Did iPhone 17 Air inspire Galaxy S25 Edge? Here’s what Samsung says

When the Galaxy S25 Edge was first rumored last year, many claimed Samsung is copying Apple in releasing an ultra-thin smartphone. However, Apple hasn't announced the iPhone 17 Air yet. So, this begs the question: Did iPhone 17 Air really inspire the Galaxy S25 Edge? This is what Samsung had to say on the matter.

In an interview with Forbes, Kadesh Beckford, Smartphone Product Specialist at Samsung MX, said that the Galaxy S25 Edge is not related to the iPhone 17 Air. They explained the engineers had to redesign every component inside its new slim phone to fit them into a thinner chassis, and that isn't an easy feat.

For example, it made changes to the 200MP camera used in the Galaxy S25 Ultra to make it 18% slimmer to fit the Galaxy S25 Edge.

Beckford explained how this miniaturization of components needs a lot of research and development time, and all these processes started at Samsung long before the first rumors of the iPhone 17 Air started appearing. Beckford claimed they knew about the Galaxy S25 Edge since the launch of the Galaxy Z Flip 5, which happened in August 2023, which means its idea started even before mid-2023.

If the iPhone 17 Air didn't inspire the Galaxy S25 Edge, then what did? Well, Samsung claims that they came across a section of users who were impressed by Galaxy S Ultra phones but didn't like their bulk. Market research pointed towards some people who wanted some Galaxy S25 Ultra features without the bulk of Ultra phones.

So, Samsung used a 200MP camera, 12MP selfie camera, Snapdragon 8 Elite For Galaxy, all the Galaxy AI features, and titanium body to make the Galaxy S25 Edge. Read more about the Galaxy S25 Edge specifications here.

Now, it remains to be seen how many such consumers exist and if Samsung can sell millions of Galaxy S25 Edges. If it succeeds, rumors claim that Samsung could replace the Galaxy S26+ with the Galaxy S26 Edge next year. But if the company takes that step, it better use a Silicon Carbon (SiC) battery for a 10-15% higher capacity (~4,500mAh) in the same volume.

Its success could also mean Samsung brings those miniaturizing techniques to other high-end phones to make them slimmer or stuff more impressive hardware in them.