The iPhone Air looks great with its sleek, thin new shape, but you may not want to choose this phone as your daily driver just yet.
The new device announced on Tuesday is thinner and lighter than other models, at 5.6mm with a 6.5-inch display. But for the time being, it’s also less capable in some areas than the base model iPhone 17, which could deter potential buyers.
For instance, the Air’s battery lasts up to 27 hours, while the iPhone 17 lasts up to 30. It lacks the iPhone 17’s Ultra Wide camera. It also doesn’t support macro photography. Meanwhile, the Air’s price point of $999 is 22% more expensive than the 17 base model, which starts at $799. And for just $100 more, you could upgrade to the iPhone 17 Pro ($1,099).
Despite these disadvantages, there’s something compelling about the Air: it hints at where iPhone hardware design is going, including new form factors, like foldables.
After all these years, Apple is still chasing a thinner iPhone — and not just because it makes for a better-looking device. Apple needs to experiment on a platform that uses its own technology to improve the hardware design and the phone’s performance.
As Apple explains, the iPhone Air has the most Apple-designed chips in an iPhone, including the A19 Pro (CPU with a 5-core GPU), N1 (wireless networking chip), and new C1X (cellular modem). The latter is faster than the modem in the 16 Pro, but uses 30% less energy, Apple points out. By architecting the phone’s design around its own silicon, Apple can work on challenges like performance and battery life — things that remain important as phones become more capable in terms of photography, videography, and even AI.
Image Credits:Apple
Battery life, in particular, is a stopping point for how powerful these devices can become, since battery tech is improving at a slower rate than that of other iPhone components and technologies. Unfortunately, the debut version of the iPhone Air didn’t make things better on this front, as its battery life is worse than that of the other models.
Techcrunch event Join 10k+ tech and VC leaders for growth and connections at Disrupt 2025 Netflix, Box, a16z, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital, Elad Gil — just some of the 250+ heavy hitters leading 200+ sessions designed to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don’t miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech. Grab your ticket before Sept 26 to save up to $668. Join 10k+ tech and VC leaders for growth and connections at Disrupt 2025 Netflix, Box, a16z, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital, Elad Gil — just some of the 250+ heavy hitters leading 200+ sessions designed to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don’t miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech. Grab your ticket before Sept 26 to save up to $668. San Francisco | REGISTER NOW
Instead, the Air should be seen as a starting point in terms of iPhone design that could help the company better understand how to optimize the battery life for its other devices going forward.
... continue reading