The widely-rumored iPhone 17 Air is expected to be the thinnest iPhone ever, but will that significantly impact the device's battery life?
Below, we recap rumors about the iPhone 17 Air's battery life.
Last week, The Information's Wayne Ma said the iPhone 17 Air will have "worse" battery life compared to previous iPhone models. In internal testing, Apple determined that the percentage of users who will be able to use the iPhone 17 Air for a full day on a single charge will be between 60% and 70%, according to his reporting. For other iPhone models, the report said that this metric falls between 80% and 90%.
The report said the lesser battery life is due in part to the iPhone 17 Air's ultra-thin design. According to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the device will measure just 5.5mm at its thinnest point, but the rear camera bar will be thicker.
To mitigate this problem, the report said that Apple is planning to release a battery case as an optional accessory for the iPhone 17 Air.
Apple last released battery cases for the iPhone 11 lineup, followed by the since-discontinued MagSafe Battery Pack for the iPhone 12 series and newer. The case would presumably charge the iPhone 17 Air via the device's USB-C port.
Not everyone agrees that the iPhone 17 Air will have worse battery life, though.
In March, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the iPhone 17 Air's battery life would be "on par with current iPhones." He said Apple made hardware and software optimizations to make the device more power efficient, but he did not elaborate.
There are three rumored features for the iPhone 17 Air that could aid battery life, including a higher-density battery, Apple's power-efficient C1 modem, and the lack of an Ultra Wide camera providing more internal space for a larger battery. The lower-end iPhone 16e with the C1 modem has the longest battery life of any 6.1-inch iPhone model ever, although that device is obviously not as thin as the iPhone 17 Air is expected to be.
All in all, there is a still a lack of certainty about the iPhone 17 Air's battery life, with rumors currently conflicting. The device is not expected to be released until September, so hopefully some additional reports will help to paint a clearer picture.
