This thin iPhone might get some attention for a few months but soon every Instagram and TikTok influencer is going to wave one on camera yet will be using an iPhone 16 Pro Plus behind the scenes as their daily driver.
I guess you really don't know much about the influencer community. The hot cameras are actually cameras, while iPhone pics are criticized for looking too "iPhone-y" -- which I actually think is a fair criticism of Apple's jpg over-processing in recent years--it didn't used to be this way. The especially hot cameras have been the Fuji X-100 Mark VI, sold out since release and only avail at inflated prices on ebay, or you can go on the perpetual waiting list at B&H. For the less well-heeled, the camera of choice is the Canon G5x II, also sold out except for ebay and waitlisted at B&H.
Let's face it, the battery life of this purported iPhone Thin will be worse than what's in the iPhone 16 and 16e. As I mentioned earlier, the 6.3mm thick iPod touch (6th generation) had piss poor battery performance (even with an underclocked CPU) and this rumored thin phone is even thinner than that.
It's not a sure thing that battery life will suck. And citing a discontinued product from 10 years ago isn't a credible example to "prove" that it will. Apple is certainly aware that battery life is a KEY concern--maybe even #1--for iPhone users, and battery life had to be a key challenge to solve in the development of a phone as thin as the Slim. I'm not saying you're definitely wrong about battery life being an issue--no way I can prove that, either--we just don't know yet, either way.
I am still clinging on to my trusty iPhone 12 mini. There's an iPhone 16 waiting to replace it but I'm waiting for iOS Software Engineering to clean up iOS 18 to the point that it doesn't suck so much and I can use it as my daily driver. Maybe June.
I'm sorry--you haven't installed iOS 18 yet, but you just "know" that it "sucks so much?" So, from your vantage point of not having used it, what are the problems you've had? I've been using iOS 18 since it dropped last Sept, and the only problem I've experienced was a CarPlay/Mazda glitch that I finally sorted by getting my Mazda software updated.
So both the iPhone Fold or iPhone Slim are pretty sketchy rumors.
The "Fold," yes. No doubt that Apple is researching folding screen technology, but rumors of the iPhone Fold remain sketchy in the sense that the goal posts for its supposed "release" keep getting moved. I could see a folding phone making sense for the Chinese market, which is (or at least was, before Trump) Apple's second largest after the USA. Premium folding phones are a much bigger deal there, and the tech is more advanced than what either Samsung or Google is offering.
But the Slim/Air is way beyond sketchy rumor. The most respected Apple followers are fully committed that it's coming in Sept -- we're seeing cases for it and the photos in this article. And Samsung's Galaxy Edge launches in June, probably rushed to market in typical Samsung-fashion to beat Apple by a few months--let's hope the first gen doesn't burst into flames like its first gen fold.
I’m leaning towards the iPhone 17 Air as my next phone. But not for the thinness or anything like that. It’s specifically the C1 modem. For specific international cellular network compatibility travel reasons, the C1 modem is more useful for me than the Qualcomm modem. That’s a very niche reason and not super relevant to most people. But it’s enough for me to lean towards anything with the C1. If the 16e (with its C1) had a few more bells and whistles (MagSafe and the UWB chip)… I already have quite a few MagSafe and AirTag products though, so hopefully the iPhone 17 Air will be what I need (C1, MagSafe, UWB).
I certainly "get" the appeal of a lighter/thinner iPhone, but I'm definitely not the target market. The current iPhone weighs (to me) next to nothing in my pants pocket or jacket pocket, but makes available a shockingly great camera system (I have a 16 Pro) that this future iPhone will mostly lack, though I'm sure the 2-in-1 camera Apple recently developed for the 16e will be similar to what's used in any forthcoming "thinner" iPhone.
That model, when it appears, will still take great pics -- of the owner and their friends. Good luck with zoom beyond 2x or so. These days, smartphones are used for on-the-go social messaging, selfies, and tracking the day (in terms of calendar, exercise, appointments etc). with this future, thinner iPhone, Apple is just recognizing that market and catering to it -- there's no plans to retire the main and Pro iPhone lines, since the weight of those devices is also a non-issue for their audiences.
