iPhone Air
Shares rank 9 of 60 smartphones by recommenders
People praise its thin, light build, good battery life and solid build quality; the most common caveat is the single camera.
People praise its thin, light build, good battery life and solid build quality; the most common caveat is the single camera.
91 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 44
- criticize it
- 47
- approval share
- 48%
Recommended in 9 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Owned for 1 month
Median of the 3 owners who said how long they have had it.
Each square is one year.
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 44 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 0.9 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 9 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Loved as favorite phone
“It was a reluctant switch and I would go back in a heartbeat”
Comment from 20 Aug 2026 in “Pixel 11 Pro Fold feels like the end of an era” “my wife upgraded from a 13 mini to an Air and she loves it.”
Comment from 2 Mar 2026 in “Apple Introduces iPhone 17e” “I love the iPhone Air. Apple better not discontinue it.”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I Have Thoughts on the iPhone Air” - Comment from 26 Oct 2026 in “New iPad mini”
- Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”
- Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”
Thin, light, easy to hold
“I have found the iPhone Air much easier to hold than the iPhone 13 Pro it replaced because of how light it is”
Comment from 2 Mar 2026 in “Apple Introduces iPhone 17e” “I just don't want an unwieldy bigscreen that I can't hold easily like the iPhone Air”
Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “Air finally doesn’t feel like a brick while having a large enough screen.”
Comment from 8 Aug 2026 in “Apple Introduces Leasing Program for iPhones and Other Devices” - Comment from 28 Jan 2026 in “Apple, Suppliers Are Counting the Cost of iPhone Air Failure”
- Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”
- Comment from 9 Jun 2026 in “WWDC 2026: Apple is Folding”
- Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”
Solid build and durability
“a super thin strong Titanium phone that doesn’t need any case to feel complete”
Comment from 26 Oct 2026 in “New iPad mini” “Build quality, screen, and performance are all fantastic.”
Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “its a great form-factor and pretty tough as well”
Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” - Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”
Good battery life
“the best phone I've ever owned, the battery life doesn't bother me but the camera isn't ideal at all”
Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “as demonstrated by the iPhone Air’s good battery life”
Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Poor sales and reception
“It was badly priced and both too close and too far in capabilities from the other phones in the lineup.”
Comment from 28 Jan 2026 in “Apple, Suppliers Are Counting the Cost of iPhone Air Failure” “Their last two tech products (Vision Pro and iPhone Air) were colossal and unexpected failures”
Comment from 11 Nov 2025 in “iPhone Pocket” “The current Air is leaps and bounds better in every way to the iPhone 6 but it doesn't sell.”
Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” - Comment from 12 Dec 2025 in “Smartphone without a battery (2022)”
No SIM slot or video out
“I'd buy it if it had a SIM-card slot and video-out. Shame those had to be sacrificed for thin-ness.”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I Have Thoughts on the iPhone Air” “The one thing I don’t see criticized enough is the lack of a SIM card slot in international models.”
Comment from 11 Nov 2025 in “iPhone Pocket” “it also didn’t have video output, no SIM card slot and it had a titanium housing”
Comment from 8 Aug 2026 in “Apple Introduces Leasing Program for iPhones and Other Devices” Single camera is weak
“The single camera on the Air is too much of a compromise for me.”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I Have Thoughts on the iPhone Air” “the best phone I've ever owned, the battery life doesn't bother me but the camera isn't ideal at all”
Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “Especially if it has the worst camera of all of the phone models like the Air does.”
Comment from 3 Mar 2026 in “Apple Introduces iPhone 17e” Still too big in dimensions
“the Air was only thinner, and still big in the dimensions I wanted it to be smaller in”
Comment from 11 Nov 2025 in “iPhone Pocket” “The Air doesn't even fit in my jeans comfortably, I have to carry it in my jacket now”
Comment from 11 Nov 2025 in “iPhone Pocket” “From holding both I prefer the iPhone 17 over the Air when it comes to dimensions.”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I Have Thoughts on the iPhone Air”
Other smartphones people recommend
The four most recommended other smartphones, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple iPhone | 706 | 882 | 44% | 13 | 7 yrs107 owners | — |
| Fairphone | 168 | 107 | 61% | 13 | 3 yrs19 owners | — |
| Apple iPhone Pro | 144 | 155 | 48% | 12 | 4 yrs26 owners | — |
| iPhone 13 mini | 141 | 51 | 73% | 12 | 1.5 yrs4 owners | Approved |
| iPhone AirThis page | 44 | 47 | 48% | 9 | 1 mo3 owners | — |
What people said
40 of the 116 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Even though its 25g heavier than the Mini, it feels lighter because it's less dense.”
“After 3 weeks of using it now, I completely agree.”
“a super thin strong Titanium phone that doesn’t need any case to feel complete”
“The iPhone, iPhone Pro, Air and now Duo is a crazy strong lineup.”
“The key thing is that it's a lot lighter”
“its a great form-factor and pretty tough as well”
“The current Air is leaps and bounds better in every way to the iPhone 6 but it doesn't sell.”
“it's the iPhone I love the most by far”
“I have an iPhone Air and the ONLY issue I've had is accidentally tapping the screen since the screen is so close to the edge of the device.”
“The iPhone Air is my favorite phone I've ever had”
“Build quality, screen, and performance are all fantastic.”
“the thinnest, lightest feeling, nicest to hold iPhone ever made”
“as demonstrated by the iPhone Air’s good battery life”
“the best phone I've ever owned, the battery life doesn't bother me but the camera isn't ideal at all”
“I just don't want an unwieldy bigscreen that I can't hold easily like the iPhone Air”
“the iPhone Air was indeed super durable with it”
“It was a reluctant switch and I would go back in a heartbeat”
“it also didn’t have video output, no SIM card slot and it had a titanium housing”
“Air finally doesn’t feel like a brick while having a large enough screen.”
“I love the iPhone Air. Apple better not discontinue it.”
“From holding both I prefer the iPhone 17 over the Air when it comes to dimensions.”
“It still has that distinctly over-processed look plaguing modern smartphones”
“Pretty good: 8/10. I have no interest in photos, don't need long battery life, and the lighter/thinner the better.”
“the price difference between an air and a 17 is only $50 which imo makes it great value”
“It's under appreciated because of the "Pro" label of the Pro, and because of battery-hell.”
“The single camera on the Air is too much of a compromise for me.”
“I'd buy it if it had a SIM-card slot and video-out. Shame those had to be sacrificed for thin-ness.”
“until my phone got ridiculously hot and thermal throttled down to 10-12fps”
“The thinness and low weight of the Air is also great though”
“Especially if it has the worst camera of all of the phone models like the Air does.”
“Yes the Air is lightweight compared to the Pro, but that's a low bar.”
“I have found the iPhone Air much easier to hold than the iPhone 13 Pro it replaced because of how light it is”
“my wife upgraded from a 13 mini to an Air and she loves it.”
“The weight and form factor are worth it alone for some usage patterns.”
“It was badly priced and both too close and too far in capabilities from the other phones in the lineup.”
“The iPhone Air is the most recent proof that consumers don't actually care about thinness.”
“the Air was only thinner, and still big in the dimensions I wanted it to be smaller in”
“Their last two tech products (Vision Pro and iPhone Air) were colossal and unexpected failures”
“The Air doesn't even fit in my jeans comfortably, I have to carry it in my jacket now”
“The one thing I don’t see criticized enough is the lack of a SIM card slot in international models.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.