The iPhone Air won't repeat the fate of the mini.
It's said that fashion goes in cycles.
If we put it this way, then the cycle of electronic products is more like a Möbius strip. First, there was the camera button on the iPhone 16 series, and then the return of the punch-hole camera on the Z Fold7, truly embodying the concept of "going round and round without end."
However, since this year, a product category with a rather long time span has made a comeback, standing out in the era of the spec war: Ultra-thin and light mobile phones.
Leaving aside the already released Samsung S25 Edge and the highly anticipated iPhone 17 Air, the market for ultra-thin phones is actually healthier and more active than we thought.
There are even some quite remarkable players in this market. In March this year, Transsion, known as the "King of Africa," showcased an ultra-thin engineering prototype, the SPARK Slim, at MWC: It's only 5.75mm thick, yet its battery is larger than that of the S25 Ultra.
Image | TECNO
Coincidentally, two weeks ago, the low-key Nubia was reported to be planning an ultra-thin and light phone called "Nubia Air." It has a body thickness of only 6.7mm and features a triple-camera setup that other ultra-thin models don't have. As OnePlus once put it, it's "never settle."
Image | Internet
Since the official release of the Samsung S25 Edge, its reputation and ratings haven't plummeted as some in the comment section predicted after the product launch at the beginning of the year.
On the contrary, whether it's on Coolapk, a platform where phone owners gather, or on Xiaohongshu, a platform with high discussion intensity, the impression of the S25 Edge is generally positive.
The relevant topics on Coolapk (left) and Xiaohongshu (right) are normal, without the kind of decline seen in the case of Cyberpunk 2077.
Through the comments of an owner who switched from the S25 Ultra to the S25 Edge, we may understand why this ultra-thin phone with a limited battery hasn't been labeled as a "vase" like the iPhone's camera button.
After a week of in-depth use, the Samsung S25 Edge gives me a much more complex feeling than just "extreme thinness." It's a light sword born for elegance, sharp and revealing its edge. In a head-to-head confrontation with the S25 Ultra, the "heavy sword" with simple yet effective design, it demonstrates a completely different combat philosophy.
The key to ultra-thin and light phones is lightness, not thinness
In fact, looking at the ratings of the S25 Edge, the rumors about the iPhone 17 Air, and the whispers about Nubia and Transsion, there's one common piece of information:
Although phone manufacturers promote the thickness, what people in the comment section are really impressed by is the weight.
The word "light" is always mentioned in almost every owner's review of the S25 Edge on Coolapk.
Actually, any phone user who has experienced the era of the vivo X5Max knows that we've used ultra-thin phones before. However, that "good old time" with a phone weighing 156g is truly a thing of the past.
This is also what ifanr believes is the real focus of the so-called "ultra-thin and light phones" represented by the S25 Edge and the iPhone 17 Air - they are lighter than all current mainstream models.
In other words, lightness is the most impactful factor for a phone as a device that you hold in your hand.
Thickness is secondary.
We can verify this from another interesting phenomenon. Do you still remember that four or five years ago, in the comment sections of various phone reviews, you'd often see comments like these:
"It doesn't matter if the phone is a bit thicker and heavier."
"It'd be great if the battery could be 5000 mAh."
"A better camera is more important."
However, just a few years later, if you look at current phone reviews (especially for mid-range phones with large batteries and imaging flagship phones), you'll find that the comments have completely reversed. No one is asking to sacrifice weight for battery life or better photography anymore. Instead, you'll see comments like these:
"This camera module is too thick."
"How dare they laugh at Sony for being heavy."
No one would buy a phone as thick as the Unihertz Tank | kimovil
From this change in trend, it's not hard to see that although people always talk about more extreme performance and better camera hardware, as well as large-capacity batteries, our hands are quite practical - For a handheld device to be comfortable to use, there's a limit to the weight, and it doesn't change with the way you hold the phone.
We believe that the S25 Edge and the iPhone 17 Air are making a "correction" regarding phone weight.
The iPhone 17 Air is said to weigh less than 150g, which is really a breath of fresh air compared to the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which first used titanium to reduce weight and then gained it back.
Besides the physical characteristic of "lightness," the emerging ultra-thin and light phone models have another very important feature. If "lightness" is an advantage over other phones, then this feature is what ensures their survival in the highly competitive phone market.
