Air 2 rumored to be delayed until next year

Nikkei Asia, citing sources familiar with the matter, reported that the release of the second-generation iPhone Air this year is unlikely.

Sources say Apple will release the iPhone 18 Pro series and its first foldable phone this fall, with the standard iPhone 18 expected to be available in the first half of next year. As for the rumored improved Air, both Bloomberg and Nikkei report that the second-generation Air won’t be available until 2027, perhaps alongside the standard iPhone 18.

The second-generation Air is rumored to feature a second rear camera setup, a larger battery, and borrow the vapor chamber technology from the iPhone 17 Pro—but this sounds more like a fan wish than an engineering reality. The only credible report is Bloomberg’s claim that the second-generation Air will use a 2-nanometer chip.

The current Air model has not achieved the commercial success that Apple anticipated. The company had to instruct its channels to significantly reduce the price, resulting in the unexpected birth of the SE model—which was actually a good idea. The iPad and Macbook Air models have always won with their cost-effectiveness. Since the iPhone Air had to reduce its configuration, why not combine it with the SE model? This would satisfy the needs of light users and attract customers with its aesthetics, making the product unique.

Furthermore, Cook stated in the earnings call that Apple has not built up a chip stockpile and the company is actively seeking sources of supply. Due to the iPhone 17 series achieving its best quarterly performance ever, the supply chain is facing challenges, and the company is exploring various solutions to the memory and flash memory supply difficulties.

To date, Apple is one of the few companies that has not been forced to adjust product prices due to soaring memory prices. Long before memory became as precious as gold, Apple’s memory was practically made of gold—upgrading the memory or SSD configuration of an iPhone or Mac required accepting exorbitant pricing. Only now, with memory prices skyrocketing, has it barely reached Apple’s cut-off line.

Finally, Apple plans to release the iOS 26.4 beta version next month, with the official version scheduled for March or April.

iOS 26.4 will bring users a personalized version of Siri based on Google Gemini technology for the first time, while iOS 27 will further enhance Siri’s personalization, turning it into a fully functional chatbot capable of continuous two-way conversations.

Siri is built into iPhones, iPads, and Macs, working out of the box without requiring a separate client installation like ChatGPT or Gemini. Stuart Bowers, Apple’s senior executive in charge of the Siri project, has left the company to join Google’s DeepMind AI lab, along with four other researchers. Reports indicate that these departures have not affected Siri’s release schedule.