iPhone Air is Apple's most ambitious smartphone in recent years, and here's why it will appeal to some. Here's my review.
The iPhone Air is an excellent entry in the premium smartphone category
iPhone Air has finally arrived after months of leaks and speculations. It launched alongside the iPhone 17 series that includes the familiar participants - iPhone 17, 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max. But jumping to iPhone Air isn't easy if you're still juggling your physical SIM cards from one device to another. I had to wait until an International launch event that offered me a chance to take an eSIM and use the iPhone Air as my primary device for all things. The e-SIMs provide flexibility, convenience, and security, which I will discuss in the review.
The incredibly thin and light design of the iPhone Air is something you wouldn't believe until you experience it. So, the iPhone Air not just feels like a true new iPhone after years, but also gives me a sneak peek into where the company is headed in the next few years.
Where does the iPhone Air sit in the latest line-up? Well, it sits between the base iPhone 17 and 17 Pro models. Now, if you look at the price difference, it's filling a huge gap. The 17 starts at Rs. 82,900, whereas the 17 Pro starts at Rs. 134,900. The iPhone Air, on the other hand, starts at Rs. 119,900. Now, if you have followed the chronology of iPhone launches over the years, you'll see that the iPhone Air is replacing the Plus models, which launched with the iPhone 14 and ended with the iPhone 16 Plus. Interestingly, the Plus models replaced the mini models that first launched with the iPhone 12 series and ended with the iPhone 13 series.
At 5.6mm, the iPhone Air is slimmer than the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
This year, the iPhone Air also brings a third screen option for consumers globally. At 6.5 inches, the Air offers the best mid-ground screen option for consumers who do not want a 6.3-inch iPhone 17 and 17 Pro or a massive 6.9-inch screen on the 17 Pro Max.
I have spent a good two weeks with the iPhone Air, and here's why this is the best iPhone for some.
Alright, the main USP of the iPhone Air is the exquisite design. What Apple has done with Air is place the unique style in a way that makes it more appealing than the standard models. And, I don't want you to trust my word blindly, but check any banners or video ads of the Air; its classic genius positioning makes it much more hyped than the standard models. At 5.6mm, the Air beats the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge (5.8mm) in terms of sheer slimness, but the Edge is lighter at 163 grams than the Air at 165 grams. But, in the real world, the Air seems slimmer and lighter because of its curved design, while the Edge features a flat display design.
It supports USB 2 instead of USB 3 seen on the Pro models
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
It features a titanium design, which is not available even on Pro models this year. The frames are built with Grade 5 titanium that feels sturdy in the hand and offers an excellent grip. To achieve incredible thinness, Apple re-engineered the internals of the Air. The smartphone's camera plateau houses all major components, from the camera units to the mono speaker, chip, and more. This way, Apple used every inch of space in the Air's internals to fit a high-density battery.
Notably, the rear camera sensor has a ring around it, but it doesn't protect the camera sensor, as it doesn't touch the surface. It's more of a design addition than a utility one. Additionally, the Air wobbles on a flat table when placed screen upwards due to the camera plateau and sensor placement.
It gets a 48-megapixel Fusion camera system
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
The phone features a ceramic shield on the back to protect against accidental cracks, while the front has all-new Ceramic Shield 2, which Apple claims offers 3x better scratch resistance. The rear of the iPhone Air is minimalistic, featuring a single large camera sensor, an LED flash, and the Apple logo in the centre of the frosted back glass design. The front, on the other hand, has the Dynamic Island and minimal bezels for immersive multimedia viewing.
It is available in Space Black, Cloud White, Light Gold, and Sky Blue colours. I got the latter, and it looks good in real life. Despite the slim form factor, Apple has packed in all the physical buttons we see on the other 17 models, like Camera Control and Action Button.
It comes in Space Black, Cloud White, Light Gold, and Sky Blue colour options
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
Apple also launched some new accessories that complement the Air, like the new Crossbody Strap that lets you wear your iPhone Air hands‑free. It is a great accessory that complements the device.
