Leaked Video Of iPhone 17 Air Dummy Offers A High-Quality Look At The New Design
Apple will unveil the iPhone 17 series in about a month, with September 9 looking like the most probable date for the event. As has been the case for years, we already know plenty of details about the upcoming iPhone series prior to its reveal, thanks to a steady stream of leaks detailing Apple's unannounced iPhones.
The most exciting part of this year's iPhones is the updated design. There won't be an iPhone 17 Plus this year, as an ultra-slim iPhone 17 Air should take its place. The iPhone 17 Air has appeared in many rumors, including leaks showing the ultra-thin design from every angle. We saw leaked schematics, and then a wave of dummy units arrived on social media. These are non-functional iPhone 17 units that are likely sourced from accessory makers developing new products for the upcoming line of iPhones.
The iPhone dummy units that appear in videos on YouTube, X, and other platforms every year are of varying quality. Some are made of metal while others are 3D printed using leaked design files. Others are much more refined, looking almost like real iPhones. They feature display covers, buttons, and colors that mimic the rumored colors for the actual product.
The newest iPhone 17 dummy video gives us a look at a high-quality dummy iPhone 17 Air unit that looks strikingly close to the real thing. The fake iPhone 17 Air unit in the following clip features all the rumored design elements associated with this new iPhone. Also, the video shows off the Sky Blue color expected for the ultra-thin handset.
iPhone 17 Air design showcased in new video
Apple introduced the Sky Blue color earlier this year, offering it as an option for the M4 MacBook Air models. The video that leaker Majin Bu posted on X shows what the iPhone 17 Air would look like in the same color option. As usual with dummy units, it's unclear where this iPhone 17 Air lookalike comes from. However, the clip stacks the iPhone 17 Air up against an iPhone 16 Pro for comparison.
The iPhone 17 Air will reportedly feature a single-lens camera module on the back inside a pill-shaped camera bar. The chassis looks to be incredibly thin, barely thicker than the buttons. Rumors say the iPhone 17 Air will be just 5.5mm thin. The dummy unit in the clip below appears to be much thinner than the iPhone 16 Pro, which measures 8.25mm.
IPhone 17 Air Sky Blue looks amazing pic.twitter.com/TVD3rnQDgN
— Majin Bu (@MajinBuOfficial) August 13, 2025
The short video also gives us a look at the iPhone 17 Air's buttons. On the left, we have the expected Action button above two volume rockers. On the right, we can see the power button at the top and what appears to be a slim Camera Control button below it. The person who recorded the clip makes a point to show that the iPhone 17 Air will not have a physical SIM card slot on the left side. The video doesn't show the USB-C port on the bottom, but we get a look at the Apple logo on the back. As for the display, it's not functional on a dummy unit.
Expect compromises if you buy the iPhone 17 Air
Previous rumors claimed the iPhone 17 Air would come in an eSIM-only option, even outside the U.S. That's one of the rumored compromises Apple had to make to manufacture such a slim device. The single-lens camera on the back is another. Reports also suggest the speaker will suffer. More importantly, the iPhone 17 Air's battery will be much thinner than in the other iPhone 17 models.
These compromises are valid concerns for potential iPhone 17 Air buyers. The phone should be at least as expensive as the iPhone 16 Plus, if not slightly costlier than the model it replaces. For that price, you might expect an experience on par with the Pro models, and that doesn't seem to be the case. On the other hand, the video above only reinforces my belief that an ultra-thin, good-enough iPhone with a large display is what I want from my next iPhone, even if it means losing a camera lens and worrying about battery life.
That said, the iPhone 17 Air design shown in the clip above might not be exactly what Apple has in store for this generation. We'll have to wait for Apple's announcement event to see whether these dummy units were based on the actual iPhone 17 Air.