'iPhone 17 Air' is Step Towards Slimmer iPhones Without USB-C Ports
Apple considered launching the iPhone 17 Air without a USB-C charging port, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said that while Apple ultimately decided against making the iPhone 17 Air its first iPhone model without a charging port, the idea is still on the table for future iPhone models.
He said the iPhone 17 Air will "foreshadow a move to slimmer models without charging ports."
"The iPhone 17 Air represents the beginning of a sea change for Apple," he wrote. "Apple executives say that if this new iPhone is successful, the company intends to again attempt to make port-free iPhones and move more of its models to this slimmer approach."
Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted that the first iPhone without a charging port would launch all the way back in 2021, but that did not happen. Apple has shifted from its custom Lightning port to the universal USB-C port on iPhones over the past few years, but the wait for an iPhone without a charging port at all continues.
P.S. Hopefully the iPhone 17 Air will support MagSafe, unlike the iPhone 16e.
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