As expected, Apple’s September 2025 event delivered three new iPhones. There’s the iPhone 17 Pro – and its larger sibling, the Pro Max – aimed at pro-oriented users (hence the name) who demand maximum power, maximum camera zoom, and maximum wallet thumpage. Then there’s the bread-and-butter iPhone 17 – the very boring Apple smartphone that also happens to be the best buy for most people.
The curveball is the iPhone Air. Apple CEO Tim Cook called it a “total game changer,” designed for customers who want “pro performance in an unbelievably thin and light design.” Assuming, that is, you ignore the camera bump. Sorry, camera plateau.
I’m not sure that audience exists. The people I see drawn to the Air aren’t that excited about what the device offers beyond it being something new and shiny. And they are a relatively rare bunch in not being bothered by the Air’s compromises – of which there are many.
iPhone Air
The Air has the weakest camera system of any iPhone released this year. Its smaller battery lags behind those in other iPhones. The single mono speaker smacks of mid-range Android phones from five years ago, not a modern Apple device nudging on flagship pricing.
Apple, naturally, has its defenses ready. It insists the Air retains the “most popular” iPhone camera features. It says the lone speaker, somehow, rivals the loudness of the Pro’s stereo set-up. Battery life? “All day,” apparently. But put it next to the iPhone 17 and the Air feels like the lesser iPhone. So why does it exist?
The answer may lie in its defining spec: thinness. At just 5.64mm, it’s Apple’s slimmest iPhone yet. It undercuts Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge (5.8mm), although it is beaten by a group of other Android phones, including the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 7, the Honor Magic V3, and the Oppo Find N5.
Oppo Find N5
The last of those clocks in at an absurdly skinny 4.21mm. But you may have spotted something in that group: the word ‘fold.’. That’s no coincidence. All those devices are folding phones that, when fully open, operate more like an iPad. Closed, they’re chunkier than an iPhone 17 Pro – but still fairly slim. It’s an impressive feat.
It’s also the kind of device Apple itself hasn’t publicly revealed yet. But rumors suggest a folding Apple smartphone could arrive as soon as next year, or perhaps in 2027 to mark 20 years of the iPhone. Which makes the Air feel almost like a prototype you can buy: a stepping stone to a foldable or a glimpse of Apple’s vision for iPhones in years to come, where every model is Air-thin. Maybe both of those things.
That all suggests a literal realization of another Apple claim, namely that holding the iPhone Air “feels like you’re holding the future.” But if that does come to pass, here’s hoping future Airs stay light in the hand – but aren’t so light on features.