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According to the latest reports, ultra-thin phones are about to make a comeback. Thin phones were a big deal a decade ago, but in 2025, that’s the last thing I want. I prefer my phone to have better battery life and good speakers. I doubt we’ll get that from an iPhone 17 Air.
The Slim Phone Rumors
While the dust on the latest iPhone 16 is barely settling and the Galaxy S24 Ultra is still all the rage in the Android space, we’re hearing a lot about the upcoming iPhone 17 Air and the Galaxy S25 Slim.
While the regular iPhone 17 models will still offer all of Apple’s usual upgrades, an iPhone 17 Air could debut in 2025 with an ultra-thin design that’ll push the boundaries of Apple’s current aesthetic. We saw the company do something similar with the M4 iPad Pro, and rumors are swirling that the iPhone will get the same treatment soon.
Like the MacBook Air and iPad Air, the new iPhone Air could be extremely thin but with paired-down specs to fit inside the chassis. As you can imagine, those cutbacks will likely come in the form of the camera, display, or battery size. Who wants an iPhone with worse battery life? I certainly don’t.
Not to be outdone by Apple, it sounds like Samsung is readying its own “slim” phone that’ll debut around January-March alongside the Galaxy S25 series. However, rumors from popular leakers like UniverseIce on X suggest it’ll still pack a flagship or “Ultra” level camera. It’s worth noting that we don’t know how thin these will be. They could be minimal enough to warrant the name or a significant amount. We’ll have to wait and see.
Going In the Wrong Direction
I understand the need to make a phone as thin as possible for foldables. Plus, there’s extra room to put the phone internals on one side and the battery on the other—or a little of both on each side to balance things out. As a result, these devices are incredibly thin.
However, space is essential on a regular flagship phone and comes at a premium. Current devices are bigger, thicker, and heavier to pack in powerful processors, internal cooling, massive battery cells, multiple camera sensors, haptic motors, speakers, fingerprint or FaceID sensors, and everything else that makes our phones wonderful.
Unfortunately, delivering an iPhone 17 Air or Galaxy S25 Slim would likely result in lower specs across the board. Sure, we’ve seen some impressively thin phones come out in China, but don’t expect the same from Samsung or Apple. We’ll either get substantial thickness reduction with lower specs or marginally thinner phones with a fancy name. I don’t want either of those outcomes. Even worse, skinny devices are easier to damage, bend in a pocket, or drop. I don’t want a phone that’s thin and fragile.
Give Me a Big Battery and Better Speakers Instead
Phones are pretty incredible these days, but I want more. Give me a phone with better battery life and louder, clearer speakers. The screens, cameras, software, performance, and features are all pretty great (and have mostly plateaued).
You know what hasn’t plateaued yet—battery life and speakers. Sure, charging speeds continue to improve, and, as JerryRigEverything always shows us, manufacturers use tricks like adding tiny foam balls to our phone speakers to make them sound louder than they are.
Unfortunately, battery life, sound, and cameras are the most likely aspects of a phone to suffer when a company reduces thickness or price. They’ll need to add a smaller battery (like Samsung did with the Galaxy S24 FE), fewer cameras on the back, a lower-quality screen, and thin speakers with worse sound. We’ll end up with aesthetically pleasing phones at the expense of performance. It’s form over function.
The iPhone 17 Air or Galaxy S25 Slim might sound good to you, but I’d rather have a model that looks good, sounds great, and lasts for more than a day on a single charge.
