November 1, 2025

Slim and stylish phones are failing to win hearts in India and beyond! Apple’s iPhone Air, the thinnest iPhone ever, started strong, making up 8-10% of the iPhone 17 series sales. But guess what? During the big festive season, when phone sales usually blast off thanks to GST cuts, iPhone Air’s share nosedived to just 2-3%! Samsung’s slim Galaxy S25 Edge is also struggling. Even with big discounts, its sales stayed flat. A Delhi retailer, who didn’t want to be named, said he’s already returned Galaxy S25 Edge stocks to distributors. Meanwhile, Apple’s distributor is pushing iPhone Air alongside the popular base and Pro models to boost sales in India. Experts believe slim phones suffer because they offer less bang for your buck. They usually have smaller batteries and fewer cool features compared to the chunkier Pro or Ultra models from the same brands. Buyers prefer to pay a little extra for better cameras and battery life rather than go slim and lose out. Research backs this up. The iPhone Air only grabbed about 3-4% of iPhone 17 sales in India since its September launch. The base iPhone 17 model grabbed most of the limelight. IDC reports iPhone Air sales were under 5% in the launch week and expected to drop below 3% by December end. Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge, out since April, made just over 2% at launch, falling to less than 1% later in 2025, says Counterpoint Research. The Galaxy S25 Ultra and base models continue to dominate. Apple is not taking this lightly. Ming Chi Kuo, a top analyst, revealed Apple plans to cut iPhone Air production by more than 80% by early 2026. "iPhone Air demand has fallen short of expectations, leading the supply chain to begin scaling back both shipments and production capacity," Kuo said. Some key parts might even be stopped by year-end. Samsung seems to be hitting pause too. Reports say Samsung canceled the successor of the Galaxy S25 Edge for next year due to poor global sales. Hana Financial from Korea shared that only 1.31 million units of Galaxy S25 Edge shipped worldwide till August. Compare that to a massive 8 million for the base Galaxy S25 and 12 million for the Ultra, and you see why. So, it looks like the era of slim smartphones may be slowing down. Consumers want power, endurance, and camera magic–even if that means a chunkier phone in their hands!

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Tags: Iphone air, Apple, Samsung, Slim Smartphones, Smartphone Sales, Gst Impact,