iPhone Air review: A masterclass in design

When Apple announced the iPhone Air, many knew it was coming, yet what unfolded was the sheer joy at seeing innovation. An iPhone so thin, so light, so deliberate, fans weren’t entirely ready for it. I know I wasn’t.

Apple has used the “Air” badge sparingly over the years, mostly when it wanted to reset expectations around portability and design. We’ve seen it with MacBook Air and iPad Air. But bringing that philosophy to the iPhone lineup marked a shift no one saw coming. It’s not positioned as a “budget flagship” or a “lite” variant. Instead, the 17 Air feels like Apple is revisiting the OG idea of building a product around great design.

And with the mainstream flagships growing chunkier because of battery demands and camera bulges, the Air stands out immediately, not as the most powerful iPhone, not the most ambitious, but clearly the most intentional. More like a luxury collector item, an aspirational piece of tech.

Before we get into what this means in day-to-day use, here’s everything the iPhone 17 Air is built on.

Key specifications

1. Display: 6.5-inch Super Retina XDR, 120Hz OLED
2. Processor: Apple A19 Pro with 5-core GPU
3. Storage Options: 256GB / 512GB / 1TB
4. OS: iOS26
5. Cameras: 48MP + 18MP (front)
6. Connectivity: 5G eSIM-only, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, NFC, Thread, USB-C, Satellite connectivity, UWB, GNSS
7. Water Resistance: IP68 (6m for 30 minutes)
8. Dimensions: 156.2 × 74.7 × 5.64mm
9. Weight: 165g

Starts at Rs 1,19,000.

Design and display

iPhone 17 Air is not just a thin phone but a demonstration of confidence in design experimentation. It is 5.64mm thin, making it the thinnest Apple phone to date, but its smoothness cannot be fully captured in photos. Holding it, those rounded sides, titanium frame, and feather-light weight of 165g make it nearly unreal, particularly when it weighs 12g less than the already-light iPhone 17.

Don’t be fooled by its delicate appearance. The device is tough, even with its ultra-slim profile. The titanium chassis adds the durability that counters fears of another “bend-gate,” and the new Ceramic Shield Glass 2 fails to scratch, and most importantly, there is no need to have a case. The phone is even IP68 rated, which is a plus that gives extra durability to what is expected of such a thin gadget.

One of the biggest aspects of the engineering magic is the new camera plateau, taking the majority of the internal hardware of the phone, such as the A19 Pro chip, and putting it in a phone plateau in the form of a raised glass bar on the back. Considering that every essential component is housed there, the bulge is barely protruding. The design is similar to that of the visor of Pixel but in Apple style. The redesign liberates the rest of the body for battery and makes the Air have a bold profile.

The 6.5-inch Super Retina XDR display is glorious and dependably color-true. The darker scenes are immersive with HDR. It is marred only by one top-firing speaker. Losing the bottom speaker means the loss of stereo sound, and, though the earpiece speaker is agreeable, the loss is felt when viewing videos in a noisy room, though not many will be watching the video on speaker in 2026.

Performance

iPhone Air runs iOS 26, but it has received follow-up updates during the course of this review either to improve performance or fix buds. Overall, the appearance of the iPhone Air’s interface is as fluid as you’d expect. Face ID is quick, application switching is immediate and Call Screening and Hold Assist with Apple Intelligence are the benefits it brings instantly.

The Camera app has the new layout for different modes by swiping and by now the world has adapted to this new change and it comes naturally now. One of the biggest shortcomings in terms of convenience is the change to eSIM without an actual SIM tray around the world. This is the first time in history that users of Apple do not have the option of using the nano-SIM in India since Apple introduced eSIM in the US a long time ago.

Apple hasn’t compromised on the performance even a bit by using the flagship A19 Pro, but a single core of the GPUs has been dropped in comparison to the 17 Pro. You’ll barely notice that difference in day-to-day operations.

In normal usage, the Air seems to be lightning fast. In gaming, it operates well with short play periods of BGMI, CODM and Real Racing 3 without heating up, but longer periods of play does heat up the camera plateau area (you know, considering…). Surprisingly, file transfer is still restricted to USB-C at USB-2.0 speeds, which is aging, but the Air is not targeted to the mass content producer audience, so it is acceptable.

