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Before Apple’s Awe Dropping event earlier this week, there was no doubt in my mind I’d be upgrading to an iPhone 17 Pro.
After the event, I have nothing but doubts.
Should I stump for the 17 Pro, with the better cameras, gorgeous deep blue color and smaller, more-manageable screen?
Or should I splurge on the eye-catching iPhone Air, with its super-slim, svelte design?
The two handsets share a lot of similarities, but the Air makes some significant compromises to slim down.
We have a detailed breakdown of the differences here, and after reading it, I now know which one I’m going for.
Also in today’s newsletter:
One of the rumored differences between the Pro and the Air was battery life. The Air would surely have to sacrifice battery capacity to stay slim, right? Not so: The iPhone Air’s battery is not compromised.
The Air also has a better USB-C port, which is now 3D-printed to make it not only thinner, but better.
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This is extremely odd: EU residents won’t be able to use AirPods’ new Live Translation feature while in Europe. That’s handy in a region with 24 official languages.
Some people swear by MacPilot, a powerful piece of software that lets you deeply tweak your Mac. Cult of Mac Deals has MacPilot on sale for just $39.99.
— Leander Kahney, EIC.
A message from Incogni
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A message from the Cult of Mac Deals team
A message from the Cult of Mac Deals team
A message from Pacaso
How 433 Investors Unlocked 400X Return Potential
Institutional investors back startups to unlock outsized returns. Regular investors have to wait. But not anymore. Thanks to regulatory updates, some companies are doing things differently.
Take Revolut. In 2016, 433 regular people invested an average of $2,730. Today? They got a 400X buyout offer from the company, as Revolut’s valuation increased 89,900% in the same timeframe.
Founded by a former Zillow exec, Pacaso’s co-ownership tech reshapes the $1.3T vacation home market. They’ve earned $110M+ in gross profit to date, including 41% YoY growth in 2024 alone. They even reserved the Nasdaq ticker PCSO.
The same institutional investors behind Uber, Venmo, and eBay backed Pacaso. And you can join them. But not for long. Pacaso’s investment opportunity ends September 18.
Paid advertisement for Pacaso’s Regulation A offering. Read the offering circular at invest.pacaso.com. Reserving a ticker symbol is not a guarantee that the company will go public. Listing on the NASDAQ is subject to approvals.
Tweets of the day
iPhone 17 Pro 8X shot vs iPhone 16 Pro 5X shot
The new telephoto is a very very massive upgrade
- better focus
- better compression and blur
- better details— #Noah Cat (#@Cartidise)
7:37 AM • Sep 11, 2025
iPhone 17 Pro Max camera samples
0.5x，1x，2x，4x— #PhoneArt (#@UniverseIce)
12:49 PM • Sep 10, 2025
Apple removed the hand gesture from the iPhone Air teaser on its Korean website to avoid a cultural controversy.
That specific "pinching" hand gesture has become a sensitive symbol. Some people there see it as a sign that mocks men.
— #Connor/코너/コナー (#@OreXda)
9:51 AM • Sep 10, 2025
Wallpaper of the day
Hey get Blue & Cyan Version in 4k
#AppleEvent
#iPhone17
#iPhone17Air
#iPhone17Pro
#iPhone17ProMax
#iPhoneWallpaper— #AhMad 𝕏 Ansari (#@Ahmadansari2233)
4:55 PM • Sep 10, 2025
One more thing ...
Coming back after seven months in Indian villages, I saw the craziness of the Western world as well as its capacity for rational thought. If you just sit and observe, you will see how restless your mind is. If you try to calm it, it only makes it worse, but over time it does calm, and when it does, there’s room to hear more subtle things — that’s when your intuition starts to blossom and you start to see things more clearly and be in the present more. Your mind just slows down, and you see a tremendous expanse in the moment. You see so much more than you could see before. It’s a discipline; you have to practice it.
Today’s poll
Which iPhone will you buy (and why)?
Results from yesterday’s poll: What was the biggest Awe Dropping surprise?
Best reader comments
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