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iPhone Air

Slim, tough and fast. But what about the trade–offs?

From $999 From www.apple.com

Features 6.5in Super Retina XDR display (2736x1260 pixels), A19 Pro chip, 256GB/512GB/1TB of storage, Wi–Fi 7 (802.11be), Bluetooth 6, 5G, USB–C port, up to 27 hours’ video playback (up to 40 hours with MagSafe Battery)

THE iPHONE AIR IS THINNEST PHONE IN THE WORLD THAT’S NOT A FOLDABLE

While we’re impressed with the design, the price is high for the phone’s feature set.
If photographic results are more important to you than handset portability, we’d steer you toward the iPhone 17 range.
Image rights: Apple Inc.

THE iPHONE AIR represents the first major shake–up to the iPhone family in years. The Air replaces the iPhone 16 Plus, but it really stands as a completely new device. In fact, the iPhone Air really feels like a blueprint for the future as Apple nears the 20th anniversary of the original iPhone.

Measuring 0.22 inches thin, the iPhone Air is the slimmest phone in the world that’s not foldable, and yet it feels sturdy thanks to its titanium frame. The iPhone Air doesn’t skimp on its inner spec either, packing an A19 Pro chip for playing demanding games and taking advantage of Apple Intelligence.

The catch? There’s only a single camera, and while battery life is solid, you get less endurance versus the iPhone 17 Pro models.

The iPhone Air starts at $999 for 256GB of storage. That’s $100 more than the iPhone 16 Plus, but Apple is betting that you’ll be willing to pay a premium for a phone that’s this slim and portable. There’s just one problem: the iPhone 17 Pro starts at $1,099, which is just $100 more for a phone with triple cameras, a bigger battery, the same A19 Pro chip, an extra graphics core (giving it six cores rather than five) and vapor chamber cooling for better sustained performance.

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This article is from...


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Mac|Life
November 2025
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