In real-world usage, the iPhone Air can be an excellent everyday device, offering a solid build and being incredibly lightweight and slim. Apple's design team has delivered a product that, after years, feels and looks different from the existing line-up, and that's definitely a sneak peek into the company's future.
It comes with a polished titanium frame
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
The Air features a 6.5-inch LTPO OLED Super Retina XDR display with ProMotion technology, with adaptive refresh rates up to 120Hz. Much like the iPhone 17 Pro models, the iPhone Air also gets a peak brightness of 3000nits and an Always-On display.
It features a 6.5-inch Super Retina XDR display with ProMotion up to 120Hz
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
In real-world usage, the iPhone Air packs a stunning display that offers crisp text and sharp images. The colour reproduction is on point, and offers incredible sunlight legibility. There's an anti-reflective coating on top, and it works flawlessly under direct light. The iPhone Air offers an excellent screen for multimedia viewing and browsing, and it receives Widevine L1 certification for high-definition streaming on the go. Thanks to narrow bezels, the Air is great for gaming as well. Thanks to the screen size, the Air offers a third screen size in the latest line-up of iPhones, sitting between the 17 Pro, featuring 6.3 inches, and the 17 Pro Max, featuring 6.9 inches.
Apple says that the Air was designed to deliver pro performance in the thinnest iPhone ever, and I could see a glimpse of that during my testing. The iPhone Air is powered by the A19 Pro chip, which is more powerful than the base iPhone 17 but less capable than the Pro chip found in the Pro models. One possible reason could be that the Air gets a 5-core GPU while the Pro models get a 6-core GPU. The rest of the specs of the A19 Pro chip on the Air are almost identical to the Pro models. Numbers aside, the iPhone Air is no less of a Pro smartphone.
Air gets the A19 Pro chip under the hood with a 5‑core GPU with Neural Accelerators
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
It can handle multitasking, gaming, photo or video editing on the go, and much more without a stutter. It also has a C1X modem, the new version of the Apple‑designed modem. For connectivity, the Air gets Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and the second-generation Ultra Wideband chip.
Calls on the iPhone Air were clear and crisp. The phone can connect to networks in low signal zones, which is great. The Face ID works like a breeze, and the haptic motor, like that of other iPhones, is solid. What truly disappoints is the speaker's performance. Due to its design limitations, the iPhone Air features a mono speaker in the earpiece, which is underwhelming compared to the competition.
It gets Ceramic Shield 2 at the front for protection from accidental scratches
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
It offers eSIM connectivity, which means you can finally ditch your physical SIM when switching to the Air. It provides several benefits over physical SIMs. For example, the eSIM is more secure because it can't be removed if your iPhone is lost or stolen. Secondly, with eSIM, you don't need to obtain, carry or swap physical SIM cards every time you switch your device. On the Air, you can have two eSIMs active at the same time. Additionally, you can store eight or more eSIMs and swap which of your stored eSIMs are active, giving great benefits when travelling.
It comes in an eSIM variant only, which means no support for a physical SIM
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
The iPhone Air also gets 12GB of RAM, which means it can be great for the coming years with Apple Intelligence features being rolled out.
Much like all reviews, I tested the iPhone Air with its biggest rival, the S25 Edge and iPhone 16 Plus for reference.
| Benchmarks | iPhone Air | Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge | iPhone 16 Plus |
| AnTuTu | 2395,000 | 2189,753 | 1578,189 |
| GFX Bench Car Chase | 60 | 90 | 60 |
| GFX Bench Manhattan 3.1 | 60 | 118 | 60 |
| GFX Bench T-Rex | 60 | 120 | 60 |
| 3D Mark Wild Life Extreme | 4,829 | 4,277 | 3,922 |
| 3D Mark Wild Life | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out |
| Geekbench 6 | 3484 (single) & 9080 (multi) | 2739 (single) & 9724 (multi) | 3203 (single) & 7846 (multi) |
I covered iOS 26, Apple Intelligence and more in detail in my iPhone 17 Pro Max, and you can read it here. In short, the iOS 26 update is polarising to many users and brings a UI refresh that visually changes a lot of things. There are more personalisation and customisation options with the latest update, and it is good to have so many options available. The system apps have also received plenty of updates, including the Photos app, which gets a new interface yet again. The Dialer app offers favourite contacts to be pinned on top, while the Messages app gets new screening tools. There's also an all-new Games app that becomes an all-in-one hub for all gaming needs.
