iPhone 17 Air Might Not Be as Thick as Apple Planned Due to Technical Challenges, Tipster Claims

A tipster claims Apple is facing issues with reducing the thickness of a key component on the purported iPhone 17 Air.

Written by David Delima | Updated: 12 November 2024 12:04 IST

iPhone 17 Air Might Not Be as Thick as Apple Planned Due to Technical Challenges, Tipster Claims

iPhone 17 Air is tipped to arrive as a "slim" smartphone

Highlights

Apple is reportedly working on a slim iPhone 17 Air model for 2025
The iPhone 17 Air might not arrive as the thinnest smartphone from Apple
The company is said to be facing issues related to battery thickness

Apple is reportedly planning to release a new iPhone 17 Air model in 2025, which is expected replace the 'Plus' model in the company's lineup. Instead of a larger version of the standard iPhone 17 model, Apple is said to be working on a slimmer 'Air' model, with a slimmer form factor. While the iPhone 17 Air was previously rumoured to be Apple's slimmest iPhone to date, a new rumour from South Korea suggests that the company is facing issues with reducing the thickness of the device.

Apple Faces Challenges in Reducing Thickness of iPhone 17 Air

According to details shared in a post on Naver (in Korean) by user @yeux1122, Apple is facing technical difficulties with reducing the thickness of the purported handset. The company was reportedly developing a new battery technology that would rely on a thinner internal substrate, but had to make technical compromises due to multiple reasons.

Apple has faced challenges with the cost of the new components for the slimmer battery, as well as ensuring consistency during manufacturing, according to the tipster. As a result, the company is reportedly relying on its existing battery technology used on the iPhone 16, which means the battery on next year's model could be at least 6mm thick.

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If the latest rumour is true, then Apple's replacement for the iPhone 16 Plus is unlikely to arrive as the thinnest phone from the company, Currently, the slimmest phone released by the company was the iPhone 6 (6.9mm), while the thinnest tablet from Apple is the iPad Pro (2024), which is 5.1mm.

However, it's worth noting that there are several months until Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 17 series, which means that the company might have some time to find a solution for the battery thickness. The company could also push the release of the 'Air' until it figures out how to reduce the battery size. We can expect to learn more about Apple's plans in the coming months.

iPhone 16

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.10-inch

Processor Apple A18

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB

OS iOS 18

Resolution 1179x2556 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

iPhone 16 Plus

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Stunning display
Solid build quality and lovely colour options
Battery life is bonkers on this one
Excellent for gaming and performance (in general)
Improved cameras

Bad
Still offers a 60Hz refresh rate and misses out on AOD (always-on display)
No fast charging
Comes with USB 2
No Apple Intelligence features out of the box

Read detailed Apple iPhone 16 Plus review

Display 6.70-inch

Processor Apple A18

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB

OS iOS 18

Resolution 1290x2796 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

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Further reading: iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Series, iPhone 17, iPhone, Apple

David Delima

Email David Delima

As a writer on technology with Gadgets 360, David Delima is interested in open-source technology, cybersecurity, consumer privacy, and loves to read and write about how the Internet works. David can be contacted via email at DavidD@ndtv.com, on Twitter at @DxDavey, and Mastodon at mstdn.social/@delima. More