Quick Summary
A new report says that the rumoured iPhone 17 Slim is Apple's iPhone Air.
A device that'll initially prioritise portability over performance, but forms the shape of iPhones to come.
With the iPhone 16 launch just weeks away, it's clear that Apple isn't making any dramatic or unexpected changes to the iPhone 16 design. However, we know that it's considering a more radical redesign for one of the iPhone 17 models. And a new report says that it's more radical than previously believed.
The redesign is the much-rumoured iPhone 17 Slim, which has been tipped as the most expensive – but not the most powerful – model in the iPhone 17 range. It's expected to sit between the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max and to have a significantly redesigned chassis. And a new report says Apple has big plans for it.
Forget iPhone Slim: say hello to iPhone Air
According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, "the idea is to create an 'Air' version of the iPhone... the most apt comparison is probably to the original MacBook Air from over a decade ago, which was somewhere between the regular MacBook and MacBook Pro."
The 2008 MacBook Air was a sensation, almost entirely because of how thin it was: Steve Jobs famously revealed it by sliding it out of an envelope. It was slower than other MacBooks, it had limited connectivity to other MacBooks, and it was ludicrously expensive. It was a huge hit.
Over time, the Air became much more powerful; today's MacBook Air (M3) is a five-star buy, a lightweight heavyweight. But initially you had to pay a high price for portability, something that'll apparently apply to the iPhone 17 Air too; we saw the same trajectory with the iPad, with the iPad Air (M2) now our recommendation as the best iPad for most people.
According to Gurman "this slimmer entry will just be a step toward something better. Eventually, Apple will want to squeeze the power of a Pro model into this smaller design." And that in turn will pave the way for the iPhone Fold, the unicorn of iPhones. That's still years away, but it looks like the slim phone we see next Autumn will be the shape of many iPhones to come.