It comes in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB storage options, while packing 12GB of RAM
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
One of the biggest limitations of the iPhone Air is its single camera sensor and the design is to blame for that. Even the iPhone 17, available at a lower price point, offers dual cameras. However, the single camera is actually a dual Fusion camera, equivalent to having four camera lenses in your pocket, according to Apple. Let me explain - you can click in a standard 26 millimetre, go slightly tighter at 28mm, or opt for a much more intimate framing at 35mm. It's all on your main; tap, tap, and tap. And if you're like me, you love the 2x, so you can do a lot of classic drops.
The Air packs some bells and whistles that make it a perfect shooter, like OIS (optical image stabilisation), Photographic Styles, and more. You get just two optical zoom options - 1x and 2x. For selfies, you get an 18-megapixel Centre Stage camera. The front camera is the real highlight in the camera department, and I will jump to that in a bit.
iPhone Air offers 1x and 2x optical zoom options in the Camera app
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
Jumping to the real-world usage, the primary (and only one) camera can produce some really detailed shots like the one I managed to click at the Belfast Airport. As you can see, fantastic details are captured along with highlights. The next shot shows a red building, and see the details on the walls captured incredibly well and the accurate colour. In most of the samples I clicked during testing, the dynamic range and contrast were great. In one of the samples, I clicked autumn colours in a frame full of greenery. Once again, the iPhone Air does full justice to the shot, and the details of the tree look good. For daylight shots, the 1x does the job well, but if you want a tighter frame, the 2x also delivers good shots. However, if you look closely, the 2x shots lack details on the edge, but overall deliver solid images.
iPhone Air Camera Samples in Daylight. Shot in 1x and 2x optical zoom options (Tap images to expand)
Jumping to low-light samples, the iPhone Air does incredibly well here, too. I had the chance to visit the Linen Mill Studios, where Game of Thrones was shot, and the samples below are from the studio. The detail levels in low-light, along with colours and highlights even in shadows, have been captured really well. The noise levels are decent, sharpness and colour reproduction are on point. The iPhone Air is a fantastic shooter in low-light conditions.
iPhone Air Camera Samples in low-light. Some samples taken in Linen Mill Studios, where the Game of Thrones show was shot (Tap images to expand)
More low-light samples from the GOT studio. Incredible details, colours, and controlled noise even in dim conditions (Tap images to expand)
iPhone Air low-light camera samples (Tap images to expand)
The iPhone Air is also a capable portrait shooter and can click some really good bokeh shots with excellent background blur. For shots with people, the skin tones are natural, and the detail levels are also good. You can switch between 1x and 2x for portraits, and the results are mostly excellent.
iPhone Air portrait camera samples (Tap images to expand)
Zoom is probably one trait that's not meant for the iPhone Air because of the limitations in the camera. Below are a few shots I captured using 5x and 10x digital zoom, and you can see that they are mostly unusable.
iPhone Air zoom camera sample, shot with 5x digital zoom (Tap image to expand)
iPhone Air camera sample, shot with 1x (Tap image to expand)
iPhone Air zoom sample (same scene as seen in image above), shot with 10x digital zoom (Tap image to expand)
Coming to the star of the camera department - the all-new selfie camera. It delivers consistently in various lighting conditions. Be it daylight or night, the selfies come out great. The skin tone and colours are accurate, and detail levels are far superior when compared to previous-gen iPhones.
iPhone Air selfie camera sample. The skin tone is natural, and minute details are captured very well (Tap image to expand)
The iPhone Air supports 4K Dolby Vision video recording up to 60 fps, just like the iPhone 17. The quality is top-notch, which is another reason why iPhones are the default choice for most content creators for video work.
