Slimmed down: Apple launches thin iPhone Air – eSIM only
After Mini and Plus comes Air: Apple wants to entice buyers with a very thin iPhone model – They have to accept compromises. The SIM card has had its day.
(Image: Apple)
The "iPhone 17 Air" is official: on Tuesday evening, Apple unveiled a new, particularly thin iPhone model variant, known simply as the iPhone Air. It is also the first entirely new iPhone in several years and replaces the previous Plus model in the lineup. With a screen diagonal of 6.5 inches (2736 x 1260 pixels, refresh rate up to 120 Hz), the Air lies between the standard iPhone (6.3") and the 6.9" Max model, which the manufacturer has relaunched in parallel as the iPhone 17, 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max.
With a thickness of 5.6 millimetres, the iPhone Air should stand out, not only from other iPhones, but also from its competitor, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge, which is 5.8 millimetres thin. Only a few expensive Android foldables are slimmer when unfolded. Titanium is used as the material for the iPhone Air's housing frame, while the manufacturer continues to use glass ("Ceramic Shield") for the front and back. Apple puts the weight at 165 grams.
Radio chips now come from Apple – Mobile communications such as WLAN
The thin design inevitably leads to compromises: The iPhone Air only has a single main camera on the back with a 48-megapixel sensor and the usual functions, such as several virtual focal lengths and a 2x zoom with 12 megapixels. Telephoto and ultra-wide angle are reserved for the other models –, as are macro mode and ProRAW support. 4K video recording is possible, but only up to 60 fps.
Like the other iPhone 17 models, the Air also offers a "Center Stage" front camera that can follow the viewer and adjust the image section. Biometric authentication is carried out via Face ID facial recognition.
Videos by heise
Inside is an A19 Pro chip with a 6-core CPU and 5-core GPU. It also uses a supposedly faster but economical in-house mobile modem "C1X", a further development of the C1 baseband introduced with the iPhone 16e in the spring. Another wireless module now also – bears an Apple logo for the first time –: The company emphasized that the WLAN and Bluetooth chip "N1" is also an in-house development. It supports WLAN 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread. The chip trio makes the model the "most energy-efficient iPhone to date". A satellite connection is supported in mobile network gaps for the SOS function, but messaging is not yet possible in Europe. A 2nd generation ultra-wideband chip is also on board, as well as support for dual-frequency GPS.
The iPhone Air does not have a SIM card slot; mobile phone access is purely via eSIM. This also applies to the models that Apple will launch on the European market. Dual SIM or dual eSIM – the parallel operation of two lines – is supported.
MagSafe battery pack as an accessory
The battery is said to last "all day", but Apple did not provide any more details at the keynote. The smartphone is said to last up to 27 hours of pure video playback – three hours less than the iPhone 17. Without further ado, the manufacturer presented an accessory: a new, slimmer MagSafe battery that can be attached to the back and purchased as an option.
The iPhone Air can be charged via USB-C, MagSafe, Qi and Qi2. However, the USB-C port only supports a slow USB 2 speed for data transfer. Like the other current iPhones, the Air is protected against water and dust in accordance with IP68.
Apple iPhone Air: prices and availability
The iPhone Air is available in black, white, gold and sky blue and costs 1,200 euros with 256 GB of storage space (1,000 US dollars plus tax in the USA). For larger capacities with 512 GByte and 1 TByte, Apple, as usual, asks for a hefty price tag of 1450 and 1700 euros respectively.
For the "iPhone Air MagSafe battery", the manufacturer charges a further 115 euros. Pre-ordering is possible from September 12, with the sales launch following on Friday, September 19, in Germany.
While the basic iPhone as well as the Pro and Pro Max models have always clearly found their buyers, Apple has so far had little luck with the fourth model variant: The very compact iPhone mini, which was launched in 2020, was met with a lot of enthusiasm, but obviously little demand. Just two years later, Apple went in an entirely different direction with the larger Plus model, which was priced between the basic iPhone and the Pro models. Apple has not announced an iPhone 17 Plus; the Air is now taking its place and must prove whether it will ultimately find more buyers.
Empfohlener redaktioneller Inhalt
Mit Ihrer Zustimmung wird hier ein externer Preisvergleich (heise Preisvergleich) geladen.
Ich bin damit einverstanden, dass mir externe Inhalte angezeigt werden. Damit können personenbezogene Daten an Drittplattformen (heise Preisvergleich) übermittelt werden. Mehr dazu in unserer Datenschutzerklärung.
(lbe)
