The iPhone 17 Air and Galaxy S25 Edge’s greatest compromises make them a no-go for me

It appears like

iPhone 17
rumors are hitting continuous lately, which is smart — we’re about 4 months out from launch, so {hardware} particulars have to be locked down forward of mass manufacturing. It takes fairly some time to churn out the thousands and thousands of models Apple must fulfill worldwide launch demand.

The newest rumor (through The Information), is that in an effort to obtain its ultra-thin 5.5mm physique, the

iPhone 17 Air
will sport a critical compromise in battery life. How a lot? Allegedly, Apple’s inside testing means that simply 60 to 70% of householders will be capable of make it a full day on a single cost, down from about 80 to 90% for different iPhone fashions. The corporate is even mentioned to be getting ready a brand new battery case, one thing it hasn’t supplied for the reason that discontinued MagSafe Battery Pack.

Comparable rumors have emerged round Samsung’s

Galaxy S25 Edge
. In line with WinFuture, the cellphone could have a 3,900mAh battery — that is extra capability than the iPhone 16, however under the common S25’s 4,000mAh, and far lower than the S25 Extremely’s 5,000mAh. That is put me off each Samsung and Apple’s upcoming “vanguard” telephones, and never simply because everybody prefers greater numbers.

Dealing with the established order

As a tech journalist, I is likely to be an exception, however I discover that almost all telephones nonetheless do not have sufficient battery life, by no means thoughts rolling issues again. My present every day driver is an iPhone 16 Professional, which in response to Apple, needs to be able to as much as 22 hours of (streaming) video playback. Sounds spectacular, proper? In follow, nonetheless, I am struggling to think about how that could possibly be attainable. I prefer to placed on Reuters’ video briefing whereas I bathe and alter within the morning, and I am going to generally see the battery drop to 90% or decrease earlier than I even get downstairs for breakfast. On exercise days, it is attainable for the battery to dip under 30% by the point I get into mattress, and that is after a 15- to 16-hour day of principally non-video exercise. If I really spent an hour or two streaming YouTube, I might most likely should put my cellphone in Low Energy Mode sooner or later.

I might say it is baffling that Apple and Samsung seem like headed within the flawed route, however actually, it is not. Each firms have lengthy put different upgrades forward of battery life. It’s, in idea, attainable to make it over a day if you happen to’ve received a cellphone just like the Galaxy S25 Extremely or iPhone 16 Professional Max, however solely with gentle utilization. Certainly, battery life has at all times performed second fiddle for many smartphone makers, just because larger batteries are costly whereas being robust to use in advertising and marketing campaigns. A 6.9-inch display screen or a 10X telephoto lens is instantly spectacular — it is tougher to wow individuals with an additional two or three hours of runtime.

This yr, it looks as if each Apple and Samsung are engaged on the belief that we’ll be wowed by thinness, which is a mistake. It should appeal to some individuals, definitely, however we’re not within the 2000s anymore — telephones have been skinny for a very long time. Nobody I do know is complaining about thickness. If something, the problem appears to be that telephones have turn out to be unwieldly, getting thinner whereas concurrently rising taller, wider, and slipperier. Steel and glass could also be good aesthetically — however with no case, skinny gadgets like my iPhone and my spouse’s OnePlus 9 5G really feel like they may slip out of my fingers with one flawed gesture.

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So near price range nirvana, but to date.

A worrisome route for the longer term

Misusing the newest tech

Each the iPhone 17 Air and S25 Edge could also be based mostly on silicon-carbon batteries, a variation of the lithium-ion batteries we’re used to, merely with greater power density. That hasn’t been confirmed, however the tech has been utilized in a number of telephones already, and now appears poised to go mainstream.

In that case, I am frightened {that a} unhealthy precedent is rising. Once I first heard about silicon-carbon, my hope was that we would get extra longevity out of telephones the identical measurement, or not less than equal longevity from barely smaller gadgets. Ought to the Air and Edge show profitable, we could possibly be hit with a wave of copycat gadgets, a few of which can additionally throw battery life below the bus. That may take the trade backward at a time when individuals are extra depending on smartphones than ever.

To be truthful, Apple and Samsung could also be attempting to maintain components prices down and retail costs in test. Silicon-carbon batteries are costlier to provide in the intervening time, so even attempting to match the capacities of normal lithium-ion batteries could also be troublesome with no chunk into revenue margins. It could possibly be that when manufacturing prices come down, we’ll see capacities go up once more, fulfilling the brand new tech’s promise. Who is aware of — possibly Apple will really ship a two-day iPhone sooner or later.

Alongside these traces, I am hopeful that each the Air and the Edge will serve a objective just like the iPhone X, which Apple launched in 2017. This was the primary iPhone with an OLED show and a

Face ID
digital camera, costing a then-unprecedented $999. Many individuals balked at it, however gross sales of the iPhone X, iPhone XS, and iPhone 11 Professional ultimately pushed manufacturing prices down, making it attainable to place each OLED and Face ID on the $799 iPhone 12. Today, even the $599

iPhone 16e
shares these options.

Time will inform how briskly the brand new battery tech bridges over to helpful capacities at reasonably priced costs, if it does in any respect. I simply know that for now, Apple and Samsung can depend me out of gadgets that cut back battery life with none tangible advantages. It will hardly matter how cool a cellphone seems sliding out of my pocket if I am unable to make it to the fitness center and again with out plugging into my automobile — or from Alberta to Texas with no battery pack or charging through the flight’s layover. I assume I am going to nonetheless be bringing my iPad alongside for mid-flight leisure.

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