Thin phones head-to-head: iPhone Air vs. Galaxy S25 Edge

They may not be the best-selling smart phones out there, but don’t sleep on the benefits a thin and light phone can give you. Lighter than most, more comfortable to hold – and just plain attractive in terms of design – the Apple iPhoneAir and Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge are the future of thin phones (and the basis for foldable devices like the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and the rumor Foldable iPhone).

But are you giving up too many other things for a slim phone? If you press them together are they much thicker than one iPhone17 Or Galaxy S25 (or the new Galaxy S26) ? And do they overcome the compromises in battery life, camera And sound quality which comes with a slimmer design? I’m here to do the math and compare features for you.

Looking to order the iPhone Air? Check out our order guide to find out if you can get it for free and other great offers.

Do you want to buy the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge? Find out which carriers and retailers offer the best offers on Samsung’s slim phone.

iPhone Air and S25 Edge price comparison

• iPhoneAir: $999. The iPhone Air takes the spot formerly occupied by the iPhone 16 Plus, making it the only model with a larger screen than the iPhone 17 that isn’t an iPhone 17 Pro.

• Galaxy S25 Edge: $1,100. The S25 Edge joins the S26 and S26 Ultra in this year’s Galaxy lineup.

The iPhone Air includes fewer features than the iPhone 17, such as the number of cameras. However, it has a larger screen, an A19 Pro processor, and is equipped with 256GB of storage to start with. Additionally, Apple has consistently charged premium prices for minor design changes. The original MacBook Air fit into an inter-office package and cost $1,799, although it was underpowered compared to the rest of the MacBook line. (Within a few generations, it would eventually become Apple’s affordable entry-level laptop at $999, where it still resides.)

The Galaxy S25 Edge’s higher price ($101) could be an attempt to capture more money from customers looking for a phone that sets them apart, but we’re already seeing occasional deep discounts on this one.

In both cases, it is worth noting that prices have resisted the Trump administration tariffs so far.

Dimensions and weight of the iPhone Air compared to the S25 Edge

Now it’s time to dig deeper: How thin is the depth of each phone?

No phone maker describes its phones as bulky or bulky, even for extra-large models like the iPhone Pro Max. Still, the difference between the depths of the iPhone Air and S25 Edge, as well as that of the standard phones in each respective family, is striking.

Not including the camera assembly, which Apple calls the “platter,” most of the iPhone Air’s body is 5.64mm thick. The S25 Edge, at its narrowest point, is a hair thicker at 5.8mm. (Both companies only list the thinnest measurements, not including cameras.) Compare that to 7.9mm for the iPhone 17 and 7.2mm for the Galaxy S25.

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is actually thinner when opened, at 4.2mm, but it also has more surface area to accommodate its battery and other components. Other foldables from Chinese companies, like Huawei, Oppo, and Honor, also feature thinner bodies than the iPhone Air or S25 Edge, but only when opened.

And when you press the two thin phones together, do they really match the typical phone slab you’re currently carrying around? Together (and again, excluding the camera bumps), the iPhone Air and S25 Ultra are 11.44mm thick, which is thicker than the iPhone 17 or Galaxy S25, and even the iPhone 17 Pro Max at 8.75mm. However, if you want to get a more vintage feel, the original first generation iPhone, released in 2007, measured 11.6mm.

Surprisingly, the lesser depth results in a slight decrease in weight compared to other models in each range. The iPhone Air weighs 165 grams compared to the iPhone 17’s 177 grams, while the S25 Edge weighs just 163 grams but is barely undercut by the Galaxy S25 at 162 grams.

How big is each phone in the hand? Although the two are similar, the iPhone Air is slightly shorter and narrower, measuring 156.2mm tall and 74.7mm wide, compared to the S25 Edge’s dimensions of 158.2mm tall and 75.6mm wide.

iPhone Air vs S25 Edge screens

Apple calls the iPhone Air’s 6.5-inch OLED display a Super Retina XDR display. It features a high resolution of 2736 x 1260 pixels at a density of 460 ppi (pixels per inch) and can produce a maximum of 3000 nits of brightness outdoors, as well as a minimum of 1 nit in the dark.

