The Engadget Podcast iPhone Air and 17 review + Meta's Ray-Ban Display smart glasses
Sep 19, 2025
Join Senior Writer Sam Rutherford as he delves into Apple's sleek iPhone Air, highlighting its titanium design, impressive battery life, and the exciting camera features. He also discusses how the iPhone 17 Pro stands out with its camera upgrades and the base model's great value. As for Meta's latest venture, Sam evaluates the Ray-Ban Display smart glasses, sparking debate about their potential and privacy implications. Will these gadgets change the way we connect, or are they just a tech tease?
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Air's Design Feels Like Apple's New Direction
- The iPhone Air presents a refined thin design that people love to hold and shows Apple's design direction.
- Sam says the titanium frame and compact 6.5" display make it feel sleeker than many Android rivals.
Thinness Came With Camera Trade-Offs
- Apple sacrificed multi-lens flexibility to achieve thinness, leaving a single rear camera and centralized internals.
- Sam notes the camera plateau houses much of the heat and components in the thin chassis.
Engineering Prioritized Power Efficiency
- Apple optimized the Air for power efficiency with a new C1X modem and engineering to distribute heat.
- Sam reports it behaves efficiently in regular use without a vapor chamber.
