[Review] "Lightness Is Everything" iPhone Air, "Dark Horse" AirPods Pro 3

iPhone Air: Noticeably Lightweight
Battery Performance Is Decent... Mono Speaker Remains a Drawback
AirPods Pro 3: Improved Noise-Canceling Performance Compared to Previous Model

189g→203g→206g→187g→199g→204g.

These are the weights of each iPhone Pro model, from the iPhone 12 Pro to the iPhone 17 Pro. To enhance premium quality and performance, Apple has used materials such as stainless steel and titanium and increased battery capacity. However, this has also made the phones heavier. Once the phone's weight exceeded 200g, users began to complain that prolonged use would cause wrist pain.

The iPhone Air, which Apple released on September 19, is a newly added model in the iPhone lineup after a long time, featuring a lightweight build and slim profile. The AirPods Pro 3, released alongside it, maintains a design similar to its predecessor but offers improved noise-canceling performance and a new heart rate sensor. After using the iPhone Air and AirPods Pro 3 for a week, here is a summary of their strengths and weaknesses.

iPhone Air. Provided by Apple

iPhone Air: Instantly Noticeable Lightness... Mono Speaker Is a Drawback

iPhone Air. Photo by Lee Myunghwan

Thickness of iPhone Air. Photo by Lee Myunghwan

The moment I picked up the iPhone Air, its light weight and thinness were immediately apparent. Compared to my iPhone 16 Pro, the reduced weight was the biggest advantage. The iPhone Air weighs 165g, which is about 40g lighter than the newly released iPhone 17 Pro, and at 5.6mm, it is the thinnest iPhone ever. The screen measures 6.5 inches (16.6cm), which is slightly larger than the iPhone 17 Pro's 6.3 inches.

Battery life was unexpectedly decent as well. Even after carrying the fully charged iPhone Air around all day, about 60% of the battery remained. Some had concerns that the reduced weight and thickness would result in poor battery life, but it seems sufficient for everyday use. However, due to its thinness, the device tends to heat up easily during high-performance tasks such as gaming or repeated photo shooting.

Some features were sacrificed for a lighter build. The iPhone Air has only one camera and one speaker. The single speaker is the most noticeable drawback. The iPhone Air only has a speaker at the earpiece, so the volume feels about half that of previous iPhones with two speakers. This could be inconvenient for users who need to hear ringtones in noisy places or frequently watch content using the speaker.

Photo taken with iPhone 16 Pro (left) and photo taken with iPhone Air. Photo by Lee Myunghwan

Even with just one camera, the iPhone Air delivered decent performance for general photography. It is equipped with a 48-megapixel Fusion camera that supports 2x optical zoom and 10x digital zoom. When comparing photos of the same subjects and landscapes taken with the iPhone 16 Pro-which has three cameras and a LiDAR sensor-there was little noticeable difference. However, since there is only one lens, the iPhone Air does not support wide-angle shots for capturing broad scenes at close range or macro photography for close-up subjects.

The front camera has also been upgraded to a new 18-megapixel model, showing improvement over previous versions. The iPhone Air and iPhone 17 series support the Center Stage front camera, which automatically widens or narrows the field of view. The camera recognizes subjects on screen and automatically switches between landscape and portrait orientation. The front camera's image quality is also improved compared to its predecessor (12 megapixels).

Close-up photo taken with the iPhone 16 Pro, which supports macro photography (top), and a photo taken with the iPhone Air, which does not support macro photography. Photo by Lee Myunghwan

It's important to note that the iPhone Air only supports eSIM, not physical SIM cards. If you are already using an iPhone, you must first switch to eSIM during the data migration process. If your previous phone was a Galaxy or another brand, you will need to convert to eSIM through your mobile carrier's customer service. Some carriers have applied SIM protection services to all customers; to switch to eSIM, you must first cancel the SIM protection service.

AirPods Pro 3: External Noise Disappears... Heart Rate Monitoring Is Useful

Cases of AirPods Pro 2 (left) and AirPods Pro 3 (right). Photo by Lee Myunghwan

Units of AirPods Pro 3 (top) and AirPods Pro 2 (bottom). Photo by Lee Myunghwan

The AirPods Pro 3, which I also tested, looks similar to its predecessor but offers significant performance improvements. The case for storing the earbud units is slightly larger, and the button on the back has been removed. The structure of the earbud units has also been partially changed. However, unlike previous models, a USB-C cable is no longer included.

The most notable difference from the previous AirPods Pro 2 is the addition of heart rate monitoring. Sensors in both earbuds allow real-time heart rate measurement during daily activities or exercise. You can measure your heart rate just by wearing the AirPods Pro 3, even without an Apple Watch, and wearing both together enables even more accurate measurements.

Noise-canceling performance and sound quality have also improved compared to the previous model, allowing you to focus on music by blocking out external noise. According to Apple, the noise-canceling capability of the AirPods Pro 3 is more than twice as effective as the previous version. In noisy environments such as subways, the improvement in noise canceling was immediately noticeable. Even as a non-audio expert, I could feel the richer sound and wider audio range.