Apple wants to compete in the slim smartphone category once again, finally taking its crown back after the iPhone 6 in 2014. There’s reportedly an iPhone 17 Air in the works, which might be an even thinner 5.5mm device from Apple. Today, we have big news about the newcomer’s design.
People had little information of how this device looks in real life until today when a leaker posted iPhone 17 Air’s live photos on the web. It’s nothing like we’ve ever seen, especially coming from an Apple product. This phone has a raised camera bar on the top and a super thin profile.
Sony Dickinson is the source behind these images. He’s been responsible for many Apple leaks in the past with a great track record, so these prototype images might be legit. Eyeballing the phone’s exact measurements is impossible from the photos alone, but it’s close to the rumored 5.5mm figure.
The leaker showed it side by side with a Pro iPhone, and the Air appears razor thin in front of the other iPhone models. Besides that, another thing worth noting is how aggressive the camera bump is on the iPhone 17 Air. The setup is based on a two-layer system.
The thin chassis first gives way to a camera island that’s expanded from one edge of the phone to the other. Then, we have a second bump on top of the raised platform for the camera ring and its lens. This dual-layer camera island almost doubles the phone’s thickness at the top, or at least that’s what the images portray in the leak.
The thin Apple device reappearing is also bringing back the same concerns people had with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus back in the day. The case of “bendgate,” when users started complaining about the phones being too easy to bend. Apple doesn’t want to make the same mistake again, so it’s building the iPhone Air’s chassis out of a Titanium/Aluminum blend.
Of course, there will be some trade-offs with the iPhone 17 Air being too thin. It’s been rumored that it will have fewer parts, like a single camera, and no space for the physical SIM. This will strictly be an e-SIM model. The space inside will be very narrow, so the battery will have a low capacity.
Reports suggest that all iPhone 17 models will launch in mid-September, so there’s plenty of time for more details to appear. Stick around, if want to stay up-to-date with all the latest developments regarding the iPhone 17 Air.