Just strolling through the MWC 2025 trade show in March, you can see that there's a big push toward making thinner phones, but the most notable efforts are coming from Samsung and Apple in the form of a Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air showdown.
Samsung has already shown off its ultrathin smartphone, both at MWC and during its own Galaxy Unpacked event at the start of year, with an eye toward launching the Galaxy S25 Edge at some point in 2025. Meanwhile, rumors indicate that Apple plans to answer with a slim handset of its own, as the iPhone 17 Air joins the rest of the iPhone 17 lineup expected to arrive this fall.
There hasn't been much in the way of official information about either phone — not surprising in the case of the iPhone 17 Pro, since Apple has yet to confirm it's working on the device. But rumors are filling in a lot of the blanks, especially about the Galaxy S25 Edge, which we're expecting to see shortly.
Here's what a Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air match-up looks like at the moment, as both phone makers look to produce a standout slender device.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air: Rumored release date and pricing
As mentioned, the Galaxy S25 Edge appeared at Galaxy Unpacked, where Samsung also showed off the rest of the Galaxy S25 lineup. Samsung also showed off the phone at MWC 2025, but revealed nothing new about the Edge — including when we could expect it to launch.
Back before Samsung's January preview, when the phone was rumored to be called the Galaxy S25 Slim, listings in the GSMA IMEI database seemed to indicate a June launch date for the phone based on when Samsung historically registers those numbers for upcoming releases. More recent rumors have indicated the phone will launch on April 16, with the Galaxy S25 Edge reportedly going on sale in May.
Apple's release date timeline is a little easier to predict, assuming the company includes the iPhone 17 Air with the release of the rest of the rumored iPhone 17 lineup. Apple tends to announce new flagship phones in the fall — early to mid-September if you want to get more specific — and there's no reason to believe that timeline is going to change this year.
As for the cost of either, prominent leaker Ice Universe claims the Galaxy S25 Edge will have a similar price to the Galaxy S25 Plus, which starts at $999. That's good news if you were fearing a higher price along the lines of the $1,299 Galaxy S25 Ultra, but it seems to shoot down the rumor that the Edge would be a replacement for the Galaxy S25 FE, as FE models tend to cost less than Samsung flagships.
With the iPhone 17 Air tipped to replace the iPhone 16 Plus in Apple's current iPhone lineup, there's a hope that the new model would match the $899 starting price of the Plus. However, another rumor claims that the Air will be a premium device that turns out to be even more expensive than the $1,199 iPhone 16 Pro Max. Whether that's true will depend on what the Air offers beyond a thinner device.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air: Rumored specs
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge (rumored) | Apple iPhone 17 Air (Rumored) |
Release date | Spring 2025 | Fall 2025 |
Screen size | 6.7 inches | 6.7 inches |
Chipset | Snapdragon 8 Elite | A19 |
Rear camera | 200MP main, 50MP ultrawide | 48MP |
Front camera | Unknown | 24MP |
Battery size | 3,900 mAh | Unknown |
Thinness | 5.6mm to 6.4mm | 5.5mm to 6.6mm |
Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air: Design and display
When the name of the phone emphasizes its thinness, naturally the question is going to turn to "Just how slim a device are we talking about here?" Based on the eyeball test when we saw the Galaxy S25 prototype in person, the answer is "pretty slim," though Samsung has yet to provide a specific number.
Rumors are more forthcoming, with some suggesting that Samsung is trying to make the Galaxy S25 Edge as thin at the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is when it's unfolded — that would be 5.6mm. Another rumor points to a 6.4mm-thin design for Samsung's phone. To put all that in context, the Galaxy S25 is 7.2mm thin, so we'd expect the Edge to be more compact than that.
The current iPhone 16 is 7.8mm thin, so we'd imagine that the iPhone 17 Air is going to cut down on that figure. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has suggested that the iPhone 17 Air could get as thin as 5.5mm, though that would be the thinnest point on the device — the camera bump would add some extra thickness.
Contrasting reports claim Apple is running into technical and cost issues surrounding the size of the battery that could fit inside the Air. The end result may be that Apple will release a 6.6mm-thin phone instead.
The current Galaxy S25 Edge prototype didn't include a screen, leaving us to guess how big a display Samsung is planning to use. Though some leaked Galaxy S25 Edge specs point to a 6.6-inch display, it's now widely believed that Samsung will use a 6.7-inch panel.
Initial reports also suggested the iPhone 17 Air would offer a 6.6-inch screen, which is a little smaller than the 6.7-inch display on the iPhone 16 Plus that's set to leave the iPhone lineup to make way for the Air. However, new rumors are emerging that claim a 6.7-inch screen is planned for the Air, instead.
