We don’t but know if Apple’s iPhone 17 Air will likely be a industrial success when it launches this fall, however the unreleased slimline handset already has one fan. The YouTube channel Unbox Remedy obtained maintain of an early prototype and confirmed it off in a video this week, describing the cellphone’s design as “loopy” and “insane” and predicting that, assuming the chassis power is nice sufficient to keep away from one other Bendgate controversy, Apple will “promote a boatload of this stuff.”
The preliminary response of the YouTuber, Lewis Hilsenteger, is overwhelmingly optimistic. “That is loopy. Oh my god!” he says when the machine emerges from its container. Struck by the distinction in thickness between the 17 Air and a 17 Professional Max prototype despatched in by the identical provider, he checks the listed dimensions: the slimline mannequin is 5.65mm on the thinnest level, in comparison with 8.75mm for the 17 Professional Max and seven.96mm for the 17 Professional.
(For comparability with present requirements, the iPhone 16 Professional and 16 Professional Max are each listed on Apple’s web site as being 8.25mm thick, whereas the 16, 16 Plus, and 16e are 7.8mm, so the Air is a large discount whereas another fashions are getting thicker, probably to accommodate bigger batteries and probably to magnify the Air’s thinness.)
However there are vital caveats: specifically the reference to Bendgate. The unanticipated flexibility of the super-thin iPhone 6 Plus (7.1 mm) again in September 2014 broken Apple’s popularity for {hardware} perfectionism for some years after. However Apple will certainly be laser-focused on sturdiness this time, and it appears unlikely the corporate would threat the dreadful PR of a repeat incident. A second caveat added later within the video could also be extra pertinent: Hilsenteger frets that “this factor’s going to have horrible battery life.” That’s most likely going to be true.
Extra urgent, the iPhone 17 Air is more likely to be an train in compromise. Except for battery life and the attainable threat of bending, the cellphone is predicted to have only one rear digicam lens, just like the iPhone 16e, and the processor and RAM allocation of a regular iPhone mannequin, not a Professional one. If clients are prepared to make these compromises for the sake of a slim physique, whereas paying a comparatively excessive worth, we are able to count on Apple to lean tougher in that course. If not, the Air experiment will die after one or two fashions just like the mini and (presumably) the Plus.
It’s vital to say, earlier than we get too excited, that Apple gained’t formally announce the iPhone 17 Air and its sibling merchandise for an additional 5 months, so calling the video a “hands-on” is perhaps thought-about just a little tenuous. This isn’t an precise 17 Air as it is going to be revealed, however a prototype or dummy provided by a third-party producer. (The identification of that producer isn’t revealed for apparent causes, but it surely’s more likely to be an adjunct maker with contacts in Apple’s provide chain.)
Corroboration with different prototypes conjures up some confidence that this one is professional, however plans can change and it’s attainable the ultimate product will likely be completely different. Nevertheless it’s onerous to not watch that video and get excited for the launch.
For all the most recent leaks and rumors as we lead as much as the large day, bookmark our repeatedly up to date iPhone 17 megaguide. Or decide up a discount on a present mannequin with our roundup of the very best iPhone offers.