The cynic in me also thinks that Apple can increase the profitability of the iPhone by introducing a model that is far more susceptible to damage by dropping.
I’m leaning towards the iPhone 17 Air as my next phone. But not for the thinness or anything like that. It’s specifically the C1 modem. For specific international cellular network compatibility travel reasons, the C1 modem is more useful for me than the Qualcomm modem.
Can you say more about systems with which the C1 would be compatible, but Qualcomm not... and why? Not suggesting that this isn't true, just really surprising and I'm curious.
I certainly "get" the appeal of a lighter/thinner iPhone, but I'm definitely not the target market. The current iPhone weighs (to me) next to nothing in my pants pocket or jacket pocket, but makes available a shockingly great camera system (I have a 16 Pro) that this future iPhone will mostly lack, though I'm sure the 2-in-1 camera Apple recently developed for the 16e will be similar to what's used in any forthcoming "thinner" iPhone.
I don't think most people appreciate how "shockingly great" the camera system is on iPhone--and, to be fair, other premium smartphones. Having ditched Nikon professional cameras and lenses to focus on iPhone photography exclusively, I'm constantly amazed that I can be carrying the photographic capabilities I have with the 16 Pro in a back pocket. Does it match the quality of my Nikon equipment? Of course not. But it's 7 ounces vs a 20-lb camera bag and I'm a big believer that the best camera is the one you always have with you. If the rumors turn out to be true, and the Slim gets an all-new single lens that covers the whole range of both the ultrawide and main lenses of current iPhones, I'll be curious to see how well it performs in a challenging range that almost demands compromises in optical performance.
That said about the hardware, I'm not nearly as happy with Apple's "advances" over the years in how it processes photos--and I'm hardly alone in criticizing what has become known as an "iPhoney" look to photos. I was actually reminded of this just yesterday when a friend shot a photo of my wife and me at a theatrical with her phone and as soon as she showed me the image I said, "That's an older iPhone, isn't it?" Indeed, it was a 7. And the image was beautiful--no, it didn't have the nth degree of resolution and sharpness of my 16 Pro, but it looked much natural and pleasing to my eye. More like film than digital. Overall, I think the more Apple works to "advance" its processing to deliver "perfect" photos in any lighting, the more it strips away the artifacts and "defects" that make an image look like what I saw. In my fantasy, Apple cuts a deal with Fuji to license its processing algorithms used on cameras like the X-100 series, similar to licensing deals other phone makers have cut for lenses with Hasselblad and Leica. But the key word in that sentence is "fantasy."
I’m leaning towards the iPhone 17 Air as my next phone. But not for the thinness or anything like that. It’s specifically the C1 modem. For specific international cellular network compatibility travel reasons, the C1 modem is more useful for me than the Qualcomm modem.
Can you say more about systems with which the C1 would be compatible, but Qualcomm not... and why? Not suggesting that this isn't true, just really surprising and I'm curious.
Sure. But first I need to be more specific as my previous reply was technically wrong. “Technically wrong” in both meanings of the phrase: (1) not strictly correct and (2) wrong in the specific technology used, lol.
It’s not specifically the C1/Qualcomm modem that is my issue. It’s the antenna module, which Qualcomm use to be responsible for as well, but seemingly (I think) the antenna module is provided by another company now. And I’m not sure which company is responsible for the antenna module on the iPhone 16e.
Without going into a super-detailed description, basically: the (American) iPhone 16e (Model A3212) supports all of the network frequency bands that are relevant to my international niche use case (which isn’t relevant to the majority of iPhone users). The (American) iPhone 16e supports those relevant network frequency bands, while (for example) the (American) iPhone 16 (Model A3081) lacks some support for those relevant bands. And that has caused some specific issues for me in some very specific situations. But if the iPhone 17 Air is similar to the iPhone 16e in that regard, that would seemingly address my niche concerns.
As I said in my initial reply, it’s a very niche reason that is not relevant to most people. And I don’t even know if the iPhone 17 Air will support the same network frequency bands as the iPhone 16e. I’ll find out (probably) in September.