In addition to focusing on thinness, Samsung is reportedly looking to make the Galaxy S25 Edge as light as the 5.7-ounce Galaxy 25. One way it might do that with the larger phone is turn to a ceramic material with an aluminum frame, instead of using glass.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air: Cameras
The Galaxy S25 Edge prototype shows two rear camera lens. If we had to guess, that could mean no dedicated telephoto lens, as those cameras can take up the most space in a camera array.
The cameras that are present on Samsung's phone should be formidable. One rumor suggests the Galaxy S25 Edge will have a 200MP main camera, matching what the Galaxy S25 Ultra offers. A sensor with that high of a megapixel rating may also offer a workaround for the telephoto lens as the Edge could theoretically crop in on shots to approximate an optical zoom.
We also wonder if the Galaxy S25 Edge will pick up one of the other S25 Ultra cameras — specifically, the 50MP ultrawide camera that Samsung added to this year's Ultra.
Most iPhone 17 Air camera rumors posit that the phone will only have enough space to fit in one rear camera. If true, it sounds like Apple would go with a 48MP lens, which would also be able to mimic a 2x zoom by cropping in on shots. Single-camera phones are rare these days, but not unheard of — the newly announced iPhone 16e features a 48MP camera that can provide a 2x zoom when needed.
iPhone 17 Air dummy models suggest that rear camera will be housed in a camera array that stretches horizontally across the back of the phone. The iPhone 17 Air should also feature a front camera, with some rumors pointing to a 12MP shooter, though there have been some suggestions of a 24MP sensor, which has also been rumored for the rest of the iPhone 17 lineup.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air: Performance and battery life
With the Galaxy S25 family featuring Snapdragon 8 Elite chipsets across the board, you'd think that the Galaxy S25 Edge would follow suit. That seems to be the direction Samsung is heading in, according to most rumors, though some suggest Samsung might turn to the Exynos 2400. That system-on-chip powered the Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24 Plus for models released outside of North America in 2024.
As part of the iPhone 17 lineup, we'd expect the Air to feature the same silicon Apple uses in its other phones this fall. Right now, that figures to be the A19 system-on-chip. Like the A!8 powering the iPhone 16 lineup, the A19 will reportedly be built on a 3nm process, but it could be a next-generation version that yields better performance and power efficiency.
Battery life figures to be an area of interest with these thinner phones, as the lack of space may prevent Samsung and Apple from turning to bigger batteries. Instead, these phones may be especially reliant on their chipsets to eke out greater efficiency, which is why we're eager to see if that rumor about the older Exynos 2400 powering the Galaxy S25 Edge turns out to be true.
The only specific battery rumor about size that we've heard applies to the Galaxy S25 Edge — it's supposedly getting a 3,900 mAh power pack, which would be smaller than the 4,000 mAh cell used by the Galaxy S25.
As for the iPhone 17 Air, there's been no word on the size of the battery — not surprising since Apple never announces that information even after a phone is released. A rumor does claim that Apple is looking at high-density battery cells for the Air, as those types of battery can store more energy without requiring an increase in size.
Regulatory filings indicate the Galaxy S25 Edge will offer 25W wired charging, matching the speed on the entry-level Galaxy S25. The more expensive S25 models offer 45W charging speeds.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air: Software and special features
After thinness, artificial intelligence figures to be a major selling point for both the Galaxy S25 Edge and iPhone 17 Air, given how AI has big focus for both Samsung and Apple.
We'd imagine the Galaxy AI features that just debuted with the S25 series such as cross app actions and the new Now Brief screen will also be present on the Galaxy S25 Edge. The biggest question around Galaxy AI and Samsung's thinner phone is whether even more AI capabilities arrive at the same time as the S25 Edge's launch.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 Air is likely to support the same Apple Intelligence features currently available to Apple's iPhone 16 lineup as well as the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. And once Apple introduces more AI as part of this year's iOS 19 update — that's when, not if — the iPhone 17 Air will be in line to support those capabilities, too, just like any of its fellow iPhone 17 models.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air: Outlook
We'll need to hear a lot more details about both the Galaxy S25 Edge and the iPhone 17 Air — chiefly, what makes them special beyond the fact that they're thinner than the other phones made by Samsung and Apple. That's especially true if either phone maker charges a premium for their slim model.
It seems like we'll have some time before either phone comes out, though, and knowing the rumor mill, it won't be long before more details fill in the picture for a Galaxy S25 Edge vs. iPhone 17 Air face-off.
More from Tom's Guide
- Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge — I've got 7 big questions about this super hyped phone
- Galaxy S25 Ultra vs. Galaxy S25 Edge
- I'm not excited by the iPhone 17 Air — here's why
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