Test des iPhone Air aus der Hongkonger Version: Die Schwächen sind wirklich schwächenhaft, aber es ist wirklich schön.

Hey, buddy! You're so light!

Although both the standard version of this year's iPhone 17 and the iPhone 17 Pro series have seen significant improvements, no matter how excellent the thermal performance of aluminum alloy is, its texture and visual appearance are still far from the polished titanium metal process that Apple has experimented with on the Apple Watch.

If you want to buy a titanium - metal model in the iPhone product line this year, the only option left is the iPhone Air.

In some ways, the iPhone Air is a bit like the iPhone X back then - they both feature brand - new hardware designs and are on the verge of major hardware revolutions, allowing some adventurous users to experience the future in advance.

Even in terms of the user experience, the iPhone Air is somewhat similar to the iPhone X: the hardware is very charming, but the experience is a bit nerve - wracking.

However, the release of the mainland China version of the iPhone Air has been postponed this year. The iPhone Air in Ifanr's hands is not an official review prototype, but a daily - use Hong Kong version purchased by a colleague in the editorial department.

For this reason, Ifanr needs to make the following disclaimer for this review:

This article is based on the user experience of the Hong Kong version of the iPhone Air and is not a purchase recommendation. For information regarding network standards, carrier card activation, etc., please refer to Ifanr's subsequent review of the mainland China version of the iPhone Air.

First Impression: Extremely Light

Although Apple's decision to stop including chargers has been criticized repeatedly, when we opened the box of the iPhone Air, we suddenly felt that perhaps only it truly deserves such a thin packaging box.

Although during the on - site experience early on September 10th, Ifanr broadcast the experience of a colleague at the press conference picking up the iPhone Air, many details can only be felt when holding the real device:

For example, the polished titanium metal frame provides a "warmer" feel when held compared to the integrated aluminum alloy middle frame of the iPhone 17 Pro series - although objectively, this is because titanium has lower thermal conductivity than aluminum.

More importantly, beyond its thermal conductivity, polished titanium metal looks more delicate and premium than matte aluminum alloy at first glance. The visual effect of seeing the light flowing along the metal surface is like looking at a concept car in a showroom -

However, this sense of premiumness is based on the premise that the frame is clean.

The polished titanium metal frame of this year's iPhone Air faces the same problem as the "surgical - grade stainless steel" used on the Pro models in the past two years: it gets dirty as soon as you touch it, and once it's dirty, it looks shabby.

As a phone with a 6.5 - inch screen, although the iPhone Air doesn't completely replace the previous Plus models, combined with its 165g weight, it is still a rare "large and light" straight - edged phone in the past two years.

As we mentioned in an article on hardware philosophy last month: small - screen phones are dying, but light and thin phones will always be in demand. The extreme size of the iPhone 13 mini is no longer suitable for today's content creation and consumption environment.

Instead, "light and large - screen" phones like the iPhone Air and the S25 Edge will become another trend that cannot be ignored.

Even when considering all kinds of light and thin foldable phones and even foldable tablets, the iPhone Air is still the closest thing we've experienced in recent years to the feeling of "holding a pure screen in your hand", a true "product of the future".

As for why the S25 Edge doesn't feel like a product of the future, the reason is simple -

Its armored aluminum frame is almost straight up and down without any rounded edges. When held in the hand, it not only feels thicker but also makes it hard to ignore the presence of the frame.

Usage Experience: Some Flaws

When we actually migrated our WeChat chat history and started using the iPhone Air, it's hard not to think about the ultra - thin steel - cased battery inside with a capacity of only 3149mAh.

Therefore, we need to share our real - world experience over the past dozens of hours upfront:

The battery life of the iPhone Air is not excellent, but it's not as bad as we expected. In normal daily use, its power consumption rate is actually similar to that of an iPhone 16 Pro after one year of use.

In addition, based on various feedback on shopping websites and tech forums, we can see that among the users who upgraded to the iPhone 17 series this year, there are many long - time users of the iPhone 12 and 13 Pro models.

