Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Lineup, Introduces Ultra-Thin $999 iPhone 17 Air

Apple on Tuesday unveiled its iPhone 17 family, headlined by a new ultra‑thin model, the iPhone 17 Air, that starts at $999 and measures just 5.6 millimeters thick. The company said the new models represent the “biggest leap ever for iPhone,” with upgrades spanning display, cameras, materials and on‑device artificial intelligence.

The iPhone 17 Air is Apple’s slimmest device to date and the first new small‑form flagship since the iPhone Mini debuted in 2020. Apple positioned the Air between the base iPhone 17, which starts at $799, and the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, both beginning at $1,099. Tim Cook introduced the lineup during an event at Apple’s Cupertino headquarters that the company billed as “awe dropping.”

At 5.6 mm, Apple said the iPhone 17 Air is a third thinner than the iPhone 16 Pro Max and slimmer than competing devices such as Samsung’s S25 Edge. The Air features a 6.5‑inch ProMotion display, a lightweight titanium frame, a new Ceramic Shield 2 coating on both front and rear and Apple’s A19 Pro chip. The company also introduced a new 18‑megapixel front “Centre Stage” camera with a square sensor that enables automatic framing and a landscape aspect toggle when the phone is rotated. Apple described on‑board AI routines that detect faces and adjust framing and enable Dual Capture Video, which records from front and rear cameras simultaneously.

To achieve the slim profile, Apple removed certain hardware elements. The Air packs a single 48‑megapixel “fusion” rear camera rather than a multi‑lens array; Apple says the sensor can emulate multiple focal lengths, including a two‑times telephoto and wide shots. The reduced internal volume also meant a smaller battery. Apple declined to provide a specific capacity for the Air but claimed “all‑day battery” life through efficiency gains and introduced a new slim MagSafe battery pack capable of extending the device to 40 hours of video playback.

The standard iPhone 17 retains a 6.3‑inch ProMotion display for the first time in the non‑Pro model and begins at $799. Apple raised the baseline storage across all iPhone 17 models to 256GB, eliminating smaller entry tiers. The iPhone 17’s camera system includes a 48‑megapixel dual‑fusion main/telephoto setup and a 48‑megapixel fusion ultrawide camera that Apple said produces up to four times the resolution of the prior generation.

Apple reserved its most extensive hardware changes for the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max. Both Pro models use the A19 Pro chip, a new vapour chamber cooling system and a redesigned rear camera “plateau” that stretches across the top of the device. All three rear cameras on the Pro models are 48 megapixels, and the telephoto lens supports up to 8x optical zoom. The Pro Max can be configured with up to 2TB of storage, doubling the previous maximum. Apple said the Pro models use aluminium rather than titanium to aid thermal conduction and claimed the Pro Max delivers the longest battery life yet for an iPhone, up to 39 hours of continuous video playback.

Apple highlighted on‑device AI as a thread across the new phones. The A19 Pro is intended to support increasingly demanding AI features introduced in recent software efforts, including Apple’s Apple Intelligence initiatives rolled out beginning in 2024. Camera features such as automatic framing and Dual Capture were presented as examples of the company’s emphasis on local AI processing rather than cloud‑reliant services.

Color and material choices vary by model. The Air is offered in space black, cloud white, light gold and a sky blue previously seen on Apple’s M4 MacBook Air. The base iPhone 17 arrives in black, lavender, mist blue, sage and white. The Pro and Pro Max will be available in cosmic orange, deep blue and silver.

Apple’s pricing strategy maintained familiar entry points despite sweeping hardware changes: $799 for the standard iPhone 17, $999 for the iPhone 17 Air and $1,099 for the iPhone 17 Pro. The company also emphasized durability upgrades tied to the Ceramic Shield 2 treatment and pointed to the new vapour chamber in Pro models as a way to sustain performance under heavy computational loads.

The expanded camera resolutions, new thermal design and emphasis on AI reflect a broader industry trend toward integrating machine learning into core smartphone experiences. Apple’s announcement continues a multiyear shift that began with its reintroduction of local intelligence features in 2024 and follows a long history of iterative changes that helped grow the company from its 1976 founding to a dominant position in consumer technology.

The new iPhone 17 family will be available starting later this month, with specific release dates for each model and the new MagSafe battery pack to be announced by Apple.