Apple iPhone 17 vs Apple iPhone Air
A spec-by-spec comparison of the Apple iPhone 17 and the Apple iPhone Air, taken from their full specification sheets. Green marks the better value in each measured row.
Head to head
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| Our rating | 8/10 | 8/10 |
| Battery | 3,692 mAh | — |
| Storage (max) | 512 GB | — |
| Screen size | — | 6.5 in |
| Main camera | 48 MP | 48 MP |
| Weight (lower is lighter) | 177 g | — |
| Released | Sep 2025 | Jul 2025 |
Summary: Apple iPhone 17 and Apple iPhone Air are evenly matched on the measured specs.
Display
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| Type | LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED, HDR10 | Super Retina XDR display with ProMotion |
| Size | 6.3-inch (diagonal) | 6.5 inches |
| Resolution | 2622 × 1206 pixels at 460 ppi | Not specified |
| Features | Dynamic Island, Always-On display, ProMotion technology (adaptive refresh rates up to 120Hz), True Tone, P3 wide color, Haptic Touch, Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating, Anti-reflective coating | Rounded corners, follows curved design |
| Brightness | 1000 nits max (typical), 1600 nits peak (HDR), 3000 nits peak (outdoor) | — |
| Protection | Ceramic Shield 2 front cover | Ceramic Shield |
Platform
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| Chipset | Apple A19 | Apple A19 Pro |
| CPU | Hexa-core (details not specified) | Not specified |
| GPU | Penta-core (details not specified) | Not specified |
| OS | — | iOS (latest version at launch) |
Memory
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| RAM | 8 GB (LPDDR5X) | — |
| Internal Storage | 256 GB, 512 GB (NVMe) | — |
| Card slot | — | No |
| Internal | — | Not specified (likely multiple storage options) |
Main Camera
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| System | 48MP Dual Fusion camera system | — |
| Wide | 48 MP, f/1.6, 26 mm, sensor-shift optical image stabilization, 100% Focus Pixels, support for super-high-resolution photos (24MP and 48MP) | — |
| Ultrawide | 48 MP, f/2.2, 13 mm, 120° field of view, Hybrid Focus Pixels, support for super-high-resolution photos (24MP and 48MP) | — |
| Telephoto (Optical Quality) | 12MP optical-quality 2x Telephoto (52 mm, f/1.6 aperture, sensor-shift OIS) | — |
| Zoom | 2x optical zoom in, 2x optical zoom out; 4x optical zoom range; Digital zoom up to 10x | — |
| Features | Sapphire crystal lens cover, True Tone flash, Photonic Engine, Deep Fusion, Smart HDR 5, Cinematic mode (up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps), Action mode (up to 2.8K Dolby Vision at 60 fps), Spatial video recording (1080p at 30 fps), Dual Capture (up to 4K Dolby Vision at 30 fps), Slo-mo video (1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps), Night mode Time-lapse | No ultrawide, 10x digital zoom (limited performance) |
| Modules | — | 48MP Fusion Main camera with optical-quality 2x Telephoto |
| Video | — | Not specified |
Selfie Camera
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| Type | 18 MP Center Stage camera | — |
| Aperture | f/1.9 | — |
| Features | Autofocus with Focus Pixels, Retina Flash, Tap to zoom and rotate, Center Stage for photos and video calls, Ultra-stabilized video, Dual Capture, Photonic Engine, Deep Fusion, Smart HDR 5, Next-generation portraits with Focus and Depth Control, Portrait Lighting with six effects, Animoji and Memoji, Night mode, Latest-generation Photographic Styles, 4K Dolby Vision video recording (24/25/30/60 fps) | Leverages square sensor for landscape selfies |
| Modules | — | 18MP Center Stage front camera |
| Video | — | Not specified |
Battery
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| Type | Lithium-ion, 14.351 Wh (3692 mAh) @ 3.887 V | Non-removable Li-Ion |
| Charging | MagSafe and Qi 2 wireless charging, USB-C, Up to 50% in 20 minutes with 40+ W adapter | All-day battery life |
| Wireless charging | — | MagSafe |
Body
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| Dimensions | 149.6 × 71.5 × 7.95 mm (5.89 × 2.81 × 0.31 in) | Ultra-thin profile (exact dimensions not specified) |
| Weight | 177 g (6.2 oz) | Lightweight (exact weight not specified) |
| Build | Ceramic Shield 2 front, Color-infused glass back, Aluminum design | Premium titanium frame, Ceramic Shield front and back |
| SIM | Dual eSIM (US, Canada, Mexico, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Japan); Dual nano-SIM (China); nano-SIM and eSIM (elsewhere) | Not specified (likely eSIM + physical SIM or dual eSIM) |
| Durability | IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 6 m for 30 min) | — |
Comms
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 7 (802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be) tri-band with 2x2 MIMO | Not specified |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 6.0 (A2DP, LE) | Not specified |
| UWB | Apple second-generation Ultra Wideband chip | — |
| NFC | Yes, with reader mode and Express Cards | Not specified |
| USB | USB-C (USB 2.0, 480 Mbit/s) | Not specified (likely USB-C) |
| Positioning | Precision dual-frequency GPS (L1, L5), GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, BeiDou, NavIC | Not specified |
| Radio | — | No |
| Other | — | MagSafe |
Launch
| Apple iPhone 17 | Apple iPhone Air |
|---|
| Announced | September 9, 2025 | Late 2025 |
| Status | Released September 19, 2025 | Available |
| OS (Original) | iOS 26 | — |
| OS (Current) | iOS 26.6.1 (released August 17, 2026) | — |
Frequently asked questions
Which is newer, Apple iPhone 17 or Apple iPhone Air?
Apple iPhone 17 — Sep 2025 for the Apple iPhone 17 versus Jul 2025 for the Apple iPhone Air.
Is the Apple iPhone 17 or the Apple iPhone Air rated higher?
We rate the Apple iPhone 17 8/10 and the Apple iPhone Air 8/10.
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