The iPhone Air is Apple’s boldest design move in years – and it shows

The iPhone 17 Air, the much-anticipated rival to the Galaxy S25 Edge, is finally here. The ultra-slim phone responds to the latest tech trend, slim phones, and is the model that replaces the iPhone 17 Plus in the lineup. 

With an elegant design, four subdued colors to choose from, slim bezels, and a slim-chic form factor, the iPhone 17 Air is bound to stand out. Its main selling point over the other models in the series is its thinness. 

Biggest iPhone 17 Air key selling points

• Grade 5 spacecraft titanium for lightness, durability (more durable than any previous iPhone)
• Ceramic shield encloses the titanium on both sides
• Frame made of titanium
• High-density battery
• 4 colors: Space Black, Cloud White, White Gold, Sky Blue
• A19 Pro chip 

Design 

The iPhone 17 Air still resembles an iPhone, but with some key differences. For one, on the back, we have the new ‘camera bar’ design for the camera island. The thickness of the phone is its main selling point, measuring just 5.6mm thick. Apple has slimmed down the bezels, while on the back, we have one camera lens, similarly to the iPhone 16E. 

Display

The iPhone 17 Air has its unique place in the lineup in terms of display size as well. Its display is 6.5 inches, so it’s bigger than the base iPhone 17 and the iPhone 17 Pro, but it’s smaller than the iPhone 17 Pro Max. Coupled with the thinness of the device, the iPhone 17 Air is shaping up to be the phone to go for if you’re looking for slim and lightweight with a reasonably big screen. 

Battery 

Given the iPhone 17 Air‘s thin form factor, it’s understandable that the battery size has suffered. However, we have a high-density battery here that would make this iPhone potentially hold its place against the others in the lineup. Apple is also mitigating this with the Adaptive Power, a feature that would adjust the iPhone 17 Air‘s performance to save battery depending on what you’re doing. 

Camera

The iPhone 17 Air has one camera on the back, unlike the iPhone 17 Pro or even the regular iPhone 17. The 48MP main camera is going to be used for all photos you’d like to take with the phone, quite like the iPhone 16E. Still, it’s a pretty capable camera. 

This is a developing story. 

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