iPhone Air How well will the Air sell without advertising?

[mjpearce023]

S25 Edge seems more like a mainstream device to me. Dual camera, dual speakers, even SIM tray, mmW, and the battery is only 100mAh less than S25.

So dual camera and speakers mean you use more data? It can’t be the battery because the air has beat the s25 edge in most of the tests I’ve seen.
Look it’s clear you have a problem with the air and that’s fine but your argument doesn’t add up. AT&T wants you to pay for the highest tier data plan, using more data just creates more traffic on the network so that isn’t a motivator for them to sell you a phone. As I stated originally the pricing doesn’t make sense. Unless the air is doing well I don’t see a reason for them drop the trade in values towards it after 3 weeks. This assumption that air users use less data and AT&T wants you to use more data doesn’t make logical sense.

 

[JPack]

So dual camera and speakers mean you use more data? It can’t be the battery because the air has beat the s25 edge in most of the tests I’ve seen.
Look it’s clear you have a problem with the air and that’s fine but your argument doesn’t add up. AT&T wants you to pay for the highest tier data plan, using more data just creates more traffic on the network so that isn’t a motivator for them to sell you a phone. As I stated originally the pricing doesn’t make sense. Unless the air is doing well I don’t see a reason for them drop the trade in values towards it after 3 weeks. This assumption that air users use less data and AT&T wants you to use more data doesn’t make logical sense.

A phone with more comprehensive features allows the user to take and share more photos, stream longer videos, game longer, etc. All of that is likely to use more data. You don't think it "adds up," that's up to you.

I don't have a problem with the Air. I bought one for my wife and she's still evaluating it.

The Air is a casual device where the owners clearly have different usage patterns compared to Pro/Max.

 

[bbates123]

I use my device as a mobile hot spot that causes a bit of temp rise, even with my 16 Pro I am good throughout the day. The lack of stereo speakers and cameras along with the increased price does not bode well considering people here have spent more to use AirPods or other wireless headsets.

The total cost to make an iPhone Air comparable is a lot more, not worth it to most but glad you are enjoying your shiny new device. Only time will tell if the resale value is even there on an iPhone Air.

As someone who has owned an iPhone 12 mini and 13 mini and then 15 Pro and 16 Pro I can say the Air's battery life is comparable to the 16 Pro and better than all the rest...way better than the minis. The fact that it's comparable to the 16 Pro speaks volumes. Also, it doesn't get as hot as my 16 Pro did. My 16 Pro would get uncomfortably warm. Not the Air. Also, the cellular is way better on my Air than the 16 Pro...I get way better download speeds and connectivity where I live. I'm OK with just the 1 camera and I literally never use the external speakers so I couldn't give two shiks about that. The fact that I can wear this in my gym shorts and not feel like I'm carrying a big brick is the biggest plus for me. Way more comfortable to hold in the hand.

 

[Star-fire]

The air is easily the most beautiful iPhone Apple has sold.

I had a blue one but the titanium on the blue is kind of dull, I ended up swapping for a gold one and wow, the thing is a work of art! The gold titanium glinting off the edge when look at one of the best screens I've seen on a phone is just a thing of beauty, it's classy and elegant with it's thin profile.

I didn't really get taken by it's design till I went to the Apple Store and saw one in person. It really is worth seeing in person.

Once you see it and hold it, it sells itself.

 

[jntdroid]

I was at my Apple Store yesterday, one of the busier ones in a large metro area. They said the Air has been "hit or miss". They've definitely been selling a ton of the Pro and Pro Max's, they said "it's like people know we get them in stock before we even do". One of them said, "We've definitely been selling the Air, but for every ten customers that come in, maybe only one or two are looking at the Air and actually buying it". The other employee agreed with that completely anecdotal and unofficial statement lol...

 

[nepalisherpa]

I think we can all agree/guess that the base model and the Pro models will have much higher sales volume than the Air. People either go for the cheapest models or the high-end models. Air sits in between and is only priced $100 lower than the Pro model. Many care for features than aesthetic so they will go for one of the Pro models. Only enthusiasts will go for the Air. Apple knows their market and knows that Air will sell to the limited customers so that's probably why they are not advertising it. Air could also be a precursor to the folding models.

 

[code-m]

The air is easily the most beautiful iPhone Apple has sold.

I had a blue one but the titanium on the blue is kind of dull, I ended up swapping for a gold one and wow, the thing is a work of art! The gold titanium glinting off the edge when look at one of the best screens I've seen on a phone is just a thing of beauty, it's classy and elegant with it's thin profile.

I didn't really get taken by it's design till I went to the Apple Store and saw one in person. It really is worth seeing in person.

Once you see it and hold it, it sells itself.

I saw and held it at the Apple Store, I wasn’t convinced.