Comments
It's not a sure thing that battery life will suck. And citing a discontinued product from 10 years ago isn't a credible example to "prove" that it will. Apple is certainly aware that battery life is a KEY concern--maybe even #1--for iPhone users, and battery life had to be a key challenge to solve in the development of a phone as thin as the Slim. I'm not saying you're definitely wrong about battery life being an issue--no way I can prove that, either--we just don't know yet, either way.
I'm sorry--you haven't installed iOS 18 yet, but you just "know" that it "sucks so much?" So, from your vantage point of not having used it, what are the problems you've had? I've been using iOS 18 since it dropped last Sept, and the only problem I've experienced was a CarPlay/Mazda glitch that I finally sorted by getting my Mazda software updated.
The "Fold," yes. No doubt that Apple is researching folding screen technology, but rumors of the iPhone Fold remain sketchy in the sense that the goal posts for its supposed "release" keep getting moved. I could see a folding phone making sense for the Chinese market, which is (or at least was, before Trump) Apple's second largest after the USA. Premium folding phones are a much bigger deal there, and the tech is more advanced than what either Samsung or Google is offering.
But the Slim/Air is way beyond sketchy rumor. The most respected Apple followers are fully committed that it's coming in Sept -- we're seeing cases for it and the photos in this article. And Samsung's Galaxy Edge launches in June, probably rushed to market in typical Samsung-fashion to beat Apple by a few months--let's hope the first gen doesn't burst into flames like its first gen fold.
I don't think most people appreciate how "shockingly great" the camera system is on iPhone--and, to be fair, other premium smartphones. Having ditched Nikon professional cameras and lenses to focus on iPhone photography exclusively, I'm constantly amazed that I can be carrying the photographic capabilities I have with the 16 Pro in a back pocket. Does it match the quality of my Nikon equipment? Of course not. But it's 7 ounces vs a 20-lb camera bag and I'm a big believer that the best camera is the one you always have with you. If the rumors turn out to be true, and the Slim gets an all-new single lens that covers the whole range of both the ultrawide and main lenses of current iPhones, I'll be curious to see how well it performs in a challenging range that almost demands compromises in optical performance.
That said about the hardware, I'm not nearly as happy with Apple's "advances" over the years in how it processes photos--and I'm hardly alone in criticizing what has become known as an "iPhoney" look to photos. I was actually reminded of this just yesterday when a friend shot a photo of my wife and me at a theatrical with her phone and as soon as she showed me the image I said, "That's an older iPhone, isn't it?" Indeed, it was a 7. And the image was beautiful--no, it didn't have the nth degree of resolution and sharpness of my 16 Pro, but it looked much natural and pleasing to my eye. More like film than digital. Overall, I think the more Apple works to "advance" its processing to deliver "perfect" photos in any lighting, the more it strips away the artifacts and "defects" that make an image look like what I saw. In my fantasy, Apple cuts a deal with Fuji to license its processing algorithms used on cameras like the X-100 series, similar to licensing deals other phone makers have cut for lenses with Hasselblad and Leica. But the key word in that sentence is "fantasy."
It’s not specifically the C1/Qualcomm modem that is my issue. It’s the antenna module, which Qualcomm use to be responsible for as well, but seemingly (I think) the antenna module is provided by another company now. And I’m not sure which company is responsible for the antenna module on the iPhone 16e.
Without going into a super-detailed description, basically: the (American) iPhone 16e (Model A3212) supports all of the network frequency bands that are relevant to my international niche use case (which isn’t relevant to the majority of iPhone users). The (American) iPhone 16e supports those relevant network frequency bands, while (for example) the (American) iPhone 16 (Model A3081) lacks some support for those relevant bands. And that has caused some specific issues for me in some very specific situations. But if the iPhone 17 Air is similar to the iPhone 16e in that regard, that would seemingly address my niche concerns.
As I said in my initial reply, it’s a very niche reason that is not relevant to most people. And I don’t even know if the iPhone 17 Air will support the same network frequency bands as the iPhone 16e. I’ll find out (probably) in September.