Camera

Camera is simple and clean: one 48MP rear camera and an 18MP Centre Stage selfie camera. The primary camera corresponds to the standard iPhone 17, though capturing the detailed and colour-balanced images under bright light is not limiting. The 2x in-sensor crop is effective in daylight, and beyond that, the details start to lose their texture.

The lack of ultrawide and telephoto lenses is missed at this price range, but the computational art of photography by Apple makes portraits natural and sharp. Dual Capture, which is Apple’s new feature of letting users shoot with both cameras at the same time, is a truly useful feature for content creators. The strong point of Apple continues to be video recording, and videos can be recorded at 4K60fps on both front and back cameras. It’s clear, this phone is not for photographers or content creators, but gets more than the job done for the others.

Camera samples:

Battery

Battery life is the greatest alarm with a phone this thin. When used regularly (Navigation, music, calls, photography, social and streaming), the device makes it through the day. I was surprised at first, but as you use it on a daily basis, you’ll get used to the charging patterns, which is not different from the rest of the lot. Yes, it is not as great as the other iPhones, but it’ll do if you’re used to having a daily charge routine. I loved how just how well the standby time has been optimised here, losing only about 1-2 percent overnight.

With heavy 5G usage and GPS running while on roaming, the battery tends to run out sooner, but that’s expected. However, Apple came up with a genius (and costly) solution that caters to the power users. An Rs 11,900 solution, to be precise. But what a brilliant addition this iPhone Air MagSafe battery is. More than the functionality, which is obviously good, it is the exclusivity it gives the Air. This power bank is specifically designed for the Air and no other phone, not even the iPhone 17 Pro Max. So far, only certain colours and cases were exclusive, but a power bank adds a much more premium touch to exclusive labelling.

Even when you snap the Air MagSafe Battery on, the iPhone Air doesn’t feel bulky; in fact, it is at that point that it gains the normal phone’s stature. And having that as a backup, even though I barely used it, is reassuring and comes in handy when you forget to charge before leaving for work. The power bank itself holds about 65% charge, but I used it in a way that I would get at least 2 charge cycles before the external battery pack runs out of power.

Though the battery on the Air is small, the charging is not the best out there. The Air takes a little over an hour to bring it to 80%. The Qi2 wireless charging is a huge advantage to easily top up the battery without having to keep plugging in the phone and it’s reasonably fast.

No one does accessories better than Apple

Apple’s Air MagSafe Battery is just one accessory that is not just a smart addition, but respects the overall design aesthetic of the Air. No buttons, barely visible indicator on a matte white surface, it’s just pure bliss. But Apple didn’t stop there. The bumper case Apple sells for the Air is just genius and strongly recommended for users if they truly want to enjoy the slim profile of the phone. More than adding some grip to the Air, it looks like a part of the phone’s design. But the light blue case picks up stains quite easily.

In addition to that, there’s another accessory that makes more of a fashion statment. It’s the Rs 5,990 cross-body strap, which snaps onto the case for a secure sling bag style function. The adjustment is seamless and magnetic ends mean they don’t keep hanging awkwardly. I used this during walks and trekking and found extremely handy to snap pictures or check notifications while on the go.

Verdict

iPhone Air is a flex on Apple’s part, tacit and gracious. It demonstrates that ultra-thin smartphones can be tough, indispensable, and practical. But it looks like this is part of a bigger plan. Going thin only means an Apple foldable is nearing. But don’t hold your breath just yet.

iPhone Air brings quality construction, comfort in the long term, durability, and a screen that truly upgrades daily usage. Admittedly, you lose stereo speakers, the physical SIM slot and even additional lenses for the camera, but to most, these are small concessions considering how comfortable an Air is to use.

In case design, comfort, and aesthetics are as important as performance, the iPhone 17 Air is among the most entertaining iPhones Apple has ever created. It is not the specs monster of the line, but the iPhone that people will smile every time they have it in their hands.