Yes it’s official! It’s not called the “iPhone 17 Air” as rumors suggested, it’s officially called “iPhone Air.” As Tim Cook announced, engineering this marvel piece of tech was just not possible without the advancements made in Apple Silicon. As Apple says, “it’s a paradox you need to hold to believe.” It may be super thin, but it packs in so many advanced features – this is a full-featured iPhone at its finest.
As the name already suggests, iPhone Air is now Apple’s thinnest iPhone ever, measuring at 5.6mm. That’s almost as thin as the M4 iPad Pro. The display is what you see first on an iPhone, and the iPhone Air packs in a massive 6.5-inch Super Retina XDR display with support for these features
- ProMotion up to 120Hz
- Always-On display at 1Hz
- 3000 nits peak outdoor brightness
For the first time on any iPhone, Ceramic Shield is applied to the back of the iPhone Air, and it’s even more strong with Ceramic Shield 2. Additionally, iPhone Air’s enclosure is made out of polished titanium, so you can assure that it’s durable enough to take it with you everywhere you go. iPhone Air comes in Space Black, Cloud White, Light Gold, and Sky Blue.
The advancements don’t stop there thanks to the improvements in Apple Silicon. Introducing A17 Pro, iPhone Air brings MacBook Pro levels of compute for the first time in such a small form factor. Featuring faster CPU cores, updated GPU cores with second-generation Dynamic Caching and built-in neural accelerators, it’s the most advanced A-series chip that Apple has ever engineered.
Apple has made several improvements in terms of connectivity. As learning from Apple Watch and AirPods, for the first time, iPhone Air packs in N1, which is designed from the ground up to integrate Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth, and Threads on a single chip for better efficiency. The Apple C1 modem was introduced last spring with iPhone 16e, and now Apple is introducing the C1X modem which enables 2x faster cellular performance while using 30% less energy.
iPhone Air packs in the single 48MP Fusion camera system, which enables 1x and 2x optical zoom options. Additionally, even with a thinner battery, iPhone Air still delivers all-day battery life. To maximize space, iPhone Air is eSIM-only, which enables Apple to pack in as much space as possible for the battery. Other accessories that Apple announced for iPhone 17 Air are an option low-profile MagSafe battery to deliver more hours between each charge, translucent cases in Frost and Shadow, and lightweight bumpers in four matching colors.
iPhone Air starts at 256GB, priced at $999 with available storage configurations at 512GB ($1,199) and 1TB ($1,399). Preorders start Friday, and it will be available September 19.
