The ‘iPhone 17 Air’ isn’t even out yet, and Samsung’s already working on a competitor

The battle for the thinnest flagship phone has, apparently, begun.

Late last month, Korea’s ET News published a report that Samsung is working on a slim smartphone that could launch “several months” after the launch of the Galaxy S25 series, which is likely to happen in the first quarter of 2025.

It appears that the report was accurate, as Smartprix (via MacRumors) has discovered a mysterious new Galaxy S25 model, listed in the GSMA IMEI database under the model number SM-S937U. The phone is listed under the Galaxy name, and there’s no mention of it being called “slim,” but there’s a good chance that this is an entirely new Galaxy phone model, developed alongside the already existing new Galaxy phones.

Why would Samsung be working on a “slim” variant of its Galaxy flagship? Well, rumors say that Apple plans to launch a super-thin and light version of the iPhone, potentially under the name iPhone Air or iPhone 17 Air.

The new iPhone, which might be a replacement for the iPhone Plus variant, could have a 6.5 to 6.6-inch display, and a far thinner profile than any other existing iPhone.

As for the “slim” Samsung phone, we have no details, but can glean some clues from Samsung’s Galaxy Alpha, a 2014 smartphone that was a lot thinner than other Galaxy models at the time. That device had a very slim body, reinforced by a metallic frame, a smallish 4.7-inch display, and it wasn’t received particularly well. Samsung later incorporated some of the design elements from the Alpha into the Samsung Galaxy S6, which also had a thin profile and a metal frame.

One thing is certain: Neither Samsung nor Apple have lately changed their winning formulas much when it comes to flagship phones. Perhaps it’s time to shake things up a little with some super-slim smartphones.