Ultra-thin and light phones won't die out like ultra-small screen phones
A one-sided selling point, combined with a technology trend against the mainstream and a pricing strategy that doesn't follow market rules, it's hard not to think of another unique product: the iPhone 12 mini.
Although Apple has had quite a few products that "died" soon after their release, not many have died with such a significant decline in reputation like the iPhone 12/13 mini. The "promising start but disappointing end" of the two generations from the 12 mini to the 13 mini clearly proves one thing:
In an era where touchscreen interaction is the absolute mainstream, a product with a smaller screen size can't support an entire product line.
In other words, the failure of the iPhone mini product line isn't because it targets a specific niche market. Instead, it's because the "mini" aspect was overdone to the point that even the most radical users thought it was too extreme.
When you put the iPhone 13 mini next to the 4-inch iPhone 5, you can clearly see its awkward product positioning of being "both small and not small enough."
This might be a bold statement: Those "small-screen enthusiasts" who support the mini models may not ultimately be after a small screen. Instead, they want the light and comfortable feel in the hand and the convenience of carrying it in your pocket after the screen size is reduced, which is a kind of "effortless user experience."
Apple understands this, which is why they added a full-screen design to these two generations of mini models. This proves that the trend towards larger screens is irreversible.
Therefore, this is why ifanr believes that ultra-thin and light phones won't die out like ultra-small screen phones: They bypass the superficial focus on screen size and directly address people's ultimate pursuit of portability, thus avoiding the misunderstanding caused by the term "small-screen enthusiasts."
Besides, the new generation of ultra-thin and light phone models represented by the S25 Edge and the iPhone 17 Air have another key feature - they are mid - to high - end models in the mainstream product lines of mainstream brands, and are undoubtedly flagships in terms of product positioning.
Image | 9to5Mac
Whether it's the 2K screen on the S25 Edge, which is different from the standard S25 model, or the rumored ProMotion high - refresh - rate screen on the iPhone 17 Air, they clearly distinguish themselves from mid - range phones that achieve a light feel by cutting features and using plastic.
Not only are they positioned as flagships, but according to reliable leaks, the iPhone 17 Air is replacing the iPhone 16 Plus and targeting the "large - screen" market, which is the complete opposite of the iPhone mini:
Image | Times Now
This 180 - degree turn proves one thing: People's demand for portability objectively exists, but not in the way of reducing screen size. On the contrary, the popularity of ultra - thin large - foldable phones this year shows that people's demand for screen size is increasing.
On the supply - chain side, technologies such as blade batteries, ultra - thin OLED screens, and more advanced optical path designs for ultra - thin lenses driven by foldable - screen technology have, in turn, paved the technological way for the new generation of ultra - thin and light straight - bar phones, allowing manufacturers to achieve a light feel through means other than reducing size:
The ultra - thin battery shown in the invitation of the Honor Magic V5 | Instagram @benyeah8
At this point, if you still think that the so - called "ultra - thin and light" is just another product experiment by Apple, you're wrong.
What we can see now is that although the iPhone 17 Air is undoubtedly the ultra - thin and light phone with the highest topic degree at present, the existence of the S25 Edge, the Transsion SPARK Slim, and the Nubia Air all indicate one thing -
"Ultra - thin and light" is not an unpopular experiment like the iPhone 12 mini. Instead, it's a new trend that has triggered a quick response from mainstream Android manufacturers.
As for whether the quick response of Android manufacturers is supported by undisclosed market data or they've all independently noticed this previously overlooked issue, we don't know.
As for current mainstream domestic manufacturers, although they haven't explicitly followed the ultra - thin and light trend in their Q4 new products, they actually started the ultra - thin and light battle in their foldable - screen new products in the first half of the year, just on the foldable - screen market rather than the straight - bar phone market.
Image | MacRumors
Therefore, we believe that the ultra - thin and light market represented by the iPhone Air won't die out like the iPhone mini product line five years ago.
Although they're not destined to be the best - selling products and won't cause a huge stir in the domestic market where specifications reign supreme, they're very likely to have a group of quiet customers with strong purchasing power and definite actual needs, just like the Mac mini in the desktop market.