 

[zenmacx]

The Air certainly is a beautiful phone, cleverly designed and impressive in hand. However not everyone caves into their first impression and buys upon first glance.

Price and its well documented shortcomings have seemingly caused many would be buyers to choose an iPhone that better fits their day to day usage.

There's nothing wrong with the Air, it's a good choice for those that can live with its limitations and don't mind its premium price.

 

[mjpearce023]

A phone with more comprehensive features allows the user to take and share more photos, stream longer videos, game longer, etc. All of that is likely to use more data. You don't think it "adds up," that's up to you.

I don't have a problem with the Air. I bought one for my wife and she's still evaluating it.

The Air is a casual device where the owners clearly have different usage patterns compared to Pro/Max.

I had the 11pro, 13pro, 15pro and now the air so my usage patterns have not changed significantly since purchasing the Air. Actually my screen on time has been a little higher since I got the air. I guess could even make the assumption that people who get the air use it longer than their previous phone because its lighter and more comfortable to use for extended periods of time but I'm not one making assumptions in this thread. Again none of that really matters because there is no data showing that Air users use less data or that they buy cheaper plans than pro users. There's also no reason that AT&T would care if you use more data if you are paying for the highest data plan. If you have any evidence of these claims Id be happy to see them but at this point its all just a bunch of assumptions.

 

[Cyberguycpt]

Yeah Im not sure why Apple and AT&T are putting the Air at a disadvantage. I haven't seen a single Air advertisement on TV yet. Also the carrier trade in deals, at least on AT&T, are not good for the air. At launch you could trade in a 13 or higher and get 1100 towards a pro (free for 256gb), 800 toward a 17 (free for 256gb) or 830 toward the Air ($170 for 256gb). Now they have dropped the trade in values towards a 17 and Air to 700 so a base 17 would cost $100 and the Air would cost $300 and the pro is still free. Its going to be more difficult to convince people to get the Air if they have to pay $300 instead of the pro for free. I don't know if Pros are underperforming or what but the Air hasn't been sold out that I've seen so not sure why they are making it the more expensive phone.

Nah, the pros are definitely selling very well. Also, I believe the pros have the highest profit margin. If you think about it the 17s have almost all the features the pros have but much cheaper. So why not push the most profitable phone. I’m pretty sure when the pros catch up to demand Apple and carriers will start promoting the other phones, but for now that makes no sense.

 

[mjpearce023]

Nah, the pros are definitely selling very well. Also, I believe the pros have the highest profit margin. If you think about it the 17s have almost all the features the pros have but much cheaper. So why not push the most profitable phone. I’m pretty sure when the pros catch up to demand Apple and carriers will start promoting the other phones, but for now that makes no sense.

That’s a good point. The air has 2 less cameras and 1 less speaker but titanium is more expensive than aluminum and PVD coating cost more than anodizing. Plus the screen is new and is only being used in 1 model so probably cost Apple more to have manufactured. I would guess that the in-house modem would cost less but possibly not if you include r&d. If the pro does have a higher profit margin it makes sense why it’s being pushed harder.

 

[cousintim]

I find it interesting that in the huge circle of tech enthusiasts I'm around

Often, they are not the smartest guys (or girls) in the room.

 

[zenmacx]

Often, they are not the smartest guys (or girls) in the room.

True, but that’s not the point.

Tech enthusiasts typically follow new products closely and are often early adopters.

That many of them are turning their noses up and ignoring the iPhone Air is very revealing.

Time will tell if this model is able to stand on it’s own.

 

[bbates123]

I think we can all agree/guess that the base model and the Pro models will have much higher sales volume than the Air. People either go for the cheapest models or the high-end models. Air sits in between and is only priced $100 lower than the Pro model. Many care for features than aesthetic so they will go for one of the Pro models. Only enthusiasts will go for the Air. Apple knows their market and knows that Air will sell to the limited customers so that's probably why they are not advertising it. Air could also be a precursor to the folding models.

And once again, I think there's a huge base (myself included) that don't really care about the aesthetics but want a phone that's thin and lightweight and not a brick but still offers full screen functionality. More than anything I value thin and light and holdability.

 

[ab2c4]

So you went from a device with very weak battery life to one that is comparable but lost one camera and speaker but gained a larger screen, higher refresh rate and thinness. I don’t think you even know what you want but permitting Apple to entice you with RDF. I was a iPhone 13 mini owner and it was a great phone minus battery life, it was usable with one hand and that cannot be said for the iPhone Air for most normal hand sized people.

Granted the mini didn’t have ProMotion but it wasn’t missed. iPhone 12 mini was one of the worst phones produced by Apple.

I never had a mini so I don’t know what its battery life is like but my Air gets the same battery life that my 16 Pro got.

