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Apple’s new ultra-thin iPhone 17 and iPhone Air on sale in UK

David Benjamin
A person holds an iPhone air during Apple's event
A completely new style of iPhone is launching in the UK today – and it’s so thin you could almost get away with posting it as a letter. At 5.6mm, the iPhone Air is Apple’s thinnest ever, and it’s pretty sleek, with CEO Tim Cook calling it ‘unlike anything you’ve experienced before.’ If you can’t wait any longer, you can get your hands on the new iPhone 17 range at the Regent Street flagship store in London from 8am. To avoid disappointment on the launch day, many have opted to pre-order the new phone, so be prepared it might have sold out at many retailers. (Picture: Reuters)
iPhones 17 Pro are displayed during Apple's event at the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 9, 2025. REUTERS/Manuel Orbegozo
The ultra-thin design has become controversial, but even other tech moguls like  ChatGPT boss Sam Altman have praised it, posting that it’s the ‘first new iphone upgrade i have really wanted in awhile! looks very cool.’ For the important question of whether you could risk your new device by posting it, Royal Mail thinks something is thin enough to be in a regular envelope if it’s under 5mm. Nearly there, although given it weighs 165g, it will also have to work on getting under the 100g limit. Here’s how the new iPhone Air looks (Picture: Reuters)
In this photo illustration, the logo Apple event "Awe Dropping", where the iPhone 17 will be presented is seen displayed on a smartphone screen
Given how thin it is, you might be worried it would snap if you sit on it. But Apple say it is strong, made from Grade 5 spacecraft titanium, as well as using Ceramic Shield 2 on both sides, making it the ‘most durable design yet’ and showing a video of it being dropped on the floor and surviving. It has an A19 chip and Apple boast of its battery life, but the compromise may come in the single 48-megapixel camera, whereas the other models all have multiple lenses. Last night’s Apple Event in Cupertino was the biggest date in the company’s calendar, when they released the next series of iPhone too, the iPhone 17 (Picture: SOPA)
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 09: Apple CEO Tim Cook holds up a new iPhone 17 Pro during an Apple special event at Apple headquarters on September 09, 2025 in Cupertino, California. Apple unveiled a new generation of iPhones and updated Apple Watches and AirPods during a special event at Apple headquarters. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
The company has got a bit of bad rep for the latest iPhone launches being uninspiring compared to their heydey, more minor tweaks than any big overhauls. But this year, tech geeks are more excited, with some major changes making this phone a real step up (Picture:Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

The iPhone 17

New Apple iPhone 17 device
This year, the eSIM-only iPhone 17 models are designed with more processing power, using A19 or A19 Pro chips. They are easily able to support Apple Intelligence features in the latest iOS, as well as being prepared for future updates. Its cameras now span the whole of the back in Pro models, looking more similar to Google Pixels. Given that the teaser image for the event showed a heat map, some thought part of the theme will be a cooler iPhone, literally (Picture: Annice Lyn/Getty Images)
CHONGQING, CHINA - SEPTEMBER 19: A customer tries out the newly released iPhone 17 Pro inside an Apple retail store during the official launch day of the iPhone 17 series on September 19, 2025, in Chongqing, China. A large advertisement for the iPhone 17 Pro is seen in the background. (Photo by Cheng Xin/Getty Images)
They were right, as the Pro models switched back to aluminium rather than titanium, a metal which lets heat dissipate more quickly. They also contain a vapor chamber to disperse heat, improving performance and battery life. To do this, liquid in the chamber turns to vapour when the phone heats up, which draws heat away from internal parts like the chipset.
This time, you can get a Cosmic Orange Pro Max if that’s your style, but controversially you won’t be able to get a standard black one, as the only other colours announced were Silver and Deep Blue. If you insist on black, you’ll have to go for a standard or Air model (Picture: Cheng Xin/Getty Images)
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Vernon Yuen/Nexpher via ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock (15493850bb) An IPhone 17 Pro Max outside the Apple Store in Causeway Bay on September 18, 2025 in Hong Kong. Apple's IPhone 17 Series Goes on Sale in Hong Kong. Apple'S IPhone 17 Series Goes On Sale In Hong Kong - 19 Sep 2025
Apple’s Store went down yesterday afternoon ahead of the ‘awe dropping’ event. The site going down has become something of a tradition, as it is typically taken offline before major launches to update product listings and prices. While a folding iPhone may take longer to reach our pockets, there was plenty to get excited about if you’re an Apple fan (Picture: Vernon Yuen/Nexpher via ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock)

