MBW 991: The Naughty List - iPhone Air's Impressive Thin Design

19 snips

Sep 24, 2025

Explore the potential scratch issues with the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, while discovering the surprisingly strong design of the ultra-thin iPhone Air. Delve into the world of immersive films for Apple Vision Pro, including exciting content shot with high-end Blackmagic cameras. Unpack the durability of the new TechWoven cases compared to their predecessor, the FineWoven. Plus, get a glimpse inside Apple labs, learn about groundbreaking Memory Integrity Enforcement on the A19 chip, and speculate on upcoming MacBook rumors.

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INSIGHT

Compute-In-Bump Enables Ultra-Thin Design

The iPhone Air concentrates most electronics in the camera bump and leaves the rest behind the thin display as battery space.
That design trade-off enables extreme thinness while keeping repairability and modularity higher than expected.

ANECDOTE

iFixit Finds Air Surprisingly Repairable

iFixit found the wafer-thin iPhone Air surprisingly strong and rated it 7/10 for provisional repairability.
Jason and Alex noted the internal simplification (most compute in the bump) made repairs easier than expected.

INSIGHT

iPhone Line As Intentional Product Segmentation

Apple now segments the iPhone line so each model serves distinct buyer needs rather than one phone for everyone.
The Air prioritizes thinness and style over battery and multi‑lens photography to target a different buyer segment.

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Is the new iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max susceptible to scratches? iFixit tears down the new iPhone Air! New immersive films are coming to the Apple Vision Pro. And is TechWoven better than its predecessor, FineWoven?

iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max units cited as readily susceptible to scratches and scuffs.
The wafer-thin iPhone Air is surprisingly strong.
iPhone Air teardown reveals that Apple's thinnest iPhone is still very repairable.
Apple announces a new set of immersive film releases.
Apple's new Vision Pro films among first shot on Blackmagic Ursa Cine Immersive Cameras.
Apple spotted filming in 3D at iPhone 17 launch.
Two years after the FineWoven fiasco, is TechWoven better?
New iPhone 17 unveiled in Moscow, as pre-orders jump despite slowing economy.
Worried about phone searches? 1Password's (a sponsor of the TWiT network) Travel Mode can clean up your data.
Tap to Pay on iPhone comes to yet more European countries.
Apple to fix camera glitch affecting iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro.
Inside the Apple audio lab where AirPods are tested and tuned.
I went inside Apple's Labs to see how Apple Watch connectivity is tested.
A19 Pro's Geekbench 6 'Performance Per Watt' analysis; achieves highest multi-core score against all SoCs with 34% better efficiency.
Memory Integrity Enforcement changes the game on iOS.
Liquid Glass is causing a disorienting optical illusion for some iPhone users.
$599 MacBook with iPhone chip expected to enter production this year.
Apple steps up war of words with European regulators.
Here's everything Trump is changing with H-1B visas.

Picks of the Week

Jason's Picks: Final Cut Camera & Final Cut Pro for iPad.
Alex's Pick: Revopoint MetroX
Andy's Pick: Epson MX-80 Fonts by Micahel Walden.

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Alex Lindsay, Andy Ihnatko, and Jason Snell

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