I replaced my Samsung S25 Edge with the iPhone Air – and my buying advice has changed

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The thinnest and lightest iPhone but presents Professional efficiency at a aggressive $999 value level.
• It is designed to really feel burdenless, and that is the largest motive to purchase one over the iPhone 17 collection.
• You may simply must accept just one digicam, common battery life, and a single-firing speaker.

extra shopping for decisions

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The iPhone “Professional” label has all the time represented the bleeding fringe of Apple’s industrial design. I’ve upgraded to the Professional mannequin yearly because it debuted six years in the past, and at this time limit, Apple’s components is so refined and polished that the funding is sort of all the time value it.

That is why, going into Apple’s Awe-dropping event earlier this month, my consideration was reserved for the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max, each of which launched with a brand new vapor chamber cooling system — resolving a longstanding situation of overheating on Pro models — in addition to a redesigned and improved digicam system. However the keynote ended with me shifting my focus to a distinct iPhone.

Additionally: I compared the iPhone 17, iPhone Air, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max: Here’s who should upgrade

See, Apple did what it does greatest: advertising and marketing. It launched the iPhone Air, with a theatrical aptitude, balanced on the tip of a finger on the Steve Jobs Theater, to a refrain of “oohs and ahhs.” The iPhone 16 Professional Max in my pocket was feeling heavier by the second.

Let me be clear: the iPhone Air is a first-generation product, and I have been burned by many first attempts. Nevertheless, there is a very calculated strategy to designing the thinnest and lightest iPhone ever that makes it value my time. However is it value yours?

An iPhone that will not crack beneath stress

I would prefer to suppose that I am one of many few individuals who have been in a position to take a look at each the iPhone Air and its Android competitor, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge, so once I first held the iPhone, the expertise was unusually acquainted. 

The system’s ultraportability will impress anybody who picks one up, however for me, seeing the fluid Liquid Glass animations circulate throughout the 6.5-inch OLED display screen was when actuality actually set in. That is what iOS 26 was meant to be for.

Additionally: iPhone Air vs. Samsung S25 Edge: I compared the two ultra-slim phones, and here’s the winner

The thought of an ultra-thin and light-weight iPhone has been somewhat international over the previous few years. In truth, holding the iPhone Air jogged my memory much less of the opposite titanium-cased fashions lately and extra of the iPhone 6 Plus from 2019. Again then, such a type issue bordered between regular and dangerous. It was each a trendy standing image and a tool that gave into pressure. 

I anticipate the previous of the 2 clauses — standing image — to proceed with the iPhone Air, with its near-invisible aspect profile (it is simply 5.6mm thick) and singular digicam plateau representing one of the vital burdenless iPhones of late. As for bendgate, I am not too frightened about that — and Apple would not appear to be both. 

Following the September keynote, the corporate confirmed members of the media its sturdiness testing facility, which included a machine that utilized 130 kilos of drive on the middle level of the iPhone Air. It bulged however by no means cracked or snapped in half, and even straightened itself shortly after. That is a testomony to each the titanium body that wraps across the telephone and the Ceramic Defend layering on the back and front.

In case you’re extra considering a real-world stress take a look at, I not too long ago sat down with the iPhone Air in my again pocket, and the system confirmed no indicators of fragility. And I am a six-foot man who’s properly over 130 kilos. If there’s one telephone that you must use with no case, let it’s this one.

A Professional telephone with out the branding

There is a little bit of weight that is lifted when an iPhone would not have the Professional moniker; you anticipate it to have shortcomings, fewer options, and only a serviceable expertise. That units the iPhone Air up for room to impress, with it being powered by the identical A19 Professional chip that revs up the iPhone 17 Professional and Professional Max fashions.

Additionally: iOS 26 is now live – here’s how to download it (and which iPhones support it)

After letting my iPhone Air work by way of all its preliminary setup duties and app downloads, I paced it by way of a collection of efficiency benchmarks alongside my iPhone 16 Professional Max, iPhone 16 Plus, and Galaxy S25 Edge. Listed here are the outcomes.

Give attention to relativity. From my testing, the iPhone Air competes properly with older and certain newer iPhone Professional fashions, and even higher towards the S25 Edge. Nevertheless, its biggest weak spot is effectivity and extended energy administration. I’ve observed that the digicam plateau, the place a lot of the processing parts are fitted in, usually will get heat after a couple of minutes of intense workloads.

It is much less noticeable on different telephones, together with the S25 Edge, as a result of warmth is extra evenly dispersed throughout the physique, however by condensing every thing inside a strip of glass and steel, and never having the identical vapor chamber cooling system discovered on the iPhone 17 Professional fashions, the Air takes a success throughout prolonged utilization.

That carries into the battery life. This is not an all-day endurance telephone, not with no cost or two all through or the MagSafe battery pack that Apple is pitching the Air with. It is nonetheless too early for me to quantify my day by day battery life, however I am positively discovering myself searching for a charger extra usually than once I was on my iPhone 16 Professional Max and different thicker handsets.

Additionally: iPhone Air vs. iPhone 17 Pro Max: I compared the two flagship models, and here’s the winner

A part of me needs Apple had added the identical 40W wired charging price from the iPhone 17 Professional fashions to the Air, however that may seemingly open one other can of worms relating to thermals and battery degradation. With the Air’s already smaller capability, you simply cannot take that danger.

The excessive and low factors of the iPhone Air

The iPhone Air’s cameras are each its excessive and low factors. I am a fan of the 18MP Heart Stage entrance digicam, as it could possibly adaptively stretch out the sphere of view and provides selfies a stage of depth and embrace that is lengthy been lacking on telephones usually. 

For the previous two months, I have been taking group photographs and portraits with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 for the reason that outer show serves as a viewfinder for the rear large and ultrawide cameras. The iPhone Air and its new sq. sensor essentially obtain the identical factor, however with fewer digicam faucets, unfolding, and different maneuvers required.

Additionally: I tested the iPhone 17 for 24 hours, and I’m already questioning if I need a Pro

A squared sensor additionally provides the selfie digicam extra room for digital stabilization, that means movies seem much less stuttery and shaky, even when in comparison with final 12 months’s iPhones.

Then again, the rear 48MP digicam leaves a sensor or two to be desired. Shade accuracy, distinction, and shadow element are nonetheless the iPhone’s forte (as depicted within the samples above), however there have been a number of moments once I craved the extra distant optical zooming of the Professional mannequin, particularly when recording live events and topics distant. 

The absence of an ultrawide lens additionally means you may’t dramatize landscapes and scenic views from up shut or pull in macro-level particulars like on the common, $200-less iPhone 17.

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

So, who can purchase the iPhone Air? At $1,000, you are primarily paying for the ultraportability and innovation issue. Of all 4 new iPhones launched this 12 months, the iPhone Air feels just like the one we’ll most probably reference sooner or later, when even the Professional fashions — and probably foldables — are constructed beneath the same framework.

In case you’re a digicam fanatic, energy consumer, or need an iPhone that may not require a battery swap after 2-3 years, then I would contemplate your different choices this 12 months, together with the base model.

Additionally: I compared the iPhone 17, iPhone Air, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max: Here’s the best buy for you

What I anticipate to finally tip the scales within the Air’s favor would be the in-store expertise, when curious buyers choose up the system and really feel an absence of thickness and bulk. (For many who care, you might also discover that the Air is available in a black colour, however not the 17 Professional.)

The iPhone Air is a tool it’s essential to see in individual to understand its significance. If you do, switching between it and some other mannequin will solely amplify the concept the opposite mannequin will quickly be a factor of the previous.