Overall, the iPhone Air packs a solid primary sensor that performs well across various lighting conditions. However, during my testing, I did miss the ultra-wide sensor and at times, even the telephoto sensor.
It gets an 18-megapixel Centre Stage front camera
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
The battery is one department where Air really could use some bump. But, never mind, it hasn't been designed to be a battery powerhouse, and I accept that. It packs a 3149mAh battery, which is way smaller than what we saw on the S25 Edge (3900mAh). Comparatively, the Air still puts up a great fight against the Edge.
In our HD video loop test, the Air lasted for roughly 16 hours, which is almost comparable to what Edge offered in the same test. Apple has packed the A19 Pro chip under the hood, making it more efficient than the Snapdragon 8 Elite on the Edge.
According to Apple, the Air can deliver up to 27 hours of video playback
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
Talking about real-world usage, the Air lasted almost a full day with heavy usage. I started my day at 100 percent at 7 am and had to plug it in to charge with just 12 percent battery by around 9:30 pm the same day. During my review, I could get around 4 hours of screen-on time, which isn't bad for a phone of this shape and size.
For charging, the iPhone Air supports up to a 30W adapter. It can fully charge (0-100 percent) in about 95 minutes. According to Apple, the phone reaches 50 percent in 30 minutes with a 20W adapter, and in my testing, about 58 percent in 30 minutes with a 30W adapter. The iPhone Air MagSafe battery is a great accessory you can purchase with the device. Using the device with the power bank extends battery life by up to 3-4 hours, depending on usage.
The Air runs iOS 26 out of the box
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
The iPhone Air is a head turner, and the first reaction I have seen from people in general who saw this device in the flesh and held it was, "It's so light and thin, it's unreal." Personally, this phone is a great entry in the line-up and should make its own fan following—if Apple decides to stick with it for more than two years.
At a starting price of Rs. 119,900, the iPhone Air is in a league of its own, and I don't think it competes with the latest iPhones in any way. As the target audience is entirely different for the Air. To break it down, people who need the latest iPhone but do not have a budget can go for the iPhone 17, which starts at Rs. 82,900, while the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max, which start at Rs. 134,900, are for power users who cannot compromise in any department, and of course, budget is not an issue.
The Air can record 4K Dolby Vision videos up to 60 fps
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
Who does the iPhone Air appeal to? It should appeal to people who have been craving a new iPhone design that makes them stand out. Of course, this goes without saying: it doesn't mean compromising on performance and other metrics. Well, this is where the iPhone Air package gets interesting.
Starting with the design, it is unbelievably light and unbreakably strong. On the performance front, the iPhone Air nails everything I tested it with—be it gaming, multitasking, AI tasks, or photos and video edits. It just delivers, every time. iOS 26 is a bit polarising and will take its own sweet time to win users, and I can't complain.
The 512GB storage model is priced at Rs. 139,900, and the 1TB at Rs. 159,900. The storage variants of the Air are steeply priced
Photo Credit: Mohit Dawar/ Gadgets 360
Where the Air really misses a beat is in the camera department. If you're someone who uses your phone a lot for photography, then look for some other options. Not that the camera isn't capable, but it is limited in scope and will leave you wanting for an ultra-wide or telephoto sensor at times—especially considering the price. The battery isn't the best in the segment. While you can last up to a day, short gaming or shooting sessions with the camera will drain the battery quickly, and you will have to rely on accessories like the iPhone Air MagSafe Battery.
For alternatives, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge is the biggest rival of the Air, and you can consider it if you want to stick with the Android ecosystem. The iPhone 17 is another option which can be considered if you're tight on the budget but want the latest iPhone. Lastly, the iPhone 17 Pro Max can also be considered as it is the best in the latest iPhone line-up.
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