that costs more than a regular iPhone 17?
Yes, there will probably be some people.
We all know that the Plus didn’t sell well because it lacked 120Hz.
But this year, all models will have 120Hz. Now, we’ll probably want the cheapest model that offers both 120Hz and a big battery, along with the essentials (dual cameras, right?).
Okay, the Plus is dead—or removed—for many reasons, but perhaps Apple doesn't want to fill the gap between the regular and Pro models. And definitely, a 120Hz Plus won't be there. Apple likely wants you to buy the Pro Max to get both 120Hz and a big battery.
So again, who is the Air for? I don't know, but the would-be Plus would have been everyone’s favorite. We won’t see that happening, though, because Apple is too manipulative and greedy.
Yes, there will probably be some people.
We all know that the Plus didn’t sell well because it lacked 120Hz.
But this year, all models will have 120Hz. Now, we’ll probably want the cheapest model that offers both 120Hz and a big battery, along with the essentials (dual cameras, right?).
Okay, the Plus is dead—or removed—for many reasons, but perhaps Apple doesn't want to fill the gap between the regular and Pro models. And definitely, a 120Hz Plus won't be there. Apple likely wants you to buy the Pro Max to get both 120Hz and a big battery.
So again, who is the Air for? I don't know, but the would-be Plus would have been everyone’s favorite. We won’t see that happening, though, because Apple is too manipulative and greedy.