Has anyone here got an iPhone Air yet? I’m very keen to hear some first impressions. Especially interested to gear if the single speaker is a deal breaker or does it do the job just fine.
Personally I don’t need it to be good for media, but good enough for VoiceOver.
Dave
By Dave Nason, 21 September, 2025
Forum
iOS and iPadOS
Comments
iPhone Air
Hi Dave,
I have an iPhone Air and yes, the speaker is mono. Voiceover sounds just fine through it, but I have only had it about 48 hours.
I also have an iPhone 17 pro Max and those speakers are stereo. Trying to decide which phone I will go with, but the air is just so appealing so far. It's light, slim and apps like SeeingAI and Be My AI work well. I've tried AccessAI through the AIRA app, but not called an agent yet.
Hope this helps and happy to answer any questions.
Scott
Noisy environments
I'm just thinking back to my iPhone 8, I think it was, and the mono speaker on that. I'm assuming it is better than that was, but I do recall, in loud environments, listening to an audio book was problematic.
To be honest though, I think the 17 is probably the way to go if you want a small light phone. The weight difference between the two is negligable, and though you don't get the more punchy processor or 12 gb ram, you get better speaker batter, speakers etc, and it's £200 cheaper.
There is a price for thinness and compromises. The iPhone 17 Pro is a little bigger and quite a bit heavier than the 17 standard.
Weight differene
The iPhone 17 is 12 grams heavier than the iPhone Air. I'm not sure I'd be able to tell the difference.
I'm also not arguing with you; I'm more arguing with myself. The Air is a status phone, compromised but beautiful. How long will the novelty of thinness last, and how long will the compromises remain? This is what I'm telling myself anyway.
I also don't need to upgrade... I want to, though. I'm looking for reasons.
My advice: tie down during this storm of tasty, hyper-palatable consumerism and buy a new phone when and if we need one. The iPhone 12 still does everything I could want to do on a phone, and I've got the 15 Pro, which is a super punchy phone. It's no less good than it was when I bought it two years ago.
My first iPhone was an iPhone 8
My first iPhone was an iPhone 8. That thing had two speakers. They were great for what they were at the time. They played music and voiceover just fine. Yeah I’m not sure how one speaker would be for an iPhone in 2025. I think if I were going to get a new phone right now I’ll probably get the standard basic 17. But right now my new iPhone is an iPhone 15 that I just got on August 15 so I am totally happy with that phone. But I hope you can get something that you’re feel happy with. Just curious, what are you upgrading from?
Thanks both
Yeah it’s a long time since I used a phone with a mono speaker. Good to know Scott that you don’t find it bad for day to day VoiceOver use.
In noisy environments and when I’m in the company of other people, I generally pop an earphone in my ear.
I never really play music or videos through my phone speakers, as again I use AirPods or connect to another speaker. I use an iPad for watching YouTube and TV, so the speakers are more important to me on that device.
So it’s really that day to day VoiceOver user experience that matters most to me.
To be honest, I’m either getting an iPhone Air, or sticking with my iPhone 15 Pro for another year.
Dave
Orange is the new black
Sounds like we’re battling the same demons, Oliver!
Maybe if the Air was available in cosmic orange it’d be enough to get you across the line!
thank you for this
Dave,
i was literally going ask the same question. to be honest, i am considering an IPAD for tv here in the uk like ITV BBC IPLAYER etc. and netflix; which ipad do you have?
i think, if you and i, plus others, don't rely on the phone for well, lot like tv etc. it should be fine as a daily driver.
i have gotten so used though to my iphone 14 pro max but it is a heavy device.
also, with the battery case would you need the phone to not have a case on it, to use the battery if you need it? if going to do that, so buy the extra battery may as well just get a pro?
Will
iPhone air
I have the iPhone air, and have had no issue with the mono speaker as far as volume is concerned.
The bass reduction is noticeable with VoiceOver voices, though, especially male ones.
As for the weight difference, though it is not much, the Air has a much nicer in-hand feel than any of the 17 series phones.
Hope this helps and happy to answer any further questions.
iPhone air speaker better than expected
I’m currently trying to choose between the iPhone air and the iPhone 17 pro, I have been using the air for a couple of days and I have to say the mono speaker is better than I expected in terms of VoiceOver use, as mentioned on here I think if you are a heavy media user I probably wouldn’t recommend this phone, but if you are going to use headphones for media playback, it’s absolutely fine. It’s very early days for me but the battery seems to be holding up okay as well, not a noticeable difference from my 16 pro. Please feel free to reach out to me directly if you have any further questions.
Honestly kinda tempted
I found while I absolutely love my pro max, I’n considering returning it and getting air, I thought I’ll be fine with the size, had pro maxs before, mainly 11 pro max, but it somehow feels more unwieldy than I’ve expected, 6.5 inchs is in the pro max range I’m used to, plus thinness factor, but battery and overheating worries me, if only it had liquid cooling too
@Karok
My iPad is the iPad Air 4th generation. It’s got good speakers on both sides, is a nice size and weight, and is plenty powerful for my media consumption needs, despite being a few years old now.
The only reason I may have to replace it in the next year is that the screen has some damage.
iPhone Air
Thanks folks for that info. Interesting about the base, Alex is my preferred voice.
Does the screen feel a lot bigger than the regular 17 and 17 Pro? As a rule I prefer smaller devices but they’re all getting big now.
@SingerGirl, if I go for it, and it’s still a big if, I’d be upgrading from the 15 Pro, and likely handing it on to my mum.