Live translation with AirPods Pro 3

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA - SEPTEMBER 19: iPhone 17 models are displayed inside an Apple store at Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) on September 19, 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The iPhone 17 line represents the next generation of iPhones and accessories set to hit international markets. (Photo by Annice Lyn/Getty Images)
Apple unveiled its next generation of AirPods, with live translation and a heartrate sensor for workouts their most eye (ear?) catching features at a starting price of £219. Translation is available in English, French, German, Portuguese and Spanish, while Italian, Japanese, Korean and a simplified version of Chinese should be on offer by the end of the year.
The hands free feature quickly became a topic of chatter online, with people excited by the opportunities to eavesdrop (Picture: Annice Lyn/Getty Images)

CHONGQING, CHINA - SEPTEMBER 19: A customer holds up the new orange-colored iPhone 17 Pro Max smartphone inside an Apple retail store during the official launch of the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro on September 19, 2025, in Chongqing, China. (Photo by Cheng Xin/Getty Images)
It works as a user speaks naturally with AirPods, according to the tech giant. Apple say: ‘To interact with someone who doesn’t have this hands-free capability, there’s an option to use iPhone as a horizontal display, showing the live transcription of what the user is saying in the other person’s preferred language. (Picture: Cheng Xin/Getty Images)
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Algi Febri Sugita/SOPA Images/Shutterstock (15458666i) In this photo illustration, the IOS 17 Iphone logo displayed on a smartphone with an Apple logo in the background. Iphone 17 Photo Ilustration in Indonesia - 27 Aug 2025
When the other person responds, their speech is translated into the user’s preferred language with AirPods. It’s even more useful for longer conversations when both users are wearing their own AirPods with Live Translation enabled from their iPhone.’ This feature is not only available with Apple: you can also do something similar with Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy buds (Picture: Algi Febri Sugita/SOPA Images/Shutterstock)
Latest iPhone 17 mobile device in orange
It works as a user speaks naturally with AirPods, according to the tech giant. Apple say: ‘To interact with someone who doesn’t have this hands-free capability, there’s an option to use iPhone as a horizontal display, showing the live transcription of what the user is saying in the other person’s preferred language. ‘When the other person responds, their speech is translated into the user’s preferred language with AirPods. ‘It’s even more useful for longer conversations when both users are wearing their own AirPods with Live Translation enabled from their iPhone.’ This feature is not only available with Apple: you can also do something similar with Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy buds (Picture: Metro/Apple)

Blood pressure monitoring on Series 11 Apple Watches

An Apple Watch series 11 titanium is displayed during Apple's event at the Steve Jobs Theater on its campus in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 9, 2025. REUTERS/Manuel Orbegozo
A highly anticipated feature was announced last night, which is the ability for their newest smart watches to monitor blood pressure over extended periods. This has been in development for some time, and adds to the suite of health monitoring features.
Apple say it won’t be able to detect all hypertension,but can look for chronic high blood pressure over 30 day periods. The company said it thinks it will alert over a million people with undiagnosed hypertension in the first year of availability. You can also now get your hands on the Apple Watch Ultra 3, with a brighter screen as well as 5G and satellite connectivity (Picture: REUTERS)

Thinking of buying the iPhone 17? Here is the release date and all the new models

iphone 17 line up https://x.com/theapplehub/status/1963678673074266234 taken without permission
You will be able to pre-order the new models from 1pm on Friday September 12. They will be available on general release from today. There are four versions: the iPhone 17, the iPhone 17 Air, the iPhone 17 Pro and the iPhone 17 Pro Max. The lower selling ‘Plus’ model didn’t get taken forward for the new series, in favour of the Air which brings the phone into line with MacBooks and iPads, which both have lightweight Air models. Although the iPhone 16 Pro Max was top of the range just a few days ago, now you can’t even buy it as a lower cost new option, as it has been scrapped. There have been big price cuts on the standard iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus though. So, if you’re still trying to coax an old iPhone XR into keeping its battery going long enough to check CityMapper on the way home, maybe it’s time to upgrade

How much does the new iPhone 17 cost?

A person holds an iPhone 17 during Apple's event at the Steve Jobs Theater on its campus in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 9, 2025. REUTERS/Manuel Orbegozo
Here are the starting prices for the base 256GB storage variants:

iPhone 17: £799
iPhone Air: £999
iPhone 17 Pro: £1,099
iPhone 17 Pro Max: £1,199 (Picture: REUTERS)

When is iOS 26 released?

The Apple iPhone 17 Pro is displayed during Apple's "Awe-Dropping" event at the Steve Jobs Theater on the Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California, on September 9, 2025. (Photo by Nic Coury / AFP) (Photo by NIC COURY/AFP via Getty Images)
The latest iPhone software update was released on Monday, September 15.You didn’t somehow forget iOS 19, 20, and 21: this time we are skipping ahead to iOS 26, because the naming system has changed.Now, the operating system is taking the name of the year it will be most used in, 2026, which also means it can have a consistently named iOS with other Apple products.As the new iOS was already available in beta form, there weren’t many surprises here, but we did get an official release date for the operating system featuring a ‘liquid glass’ display and the rollout of deeply integrated Apple Intelligence (Picture: Getty Images)

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