Apple’s iPhone Air is an impressive feat of engineering, but it hasn’t exactly translated into explosive sales. According to a new report from South Korean website The Elec, Apple is considering reducing iPhone Air production due to lower-than-expected demand. Citing an analyst from Mizuho Securities, the report said that iPhone Air production could be reduced by around 1 million units.
However, this does not mean that demand for the iPhone is declining. On the contrary, interest in the entry-level iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro remains incredibly strong, with both models proving more popular than the ultra-thin iPhone Air. At this point, Apple has reportedly increased iPhone 17 production by 2 million units, iPhone 17 Pro production by 1 million units, and iPhone 17 Pro Max production by 4 million units. Overall, overall iPhone 17 sales look pretty strong, which is in line with previous reports we’ve seen over the past few weeks.
Apple’s iPhone 17 is still hard to find
To be honest, Apple cutting back on iPhone Air production isn’t very surprising. Although the device is incredibly light and feels great in the hand, the value proposition offered by the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro models is simply hard to beat. Indeed, many have said that this year’s iPhone 17 is the best entry-level iPhone in years. As an illustrative example, battery life (as measured by video playback) on the iPhone 16 was a modest 2 hours longer than on the iPhone 15. The iPhone 17, meanwhile, supports up to 30 hours of video playback compared to the iPhone 16, which supports 22 hours of video playback. This is a significant leap.
Regarding the popularity of the iPhone 17, shipping estimates for some configurations are still stuck at 2-3 weeks in the US, UK, France, Switzerland, China and Japan. If you want to get an iPhone 17 as quickly as possible, it’s best to go for the 256GB model, as the 512GB model seems to be in short supply.
It’s also worth noting that iPhone 17 pre-orders in China have reportedly broken records this year. Additionally, iPhone 17 pre-orders in China during the first minutes of availability reportedly exceeded the volume of iPhone 16 pre-orders during its first 24 hours of availability. Apple doesn’t break down iPhone sales data by model type, but we’ll likely get additional information from the company during the quarterly earnings conference call later this month.
Apple doesn’t need the iPhone Air to be hugely successful
It’s important to note that Apple’s iPhone Air doesn’t need to be a runaway success. It was probably never designed for this. After all, the device occupies a unique and somewhat special place in Apple’s product line. Consider that the device is more expensive than the iPhone 17 but has a less impressive camera setup than the iPhone 17 Pro. In terms of price and features, the iPhone Air is in no man’s land.
But that doesn’t matter, because the device itself is something of a prelude to the long-rumored foldable iPhone. To that end, Bloomberg reported last month that the foldable iPhone, when opened, would look like “two titanium iPhone Airs side by side.”
In a sense, the iPhone Air is a proof of concept. It represents Apple’s continued efforts to develop an incredibly thin form factor without having to sacrifice processing power or battery life. The innovations made in the iPhone Air will likely migrate to the foldable iPhone. If all goes according to plan, Apple will launch a foldable iPhone as part of its 2026 iPhone lineup. A recent report, however, indicates that the launch could be pushed back to 2027 as Apple still hasn’t decided on the final design of key components.
