If current rumors are to be believed, next year Apple could shake up its iPhone line-up once again. Following both the mini and Plus models’ underperformance, the company is reportedly hoping that the third time’s the charm with the iPhone 17 Air (or possibly iPhone 17 Slim), which is set to make its thinness the key selling point.
We’re still some way off from the September 2025 release date for Apple’s next numbered handsets (the iPhone SE 4 is set to arrive sooner), but here are the seven biggest rumors we’ve heard about the iPhone 17 Air to date.
iPhone 17 Air rumors — Thinner than ever
The main selling point of the iPhone 17 Air is likely to be its impossible depth. The thinnest Apple smartphone to date was 2014’s iPhone 6, which at 6.9mm was very thin indeed, but reports suggest that the company will beat that with the Air, which could be as little as 6mm thick.
Given the 2024 13-inch iPad Pro managed to cut back to just 5.1mm, that may feel underwhelming. But that’s not as easy to do on a phone, where the battery can’t be spread as thinly without massively increasing screen size or reducing stamina. The plan was once apparently to go thinner, but technical difficulties with a new battery reportedly meant Apple had to revert to an older cell.
If correct, 6mm will still be the thinnest iPhone ever. For reference, the iPhone 16 is 7.8mm thick, while the Pro model is 8.25mm.
iPhone 17 Air rumors — New screen tech (with 120Hz!)
According to a recent report, one way Apple will be able to slim down the new iPhones is via an OLED display with new technology called “touch and display driver integration” (TDDI). The USP is right there in the name: The touch and display layers are integrated into one, cutting down on the physical footprint required.
On top of this, the display analyst Ross Young believes that all four models of iPhone 17 will feature ProMotion — Apple’s branding on 120Hz refresh rates. If true, this will be the first time the company has given non-Pro iPhones anything above 60Hz. For me, this is a big deal and could actually see me downgrading when the time comes!
iPhone 17 Air rumors — It’ll pack the A19 processor
More predictably, but no less excitingly, a new iPhone means a new chipset. The iPhone 17 Air will use Apple’s upcoming A19 processor, which will no doubt boast improved single and multi-core performance, alongside improvements to energy efficiency.
But gains might not be as great as they could be, as Apple’s switch to the 2nm process isn’t tipped to happen until 2026 with the iPhone 18 family. The iPhone 17 Air will likely still feature a 3nm chip.
iPhone 17 Air rumors — Apple’s own Wi-Fi chip
The iPhone 17 family — including the new Slim model — will reportedly be the first Apple smartphones to feature the company’s own Wi-Fi chip.
That’s according to the analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who sees this primarily as a cost-saving exercise for Apple. It’s not clear how it will impact wireless performance at the moment, but he adds that it could also “enhance Apple’s ecosystem integration advantages” as a side benefit.
Plus, of course, it will help make the phone slimmer. "By using its own modem, Apple is able to create a smartphone that’s about 2 millimeters thinner than an iPhone 16 Pro, while still having room for the battery, display and camera system," writes Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
iPhone 17 Air rumors — A simplified camera array?
For a time, premium smartphones sought to justify their price increases by adding more and more rear camera lenses, culminating with the very crowded-looking backplate of the Nokia 9 Pureview.
Apple is reportedly looking to put this trend into reverse with the iPhone 17 Air, which apparently will have just the one rear camera. If true, that means Apple will be ditching the ultrawide lens in favor of a single 48MP sensor.
While this sounds disappointing, it should be aesthetically more appealing, and Apple has managed to impressively emulate a 2x zoom via pixel binning on its recent telephoto-less iPhones, so performance may not suffer too much for the average user.
iPhone 17 Air rumors — A sky-high price?
What’s harder to swallow is the reported premium price. While the iPhone mini series was $100 cheaper than the regular iPhone, and the Plus is currently $100 more, rumor has it that the iPhone Air could be the most expensive Apple handset ever.
If true, that would see it eclipsing the $1,199 that Apple charges for the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which would be a tough sell, no matter how lightweight and aesthetically pleasing the new phone is.
iPhone 17 Air rumors — Apple's own 5G modem
Rumors have been circulating that Apple's cooking up its own 5G modem for iPhones since 2018, but we could finally see that come to fruition with the iPhone 17 Slim. Kuo has said we can expect two iPhone models with an Apple-designed 5G modem to launch in 2025, including the Slim and iPhone SE 4.
Currently iPhones rely on Qualcomm modems for cellular connectivity. The jury's still out on whether switching to an in-house modem will have any consumer benefits, but it would reduce Apple's reliance on Qualcomm and likely cut costs for the iPhone maker.
iPhone 17 Air rumors — Outlook
Apple critics often argue that buyers end up paying for style over substance, and the patchwork of rumors we have for the iPhone 17 Air certainly seem to fit that stereotype. While there’s nothing wrong with wanting a thinner handset and settling for a simpler camera layout to get it, it’s a lot harder to justify if it comes at a huge premium.
Hopefully talk of a big price hike is misguided and Apple manages to bring the iPhone Air in at a competitive MSRP. If it does, there’s no reason this couldn’t be the company’s biggest seller in 2025.
