- VERDICT
The iPhone Air is a simply stunning smartphone that is ideal for the customer looking for something that’s more show and less pro. But it still offers a satisfying performance and will turn every head that lays eye on it.
The iPhone Air is a stunning device that is a marvel of design and engineering – it is just 5.6mm thick and tips the scales at a featherweight 165g. It is the iPhone to own if you want to get noticed and to make a statement.
And you can only really appreciate the slim design when you get it in your hands.
I did a segment about all the new iPhones on Channel 10’s lunchtime news on launch day on September 19 with Angela Bishop.
As soon as we finished the segment I was swarmed by the staff and the only iPhone they wanted to look at and hold was the iPhone Air.
The fascination about the iPhone Air is massive.
But who is the right customer?
Yes, the iPhone Air looks amazing and feels great in the hand but some compromises have been made to achieve this stunning form factor.
Of all the new iPhones, I have probably spent the most time with the iPhone Air.
And I decided to use it without a case to experience the sheer slimness and super lightweight.
The iPhone Air is made with a titanium frame and, according to Apple, it is the strongest and most durable iPhone you can buy.
Apple even shared a testing video showing the iPhone being flexed by up to 7mm without breaking and popping back to flat again.
So durability issues are not an issue if you did want to go caseless with the iPhone Air like we did.
And it’s so light you forget it’s in your pocket. When I go for my daily walk, I put on my South Sydney Rabbitohs training shorts and place what whatever smartphone I am using in the right pocket on its own.
Usually the weight of the device means I have to tie up the draw string so the shorts don’t slip down.
With the iPhone Air in pocket that wasn’t an issue.
The iPhone Air has a gorgeous 6.5-inch Super Retina XDR – the same type of display as the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max – with the Dynamic Island, Always On display and ProMotion with 120Hz refresh rate.
It also has up to 3000nits peak brightness so there’s no issue with reading the display even in bright sunlight.
It is powered by the same A19 Pro chip as the iPhone 17 Pro so performance is excellent.
Of course there is also Apple Intelligence onboard and Siri is also at your service.
The iPhone Air is the first smartphone to be released worldwide with no physical SIM card tray – it is eSIM only.
Customers who already have an eSIM can easily transfer the eSIM via their telco to the iPhone Air.
Users who have a physical SIM card will have to convert it an eSIM – it’s really not that hard to do.
But we think this is Apple’s first move to rid all their future iPhones of physical SIM card trays moving forward like it did in the US.
There have not been physical SIMs in iPhones sold in the US since the launch of the iPhone 14.
On the camera side, there is only a single lens camera – a 48-megapixel Fusion camera that can capture 24 and 48 megapixel images and shoot 4K video at 60fps with Dolby Vision.
It also has the Centre Stage front camera which can snap 18-megapixel images in either portrait or landscape.
And thanks to the new square sensor – you can still hold the phone vertically whether you’re after portrait or landscape shots.
Users simply tap on an icon on the screen and it will adjust the framing without having to change your grip on the device.
The iPhone Air camera is adequate – images and videos look impressive and is fine for shooting and sharing images with friends and family and on social media.
Customers who take a lot of images with their iPhone will probably want more.
It’s a shame it didn’t have a second 48-megapixel fusion camera like the iPhone 17.
Despite having the most attractive and standout design of the new iPhone range, the iPhone Air’s camera is not much better than the entry level iPhone 16e.
So if you’re right into your photography the iPhone Air will fall way short of what you want.
So the camera was obviously one compromise to achieve the iPhone Air’s thin and light design.
The other compromise is the battery capacity.
The iPhone Air has a 3,149mAh battery onboard which is significantly lower than other iPhone models.
In comparison, the iPhone 17 Pro Max has a 5,088mAh battery but is a lot thicker and has more internal space to fit in that larger battery.
The iPhone Air – in a similar way as the iPhone 17 Pro – has a pronounced camera bump which Apple used to move a lot of the circuitry and architecture to maximise the space for the battery.
Samsung’s S25 Edge, released back in May, has a similar thin design at 5.8mm, it does have a physical SIM and a two-camera system but it managed to fit in a 3,900mAh battery which easily lasted all day.
The iPhone Air battery just made it to the end of the day.
We’ve been using the iPhone Air as our daily driver for five days and by around 7pm we had to look for a charger.
And this was even when the iPhone Air received bursts of wireless charging while we were driving.
If I was going somewhere after the workday with the iPhone Air, I would have to either give it a quick charge – I could get back to 50 per cent after about 30 minutes – or take a portable battery with me.
Apple has also released a slim iPhone Air MagSafe battery which attaches to the back of the phone to charge it wirelessly.
The fact Apple released this product – which is designed specifically with the iPhone Air – is a sign it was aware of the battery’s possible shortcomings.
So we think if you’re a heavy user and can’t resist the attraction of the iPhone Air then add the additional battery to your order because you’ll need it.
The iPhone Air is a stunning phone that casual, fashion and design conscious users will adore.
High end and pro users, while still appreciating the super thin and light design, will find the iPhone Air will probably not be able to meet their needs in terms of camera performance and battery life on the go.
There are four colours – we had the Space Black and there’s also Sky Blue, Light Gold and Cloud White.
The iPhone Air is priced at $1,799 – that’s $50 cheaper than the Samsung S25 Edge – and comes with 256GB storage. There’s also a 512GB ($2,199) and 1TB ($2,599) version as well.
VERDICT
The iPhone Air is a simply stunning smartphone that is ideal for the customer looking for something that’s more show and less pro. But it still offers a satisfying performance and will turn every head that lays eye on it.
