Apple’s iPhone Air launched in September 2025 as a deliberate departure: 5.64 mm thick, 165 grams, no physical SIM slot, one rear camera, and a $1,099 starting price in the US. It wasn’t the iPhone 17 — that lineup launched alongside it, but a slim, premium alternative aimed at users who prioritise form over features. Twelve months later, there’s no iPhone Air successor. Apple skipped it entirely for the 2026 cycle. And the Android rivals that rushed to answer it? Most have vanished too. The Galaxy S25 Edge, released in May 2025, won’t return in the S26 series. The Honor Magic 8 Pro Air remains China-only. Motorola’s Edge 70, Tecno’s Spark Slim, and Infinix’s Hot 60 Pro Plus are all still on sale. But none are flagships, and none match the iPhone Air’s performance or build. Only two devices come close enough to warrant comparison: the Galaxy S25 Edge and the Honor Magic 8 Pro Air. Both cost more than $700. Both launched before the iPhone Air hit stores. Neither is widely available outside their home markets. The S25 Edge ($1,099.99 in the US) matches the Air’s weight and thickness almost exactly (5.80 mm, 163 g), packs the Snapdragon 8 Elite, 12 GB RAM, and a 200-megapixel main camera, but its Geekbench 6 multi-core score (9,678) trails the iPhone Air’s A19 Pro (9,628) by a hair. The Honor Magic 8 Pro Air (4,999 yuan, ~$747) beats it: 3,373 / 10,089 in Geekbench 6, a 5,500 mAh battery, and triple cameras. Though it’s 6.10 mm thick and lacks global distribution. The rest are compromises. The Motorola Edge 70 starts at €799 ($894) in Europe but scores just 1,324 / 4,035 in Geekbench 6, less than half the iPhone Air’s single-core power. The Tecno and Infinix models sell for under $200, with Helio G200 chips and Geekbench scores near 700/2,000. They’re thin. They’re light. They’re not equivalents. Apple didn’t announce a successor. Samsung dropped the Edge line. Honor hasn’t confirmed a Magic 9 Pro Air. The ultra-slim phone experiment appears to be on pause. Not cancelled, but suspended. No new iPhone Air is expected before late 2027. No Android vendor has announced a follow-up to its 2025 thin flagship. For now, the iPhone Air stands alone: a niche device with no direct heir, and no true rival left standing.