Whether you're a fan of super-slim phones or not, Apple's all-new iPhone Air is an impressive feat. Will it follow through on its long battery life promise? Time will tell, but it's already not looking good for the best AR glasses.
Despite the growing adoption of both the Xreal One Pro and Viture Luma Pro, the iPhone Air does not support AR glasses. While it comes with the A19 Pro chip, an impressive 48MP camera and a bright 6.5-inch display with ProMotion (with 120Hz), it's missing a key feature in its USB-C port.
That's a major red flag for anyone who owns or is considering picking up a pair of AR glasses, and hugely disappointing if the iPhone Air piques their interest. It's the Nintendo Switch 2 problem all over again, showcasing yet another device that's confirmed not to support AR glasses.
At the very least, the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro models don't have this problem, but for a phone that costs $999, you'd think the iPhone Air would come with the right kind of USB-C port for modern devices.
No support for AR glasses
First pointed out by an eagle-eyed user on Xreal's Reddit, the iPhone Air uses a USB 2 port that doesn't support DisplayPort. Without DisplayPort (DP) Alt Mode providing the video signal these AR glasses need, despite this appearing to be the industry standard for many smartphones (except for Nothing), AR glasses from Xreal and Viture are left out in the cold.
As you'll find in the iPhone Air's specs sheet, the USB-C connector specifically leaves out "DisplayPort" on its list of connectivity options that it supports. That's unlike the iPhone 17 lineup's list of specs, or the iPhone 16, for that matter. Interestingly, these phones also sport USB 2, but Apple decided DP support was a no-go for the iPhone Air.
Similarly, the iPhone 16e also doesn't have DP support, now making it a trend of sorts that the latest iPhones may or may not have support for AR glasses.
That's a real shame, as many have turned to AR glasses to deliver a massive, 171-inch virtual screen (like on the Xreal One Pro) for productivity and, especially for smartphones, to watch shows and even play games. That's especially true when travelling, delivering a clear 1200p resolution virtual display (as with the Viture Luma Pro) for those long-haul flights. Or, quite frankly, relaxing on your couch without needing a physical display.
Now, it's a matter of finding a workaround, or if Apple delivers some sort of update with an extra accessory to make it work. This could certainly be the case if it's rumored Apple Glasses turn out to arrive and require a DP connection to work on iPhones.
In the grand scheme of things, it's a niche issue compared to the other setbacks it may face, including battery life worries (being three hours less than the iPhone 17 and 12 hours less than the iPhone 17 Pro Max) and price. But for AR glasses users, it's already a turn-off.
All hope isn't lost
As with the Nintendo Switch 2's DisplayPort problems with AR glasses, our own Anthony Spadafora found a way to play the Switch 2 with AR glasses. That was solved with the Viture Pro Mobile Dock.
After a firmware update, the dock could work with the Switch 2, and all that needed to be done was to plug in the console to one of its USB-C ports, along with Viture's AR glasses, and it was all set up to play on the (virtual) big screen right in the lenses.
Whether that will work with the iPhone Air? Without any type of video output from the phone's USB-C port, it's doubtful. Plus, it's not exactly viable to carry around an extra dock in your pocket if you simply want to use the AR glasses with the latest, super-thin iPhone.
But who knows, another way to get it working may come about once people get their hands on the iPhone Air. Moreover, it isn't as if Apple doesn't support this on its other iPhone 17 models (thankfully).
Hopefully, and especially for AR fans, this will be one of the last times we see the wrong USB-C port without DP support on the latest devices. With AR glasses continuing to rise in popularity, whether it's a smartphone, tablet or laptop, closing off access to them will be a sore point.
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