The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be the first new iPhone since 2022’s iPhone 14 Plus. Expected to be introduced as Apple’s third attempt at having a top-selling third addition to the usual four-model lineup, the iPhone 17 Air is rumoured to play with thinness – the iPhone 12 Mini toyed with the idea of a compact and handy iPhone, whereas the iPhone 14 Plus wanted to offer the big battery and big screen thrills of the Pro Max variant. The Air is an experiment towards a new direction.
Some of the highlights of the iPhone 17 Air include a 5.5mm thin chassis, a new A19 chipset, a single rear camera setup (similar to the iPhone 16e) and a nicer new OLED display. Coupled with the Liquid Glass iOS 26, the iPhone 17 Air could offer a highly premium user experience that’s different from the Pro variants.
As Apple prepares for the September 9 launch event, we take a look at everything the new iPhone 17 Air is expected to offer. Without further ado, let’s begin.
iPhone 17 Air design
The iPhone 17 Air’s most striking feature is its rumoured design. With an anticipated thickness of just 5.5mm at its thinnest point, it would be the thinnest iPhone to date, beating the iPhone 6 from 2014. The design is expected to make it incredibly lightweight around 145 grams. While the flat sides are expected to remain, Apple could go for a Google Pixel-inspired slim camera hump with only a single rear lens. The Air is expected to retain the Camera Control key and the Action button from the standard iPhone 17.
iPhone 17 Air display
Since the focus is on a premium experience, the iPhone 17 display is rumoured to feature a 6.6-inch OLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. This will be the first time a non-Pro model gets a higher refresh rate, although it may miss out on the variable refresh rate feature due to the lack of the LTPO panel. The bezels are also expected to be slightly slimmer while maintaining the Dynamic Island pill for masking the Face ID sensors and the front camera.
iPhone 17 Air performance
Despite its super-slim build, the iPhone 17 Air is not expected to be a slouch in the performance department. Rumours suggest it will be powered by Apple’s new A19 chip, paired with 12GB of RAM — a configuration similar to the top-tier iPhone 17 Pro models. The device is also likely to incorporate new vapour chamber heatsinks to manage thermals effectively within its thin dimensions. This kind of specification setup can give the iPhone 17 Air a lot of performance to utilise.
iPhone 17 Air camera
The thinness of the iPhone 17 Air will reportedly lead to some compromises in the camera department. The phone is expected to feature a single 48MP wide-angle camera on the back. While this setup is likely to satisfy casual users, the absence of an ultrawide or telephoto lens means it will not support spatial photos, which may be disappointing for owners of the Apple Vision Pro. The single camera could rely on digital magnification for zoom, similar to the standard iPhone 17.
The front camera is also expected to get a significant upgrade to a 24MP sensor.
iPhone 17 Air battery and charging
A smaller chassis means less space for a large battery. The iPhone 17 Air is rumoured to have a battery capacity of around 2,800mAh, which is significantly smaller than the 4,674mAh battery of the iPhone 16 Plus. Apple is reportedly working on software optimisations and a more power-efficient battery to compensate. In terms of charging, the device is expected to support the Qi 2.2 standard for wireless charging at up to 25W, with some reports even suggesting a wired charging speed of 35W. However, don’t expect the iPhone 17 Air to last long – we wonder if it could surpass a single day!
iPhone 17 Air expected price in US and India
The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be positioned as a mid-range model, priced above the standard iPhone 17 but below the Pro models. The expected starting price for the 128GB model in the US is rumoured to be between $899 and $999. In India, the price is anticipated to be around Rs 99,990 for the base model.
iPhone 17 Air competition
The iPhone 17 Air’s biggest competitor is likely to be Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge, which also features an ultra-thin design at 5.8mm. The Galaxy S25 Edge is equipped with a larger 3,900mAh battery and a dual-camera system, including a 200MP main camera and a 12MP ultrawide lens. The iPhone 17 Air, however, aims to win over users with its even thinner profile, Apple’s software ecosystem, and the introduction of a 120Hz display to a non-Pro model.
