Apple Defies Tariffs with New iPhone Lineup, Including Slimmer ‘Air’ Model
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Apple unveiled its latest smartphone lineup on Thursday, highlighted by a redesigned, slimmer iPhone Air, while strategically holding prices steady despite the financial pressures of ongoing U.S. tariffs. The company’s decision signals a willingness to absorb important costs – potentially exceeding $1 billion in the current fiscal quarter – to maintain market share against competitors.
However, Apple opted to maintain existing price points across its core product categories, including the new iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro, as well as the updated AirPods Pro and Apple Watch. “They’re leveraging their scale to try to keep prices where they are,” noted a senior industry analyst.
The iPhone 17 base model, with 256 gigabytes of storage, will start at $799 – the same price as the previous generation iPhone 16 with half the storage. The iPhone 17 Pro will also begin at $1,099 for a 256-gigabyte model, mirroring last year’s pricing. notably, the iPhone 17 Pro will no longer offer a lower-priced option with reduced storage capacity.
introducing the iPhone Air: A New Design Paradigm
The iPhone Air emerged as the star of the launch event, with CEO Tim Cook proclaiming, “we’re taking the biggest leap ever for iPhone.” Apple described the device as its most durable iPhone yet, boasting a high-density battery and a brand-new A19 Pro processor. the chip has been optimized for both energy efficiency and performance, catering to the device’s thinner profile. The iPhone Air will be priced starting at $999.
The new model eliminates the physical SIM card slot to maximize battery capacity and features a new N1 chip for Wi-Fi and a C1X modem for cellular data – components previously sourced from Broadcom and Qualcomm.”This is MacBook Pro levels of compute,in an iPhone,” stated one of Apple’s chip executives during the presentation at the company’s Cupertino headquarters.
Expanding Ecosystem and Innovation
Beyond the iPhone, Apple also introduced the next generation of its wireless headphones, the AirPods Pro 3, which will offer real-time language translation for conversations between users. A new blood pressure monitor is also coming to the Apple Watch, pending regulatory approval.The company anticipates the feature could potentially notify one million people and will be available in 150 countries.
The iPhone Air is expected to directly compete with Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge. Analysts suggest it could also serve as a stepping stone for Apple to enter the foldable phone market, a segment where Samsung currently dominates with its seventh-generation devices. A foldable iPhone is seen as crucial for regaining market share in China, where consumers increasingly favor this form factor. “This new device will bring a sense of newness to the iPhone, which has remained the same for too long,” saeid one analyst.
While Apple showcased hardware advancements,the event offered limited insight into its artificial intelligence strategy.The company has partnered with OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, to integrate AI features into its devices, but remains largely on the sidelines of the broader “AI arms race” being led by Google and its Gemini AI models. “Apple sidestepped the heart of the AI arms race while positioning itself as a longtime innovator on the AI hardware front,” noted an industry observer.
Despite the positive product announcements, Apple shares experienced a slight decline of 1.6% following the pricing reveal. The company’s commitment to maintaining prices, even in the face of significant economic headwinds, underscores its determination to remain competitive and appeal to consumers in a challenging global market.