The battery capacity of the iPhone 12 Pro is 2815mAh, and that of the "13th - generation fragrant" iPhone 13 Pro is 3095mAh. Even the iPhone 14 Pro only has a 3200mAh battery.

— In comparison, the battery capacity of the iPhone Air is not that bad.

More importantly, this year's A19 Pro processor has made significant progress in energy efficiency. The iPhone Air can benefit from both the high energy efficiency of the SoC and the power - saving feature of the LTPO variable refresh rate. For long - time users who upgrade, the experience won't be significantly degraded.

However, as one of the most radical - looking iPhones to date, the iPhone Air still faces some problems in actual use.

First of all, since the iPhone Air has not been released in mainland China yet, many domestic apps we usually use have not been optimized for the relocated Dynamic Island of the iPhone Air, resulting in interface and control bugs:

Either the search bar is cut off, or the top banner is misaligned. Even the Easter egg of the Dynamic Island in the Fliggy app is exposed.

Most of these issues don't affect the functionality but do impact the visual experience, and users have no way to fix them. They can only wait for software developers to address them after the official release of the iPhone Air in China.

Secondly, the single speaker of the iPhone Air is a problem that can't be ignored.

From the disassembly video by WekiHome, we can see that about one - third of the space inside the "plateau" at the top of the iPhone Air is occupied by the speaker:

Image | Bilibili @WekiHome

Moreover, the iPhone Air doesn't have the traditional speaker holes. Although the speaker inside the back "plateau" is not small in size, the only sound outlet is the tiny slit at the top. Even if there is sufficient bass, most of it will be filtered out.

Therefore, at least from the perspective of audio - visual entertainment, the iPhone Air is more suitable for people who have speakers at home and wear headphones when going out.

In fact, my HomePod mini, which had been gathering dust since I bought a soundbar, has come back to life since I started using the iPhone Air.

Finally, there's the heat dissipation issue of the iPhone Air.

Although the A19 Pro processor in the iPhone Air has fewer cores compared to the iPhone 17 Pro series, the overall power consumption hasn't changed significantly, and it still heats up during use.

Due to the higher internal stacking density of the iPhone Air, the lower heat dissipation efficiency of titanium metal, and the smaller heat capacity of the device due to its small size, it definitely runs hot during use.

However, being light and thin also has its advantages -

Although the iPhone Air gets as hot as the iPhone 15 Pro, its small heat capacity means it cools down quickly. It returns to normal temperature soon after you enter a room from the outside.

Another benefit of the iPhone Air's compact layout and relatively large body is that its motherboard is located high up, and the SoC is right below the "plateau". In a normal holding position, it's actually difficult to touch the hottest area on the back, so the heat is not as noticeable as on the iPhone 16 Pro.

Overall, in 2025, when phones are getting heavier but also more versatile, the user experience of the iPhone Air is undoubtedly one - sided -

In other words, it has some flaws.

But whether it's one - sided or flawed, those who have decided to buy the iPhone Air must be aware of these issues in advance. After all, Apple wouldn't make the flashlight a black circle like the camera and place it next to the lens -

Especially after I checked my iCloud photo album from last year and found that most of the photos I took with my iPhone 16 Pro were taken with the main camera or a cropped version of it, the single - camera setup of the iPhone Air is not that unacceptable.

eSIM: Some Difficulties

After discussing the hardware, we have to address the elephant in the room:

How should one use the eSIM with the iPhone Air?

Since the mainland China version of the iPhone Air has not been released yet, and the policies of domestic carriers regarding eSIMs have not been finalized, we won't go into the details of eSIMs here. We'll only talk about the eSIM strategy for the Hong Kong version of the iPhone this year.

Apple Store at Central International Finance Centre | Apple's official website

Before the iPhone 17, the Hong Kong version of the iPhone was the same as the mainland China version, using a dual - physical SIM card setup and not supporting eSIMs.

<