Apple to remove three features from iPhone 17 Air for ultra-thin design: Details
Ultra-thin design of the iPhone 17 Air will lead to the absence of three features (photo: Getty Images)
The thin and light design of the alleged iPhone 17 Air will require some compromises. According to MacRumors, the device will lose three features present in many iPhone models: a bottom speaker, an ultra-wide-angle camera, and a SIM card slot in the international market.
What will change in the design of the iPhone 17 Air
The Information previously reported that the ultra-thin iPhone 17 will have only one speaker built into the top earpiece. These rumors seem to be confirmed: 3D renders of the iPhone 17 Air that have surfaced in recent weeks show only a few holes on the bottom of the device, which are likely intended for microphones.
Like the iPhone 16e, the iPhone 17 Air is rumored to feature a single 48-megapixel Fusion rear camera. This is the main camera with 1× zoom and the possibility of 2× zoom with "optical quality". Thus, the iPhone 17 Air will lose the ultra-wide-angle camera for shooting with 0.5×, but this may make room for a larger battery inside.
Apple has been abandoning the physical SIM card slot in the US since the iPhone 14 line in 2022, so it's no surprise that the iPhone 17 Air will also only work with digital eSIMs in this country.
However, The Information reported that Apple is planning to remove the SIM card slot in more countries this year, so the iPhone 17 Air may support eSIMs only in the international market as well.
You may be interested in four key advantages why the iPhone 17 Air can outsell the Pro version.
