The iPhone Air is Apple's 'boldest design move since the iPhone X' — and it's a huge step toward an iPhone Fold

Apple didn't shock the world when it introduced the iPhone Air, aside from dropping the "17" from its expected name. Rumors of an ultra-thin iPhone had been circulating for a while, and much of the announced details confirmed what had already leaked out.

But that shouldn't downplay the significance of the iPhone Air's arrival. Analysts watching Apple's launch event yesterday (September 9) seem to think the device will be a key part of Apple's long-term strategy.

In fact, Nabila Popal, senior research director at IDC called the iPhone Air Apple's "boldest design move since the iPhone X." That's a bold claim, but when you consider recent iPhone releases, it actually makes sense. While some of the specs found during our iPhone Air hands-on time echo what Apple offers with its other current phones, the thin design makes rethink where Apple could go next — particularly with the rumored launch of an iPhone Fold not that far off in the future.

iPhone Air — more than just thin

The iPhone Air is obviously a visually striking phone. It's also technologically impressive, with a lot of power packed into a small form factor.

And we're not the only ones to notice how impressive it is. As Popal noted, the iPhone Air "will draw in users who love sleek aesthetics, while the Pro lineup takes the crown for majority of users prioritizing battery and camera performance."

IDC group president Tom Mainelli agreed: "The iPhone 17 Air looks amazingly thin and brings some remarkable technology to this striking form factor."

But it's not just about how thin and attractive the phone is. Popal also described the Air as Apple's "first step in a strategic design makeover, paving the road to a foldable iPhone possibly next year."

After all, an iPhone Fold, or whatever Apple calls its foldable device, will need to have thin panels on each side to avoid excess bulk.

The iPhone Air is 5.64mm thin — certainly a slender device, but try comparing it to Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, currently one of the best foldable phones and the main rival to any future Apple foldable. Samsung's phone is 4.2mm thin when unfolded and 8.9mm when closed shut. So Apple is going to have its work cut out for it, slimming things down.

With that in mind, the iPhone Air could be setting the table for one side of the iPhone Fold. It could create a device that is around the same thickness as Samsung's, which we have to assume is Apple's goal (if not, even thinner).

The Air helps the Pro?

Interestingly, it's not just a potential iPhone Fold that benefits from the iPhone Air. The iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max models see some benefit, too.

"The iPhone Air gave Apple's designers room to make the iPhone 17 Pro just a little bit thicker and aim for the best battery life and better cooling for continuous performance," said Avi Greengart of Techsponential. "It's hard to imagine most consumers using even half of the iPhone 17 Pro's capabilities — especially for images and video — but they may still want it if they're willing to pay more for a slightly bigger phone with the most battery life and the best components."

That is an interesting way to look at it — by offering a thin, light phone, Apple managed to allow itself to add a bit of depth to the 17 Pro, which is half-a-millimeter thicker than the iPhone 16 Pro that came out last year. If you don't care about a little extra thickness and only want performance, go for the Pro. But if you want thin, Apple has an alternative, which is smart play for the company.

iPhone Air outlook

It's clear the iPhone Air's appeal is limited if you just read about it. "The iPhone Air is something you have to hold to appreciate; it's a Pro-level phone that feels incredibly thin and rigid," Greengart said.

Mark Spoonauer, the Global Editor-in-Chief at Tom's Guide, is right there with him: "I'm particularly impressed with how durable this handset feels, and I'm sure there will be lots of bend tests coming out soon to put Apple's claims to the test."

But the battery life of such a thin phone remains a major question mark and one we can't fully evaluate until we can test it in a real-world setting. After all, while Samsung's similarly thin Galaxy S25 Edge produced better-than-average battery life in our testing, it lagged behind the rest of the S25 lineup. We're interested to see if Apple and its Air can avoid a similar fate.

But if Apple is targeting the long-term potential of foldable phones and this is just the first step, perhaps battery life will wind up just being a footnote.

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