The iPhone Air may very well be an early look at the future of Apple smartphones, and our video team is here with its detailed breakdown. We also have a detailed written review with the usual lab test results, benchmarks, and camera samples ready and posted.
Apple iPhone 17 Air
The iPhone Air is arguably the most hyped up phone at the moment, and for good reason; it’s the first major redesign since the iPhone X days. It combines some of the premium features found on the 17 Pro models, such as the Apple A19 Pro chip, albeit with one fewer GPU core, along with 12GB of RAM, a single 48MP rear camera, and a significantly smaller 3,149mAh battery.
True to its name, the iPhone Air is noticeably lighter than most phones at 165 grams, and the 5.6mm thickness is a real showstopper. Then again, the camera plateau is noticeably thicker than the rest of the phone. The titanium frame surrounding the device feels great and the shiny finish gives off a more premium feel than the rest of the 17 series.
The 6.5-inch SuperRetina XDR OLED is the sweet spot in terms of size – not too big like the 6.9-inch 17 Pro Max and noticeably roomier than the 6.3-inch iPhone 17 and 17 Pro. It brings the same LTPO tech so you get a variable 1-120Hz refresh rate and the same great Ceramic Shield 2 scratch protection. Our brightness tests revealed a peak brightness of 998 nits, with smaller portions of the screen exceeding this number.
When it comes to performance, the Air is among the best in synthetic benchmarks, though it does get outshined by the 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max. The Air is also surprisingly efficient and does better in thermal management than its key rival – the Galaxy S25 Edge.
The battery on the Air delivers a decent Active Use Score of 12:44h, and the camera performance is decent, though far from the flagships. Oh, and that single speaker located alongside the earpiece is not that impressive and pales in comparison to what you’d get on virtually any other recent smartphone.