 

[dusk007]

I think the Air is great. But I can't justify it just for the feel of it, and that's literally the only defining thing about it (and I'm not saying it's not cool, or that's not worth something). But it's 25% more expensive than the regular 17, and only 9% less expensive than the 17 Pro, and both of those have significant "function over form" factors vs. the Air. To some, the feel and novelty of the Air might be enough - and that's great. But I have a feeling that's not a large segment of the population, including sales people in carrier stores, Best Buy, etc. So the Air is likely going to remain a low seller unless Apple really starts pushing some marketing $$ towards it; and even then I don't think it will sway the general population. But I do still think it's cool...

I think that is the gist of it. Sure you can argue for or against but this is different then what Apple did in the past. In the past you the buyers decision was deliberately kept simple, pay more = better. But this one is a few tradeoffs, works for some is not worth it for the majority.
The only way they'd have sold this is to not release an iphone 17 that is good.

I have only ever known 2 major types of buyers.
- Buys the best camera phone they can afford
- Just wants a decent phone
Everyone else is in some form of minority group.

 

[ab2c4]

Such a small percentage of iPhone users know that the Air even exists. I really think sales will increase as the months go on.

Once you hold and use an Air you lose interest in the fat heavy phones that hopefully will be the phones of the past soon.

 

[dusk007]

Such a small percentage of iPhone users know that the Air even exists. I really think sales will increase as the months go on.

Once you hold and use an Air you lose interest in the fat heavy phones that hopefully will be the phones of the past soon.

Everyone that goes in any shop or the website will figure it out. If they wanted one they'd get exposed to one before purchasing an iphone, most likely.
I held it and the only thing good about it to me is that they now had no excuse to make the pro a beefier longer lasting more pro phone. A lot of people use to say just add 1mm and give us more battery, pleease.
But paying more for something that doesn't offer better cameras is a tradeoff very few people want. Most people stuff their phones into very fat sometimes very ugly cases, if that does not tell you priorities I don't know what will.

The people that prioritze sleek looks over battery, camera and durability surely exist but are rare. No amount of adds creates more of them.
There may come a trend for something else again but I think thin flip phones stand a better chance in that regard.

 

[JPack]

Such a small percentage of iPhone users know that the Air even exists. I really think sales will increase as the months go on.

Once you hold and use an Air you lose interest in the fat heavy phones that hopefully will be the phones of the past soon.

Not sure why some hold on to this myth.

When was the last time you saw a survey indicating respondents thought their current phone was too thick? People consistently upgrade because they want a faster phone and better battery life.

First, it was the myth that Apple made millions of units of Air, which is why was never backordered. Then, it was hoped that once consumers touched it in-store, sales would rocket. Now, the myth is about lack of awareness. Somehow, the base model continues to outperform with zero advertising.

Only enthusiasts willing to pay $999 for a thin iPhone with notable compromises are Air buyers. As time goes on, the regular folks, who are on 3-4 year replacement cycles, are far less risk tolerant. They want a regular iPhone with cameras and battery.

 

[Greenmeenie]

The iPhone Air is a test run for Apple’s first foldable next year. They wanted to see how thin they could go. Next year they’ll sandwich two Airs together to make the iPhone Fold(or whatever they’ll call it).

 

[Cyberguycpt]

Such a small percentage of iPhone users know that the Air even exists. I really think sales will increase as the months go on.

Once you hold and use an Air you lose interest in the fat heavy phones that hopefully will be the phones of the past soon.

Y’all keep saying this but a lot of us have held the air and came away thinking differently. The lightness feels cool but also gives it a cheap feeling like its missing something.

 

[Kjabean]

I think it is much more deep and market driven decisions, they want to get away from using titanium, and the way to do that is get customers to be ok with them doing it.. and creating the air, purposefully making it missing features but the no holds barred best built nicest built phone they could while others grow even more powerful with features, it is the perfect commercial psyop. We all fall for it, next year off they don’t use any titanium we will be ok with it now because we equate titanium not with premium build but missing features..

Also a folding titanium phone for stupid money will make much more sense to customers now.

 

[jntdroid]

Sincere question - wasn’t the titanium just an overlay on aluminum, essentially? I realize it helps with surface scratches and nicks, but if that’s true, does it actually help with the integrity of the body?

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I have never seen an advert for the iPhone Air yet. The iPhone 17 and 17 Pro is advertised on TV quite a lot.

 

[Bethanie21]

And once again, I think there's a huge base (myself included) that don't really care about the aesthetics but want a phone that's thin and lightweight and not a brick but still offers full screen functionality. More than anything I value thin and light and holdability.

I think most people aren’t bothered about a thin phone, they want the best phone with the most features.