The iPhone Air is Apple’s most audacious smartphone design in years, however that doesn’t appear to be shifting the needle for patrons, who’ve clearly put a premium on high-end cameras and battery life. In line with a new report by Nikkei Asia revealed Wednesday, Apple will considerably lower manufacturing of the iPhone Air following disappointing gross sales, as clients look like lining up for the extra conventional iPhone 17 and beefier iPhone 17 Professional.
Simply how low is demand, precisely? In line with Nikkei, which spoke to a number of sources briefed on the matter, Apple will slash iPhone Air manufacturing orders to almost “finish of manufacturing” ranges. One provide chain supervisor stated manufacturing orders, beginning in November, will probably be “lower than 10% of the amount in contrast with September.” Yikes.
This report comes simply weeks after Apple launched the iPhone Air in China, though this appears to counsel demand exterior of the Chinese language market is especially weak for Apple’s thinnest and lightest telephone but. In line with a survey by KeyBanc Capital Markets, there may be “just about no demand for iPhone Air, and restricted willingness to pay for a foldable.” The survey, carried out for buyers, discovered demand for different iPhone 17 fashions stays wholesome, with the combination “persevering with to shift towards Professional and Professional Max fashions.” KeyBanc additionally famous AI options have but to meaningfully affect shopping for choices, regardless of the smattering of AI mentions via Apple’s most up-to-date occasions and advertising supplies.
The iPhone Air, which launched in September at a starting price of $999, is Apple’s thinnest iPhone ever at just 5.6mm; it’s smaller than a pencil. And despite its titanium frame, the iPhone Air, as the name implies, is incredibly light. In fact, we haven’t seen an iPhone this light since 2020, when Apple released the iPhone 12 mini. While you might think a phone this thin and light needed to compromise on design, it nonetheless incorporates a 48-megapixel rear digicam—the very same primary digicam that powers the iPhone 17 and 17 Professional telephones—and wonderful “all-day” battery life, in line with Apple. Whereas its battery life doesn’t fairly attain the heights of the iPhone 17 or 17 Professional, Apple designed a $99 MagSafe battery pack particularly for the machine to increase battery life to as much as 40 hours.
One indicator of weak demand: The iPhone Air has remained immediately available for shipment on Apple’s website across all colors since launch, while the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro show shipping delays of two to three weeks.
The iPhone Air’s struggles mirror those of Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge, which the company reportedly canceled plans to continue after the machine offered just one.31 million items as of August. By comparability, the Galaxy S25, S25 Plus, and S25 Extremely offered 8.28 million, 5.05 million, and 12.18 million items, respectively, in the identical timeframe. Samsung has reportedly halted manufacturing of the Galaxy S25 Edge and canceled the Galaxy S26 Edge on account of low gross sales.
