Samsung and Apple are locked in a race to bring us the slimmest smartphone possible. But one serious compromise of a thinner profile is a similarly smaller battery, as we've seen with the Galaxy S25 Edge.
Apple may have a fix for that, with the upcoming ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air reportedly sporting new silicon batteries that pack 15% more energy into the same space compared to existing smartphone batteries.
According to a Bloomberg report, Apple and Samsung battery supplier TDK has accelerated its production timeline for its new generation of silicon-anode batteries. Shipments are now set to begin by the end of June, a few months ahead of its earlier window of September.
"We've made good progress, and we're shipping them very soon," TDK Chief Executive Officer Noboru Saito said. "Some handset makers might be able to use the new battery in their product one generation early." He added that this will “give smartphone makers enough time to use these cells in thinner models launching this year.”
Meaning that the iPhone 17 Air, which is expected to be announced in September, could be the first Apple smartphone to feature TDK's third iteration of silicon-anode battery technology. Apple was previously rumored to adopt silicon-anode batteries for the second-generation iPhone Air, but with this new timeline, it looks like the first-generation model could get those improvements in battery life instead.
Chinese smartphone manufacturers have already begun upgrading their flagships to silicon batteries, which tend to last significantly longer than their American competitors.
TDK's silicon-anode batteries store about 15% more energy in the same physical space as conventional graphite-based battery packs. The extra density is possible because silicon can hold more lithium ions per gram than graphite, letting brands squeeze longer-lasting batteries into less real estate. This advancement could prove essential to maintaining a decent battery life in ultra-thin phones.
That's been one of the biggest drawbacks of the Galaxy S25 Edge, Samsung's thinnest phone to date. Measuring just 5.8mm thick, it lasted 12 hours and 38 minutes on a full charge in our Galaxy S25 Edge battery tests, far below the time recorded by the Galaxy S25 Ultra. With the iPhone 17 Air rumored to be even thinner at 5.5mm, Apple has its work cut out for it.
Though Apple could have another trick up its sleeve for longer battery life with the iPhone 17 Air: artificial intelligence. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously reported that the company has an AI-powered management mode in the works for iOS 19, which will "analyze how a person uses their device and make adjustments to conserve energy." To achieve this, Apple's "using battery data it has collected from users’ devices to understand trends and make predictions for when it should lower the power draw of certain applications or features."
Between AI-powered battery optimization and the latest-and-greatest silicon battery, the iPhone 17 Air seems primed to leave the Galaxy S25 Edge in the dust when it comes to holding a charge.
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