Apple says it’s created a “new image pipeline” for the phone, allowing it to digitally add bokeh to portrait photos without being able to derive depth data from the phone’s other cameras.

The iPhone 17 Air also includes the large, square selfie camera found on the other iPhone 17 models. The phone can record from both the front and rear cameras at once. Despite the slimmer size, it retains the Camera Control button introduced on the 16s, which acts as a quick shortcut to launch the camera app, and a multi-functional controller once it’s open.

The phone has a 6.5″ display, which is similar to the one found on the standard iPhone 17 with 3000 nits of peak brightness and a 120hz refresh rate. However, it has a more powerful A19 Pro chip (though it has one fewer GPU core than the one found in the iPhone 17 Pro, and lacks the fancy vapor chamber cooling), and Apple’s custom-designed C1X modem. The Air also uses a new “N1” chip from Apple, which the company says enables Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.

Now that the iPhone 17 Pro is made of aluminium, the Air is carrying the titanium torch for the iPhone. Image: Apple

Its frame is made of titanium, and the front and back are both made of Apple’s “Ceramic Shield” glass, though the sheet protecting the display is a newer generation that Apple says is more scratch- and glare-resistant.

Image: Apple

The company says the ultra-thin design is possible because it put the phone’s core components into the camera bump (or, as it calls it, “plateau”).