New reports suggest that Apple may have reportedly delayed the launch of the upcoming iPhone Air 2, with the company telling its engineers and some of its suppliers that the “next iPhone Air” has been removed from any upcoming schedules without an updated release date. The reports come from The Information, which cites “three people involved in the project” as the source of this claim. While Apple’s latest attempt to change up its iPhone lineup has seen some praise — especially in how repairable the iPhone Air is — others have come up with plenty of reasons to skip the iPhone Air in favor of another device.
And while the iPhone Air has notably been seen as a compromise on features for some, there was still some room for those who wanted a thinner iPhone without all the bells and whistles of the larger iPhone 17 Pro. However, the chance for Apple’s thinner design to really shine in its second iteration may have been cut off early, at least if these new reports are to be believed.
The downfall of thinner iPhones?
It’s important to note that we’ve been seeing a lot of rumors surrounding the impending iPhone Air 2, including some rumors that it might have two cameras and an improved cooling system. However, none of that has been made official by Apple. In this new report, the outlet also notes that Apple was supposedly shooting for an even lighter design with the Air 2, while also delivering more battery capacity. That would certainly have been an interesting design to see, as battery life is one of the biggest cons to the iPhone Air compared to other iPhone 17 models. As for the reason that Apple might be delaying the release date of the iPhone Air 2 indefinitely, those same reports suggest that it is because of the lower-than-expected sales, and that Foxconn — one of Apple’s primary production partners — has already “dismantled all but one and a half of its production lines for the first version.”
Moreover, with news surrounding the foldable iPhone launching next year, it might just make sense to put the Air 2 on the back burner for a little bit while Apple figures out a way to really make it shine. Samsung reportedly did something similar recently, with reports indicating the company would not be releasing another Galaxy Edge device right away.
