iPhone 17 Air landing very soon

What to expect from the slimmest iPhone ever.

Author

Leander Kahney
August 18, 2025

Big changes are afoot in iPhone land.

Not only is Apple introducing some radical new designs, the company’s also shaking up the launch cycle.

To make room for the first folding iPhone — likely due next fall — Apple reportedly will delay the launch of the regular iPhone 18 models until the following spring.

Instead of launching along with their Pro-level cousins, they’ll debut hand-in-hand with the budget-minded iPhone 18e.

The shift will allow Apple to launch new models twice a year instead of just once, easing the strain on both its marketing channels and its hard-working supply chain.

This year, we’ll see a brand-new design: the first iPhone Air, a super-slim model that might forego some of the latest tech to focus on being as thin as possible.

Personally, I’m pretty excited about the iPhone Air. It sounds perfect for me. I care less these days about having the latest, greatest camera, and more about portability, hand feel, a great screen and long battery life.

The good news is, the Air might score on all these fronts, with the debut of new battery technology that actually increases battery life despite the device’s slimmed-down form factor.

That — and all the other rumors about the device — can be found here.

Also in today’s newsletter:

  • Whether you love Liquid Glass or hate it, the new design is starting to get close to being set in stone!

  • Thanks to trickle-down technology, everyone’s favorite lemonade-from-lemons strategy, the Dynamic Island looks set to come to the entry-level iPhone 17e. And look at the top picture on that post: Isn’t Apple’s cheapest iPhone also one of its best-looking (from the back, anyway)?

  • AirPlay is great, but only a limited set of devices support it. To cast anywhere and everywhere, you need an app like DoCast, which works with just about everything.

  • It looks like U.S. TV watchers don’t mind subtitles after all! Jason Momoa’s Chief of War, a historical miniseries filmed largely in the Hawaiian language, continues to top the streaming charts.

  • The brilliant Apple Watch Series 10 just returned to its lifetime low price. And if you’re interested in an iPhone keyboard case that turns your phone into a faux BlackBerry, we have a deal for you. And finally, it’s your last chance to get early-bird Kickstarter pricing on a brilliant bionic office chair that does it all.

— Leander Kahney, EIC.

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One more thing ...

❝

The main thing in our design is that we have to make things intuitively obvious.

— Steve Jobs, 2008.

Today’s poll

Any interest in switching to the iPhone Air?

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Results from last Friday’s poll: How many screens in your setup?

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