Samsung has integrated a larger 6.7-inch QHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display into the S25 Edge, resulting in a high-resolution display measuring 3,120 x 1,440 pixels at 513 ppi. Its brightness goes up to 2,600 nits.

The displays on both phones feature adaptive 120Hz refresh rates for smoother performance.

iPhone Air and S25 Edge camera comparison

Until now, many specs were close enough to weigh each phone fairly equally. Then we move on to the cameras.

The iPhone Air features a single 48-megapixel rear camera with a 26mm equivalent field of view and a constant f/1.6 aperture. In its default mode, the camera produces 24-megapixel “fusion” photos resulting from an imaging process in which the camera captures a 12-megapixel image (using groups of four pixels acting as a larger pixel for better light gathering, known as “binning”) and a 48-megapixel reference for additional detail.

Apple also claims that the iPhone Air can capture 2x zoomed telephoto images (52mm equivalent) that are 12 megapixels in size and represent a crop of the center of the image sensor.

The S25 Edge has two integrated rear cameras: a 200-megapixel wide-angle lens and a 12-megapixel ultra-wide lens. There’s no dedicated telephoto lens, so the S25 Edge also offers a 2x zoom crop that takes photos 12 megapixels in size.

The front selfie cameras on each phone differ significantly. The iPhone Air features a new 18-megapixel camera with an f/1.9 aperture. But the increased resolution over the S25 Edge’s 12-megapixel selfie camera isn’t what’s notable.

Apple calls it a Center Stage camera because it has a square sensor that can capture tall or wide photos without the user having to physically turn the phone, unlike the 4:3 aspect ratio sensors found in regular selfie cameras. It can adapt the aspect ratio depending on how many people it detects in front of the camera: a traditional portrait orientation when you’re taking a photo of yourself, for example, or switching to a landscape orientation when two friends are standing next to you in the frame.

iPhone Air batteries vs. S25 Edge

When it comes to concerns, battery life on thin phones is at the top of the list. The inside of most phones holds as much battery as possible, so making a phone thinner naturally means taking away battery space. Regardless of the model, you end up sacrificing battery power for design. But how much?

Apple doesn’t list the iPhone Air’s battery capacity, but claims “all-day battery life” and up to 27 hours of video playback. It also sells a special iPhone Air MagSafe Battery add-on that magnetically snaps onto the back of the phone and only works with the iPhone Air. In his article, CNET senior tech reporter Abrar Al-Heeti drained the battery in 12 hours during a high phone usage day, but ended a more typical day with 20% remaining.

The S25 Edge has a 3,900mAh battery, which Samsung says will support up to 24 hours of video playback. (Come on, phone makers, our phones aren’t TVs running in the background.)

In his review of the S25 Edge, Al-Heeti noted that the phone also generally lived up to Samsung’s “all-day battery life” boast: “Ultimately, you’ll get less power with this slimmer build, but the S25 Edge offers just enough battery life to make me happy… But the S25 Edge has changed my priorities.” I like its sleek form factor so much that I’m willing to make some compromises, even if it means I have to be sure to charge my phone every evening, which I tend to do anyway.”

It’s worth noting that both phones support fast charging when used with a wired power adapter of 20 watts or more, allowing them to reach around 50% charge in 30 minutes from a fully discharged state.

iPhone Air vs S25 Edge CPU, Storage, and OS

The iPhone Air is powered by Apple’s latest A19 Pro processor, the same than that of the iPhone 17 Pro models (compared to the A19 of the original iPhone 17). Apple doesn’t list onboard memory, but we believe it includes 8GB of RAM (which is recognized as the minimum amount for running AI features like Apple Intelligence). The base storage configuration is 256GB, with the option to order the iPhone Air with 512GB or 1TB capacity. It comes with iOS26the latest version of the operating system that Apple widely released this week.

The S25 Edge is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, the same one that powers the other S25 models. It includes 12 GB of RAM and is available in 256 GB and 512 GB storage capacities. The phone comes pre-installed with Android 15.

iPhone Air vs. S25 Edge all specs

Watch this: iPhone Air Review: A Joy to Hold, at a Price

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