The iPhone 18 Pro just ended my affair with the iPhone Air. It was nice while it lasted. Kind of. It's not you, iPhone Air, it's me. Actually, no. It's you. I tried to love you. I defended you for over a year, stuck up for you in the face of ridicule from my Pro-wielding colleagues. But now that the iPhone 18 Pro is in my hand, I'm sorry to tell you, it's over. This is the end of the affair.

I really did think the iPhone Air was for me when Apple announced it last year. As an iPhone mini apologist, I've always favoured design over features, whilst lamenting the trend towards massive, heavy bricks. But all of those compromises that tech nerds have accused the Air of making in its pursuit of ultimate thinness? Yeah, they're valid.

I still love the design of the iPhone Air. From the ultra thin profile to the polished titanium edges, this is the most premium looking and feeling iPhone ever. It's the closest thing we've had to Steve Jobs' dream of a device that's genuinely all-display – the phone is so thin and light that it disappears into the background when looking at the 3,000 nit display. But yes, it only has one camera lens. And despite Apple's claims that it's somehow worth two (still not sure how that checks out), the limitations are a pain in everyday use. Countless times I've tried to take a 0.5x photo, only to remember the feature doesn't exist on the Air. Same goes for zooming in on anything further than the near distance – the digital zoom just doesn't cut it.

The other major drawback, of course, is battery. Over the course of a year, my iPhone Air's battery health has degraded to 91%, which is much quicker than my iPhone 15 Pro degraded. The result is not-quite-all-day battery life, which has got me into trouble a few times when travelling.

And while I said I love the design of the iPhone Air, I do take issue with one aspect: the width. Why, oh why, is the so-called thinnest, lightest and therefore most portable iPhone too wide to use one-handed? It makes no sense to me that the iPhone Air is taller and wider than the iPhone 18 Pro.

Speaking of which, it's the 18 Pro that's finally turned me off the Air. I've been using the Pro for a week now, and realised just how much I've missed those basic features: a better camera, and better battery life. And despite the heft, I'm actually finding it easier to use one-handed, because it's less wide. It's almost a novelty that my thumb can reach the edge of the screen.