This article is by Yi Woo-lim and read by an artificial voice.

Is slimmer really better? Global smartphone makers are taking diverging approaches to the ultra-thin phone market, as both Samsung Electronics and Apple's efforts to launch slimmer models this year were met with underwhelming responses. While Samsung has paused development of a follow-up device, Apple appears determined to try again.
Tech leaker Ice Universe on Sunday revealed that Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S26 will be thinner than its predecessor. Leaked specs showed a thickness of 6.9 millimeters (0.27 inches), down from 7.2 millimeters for the S25. Samsung reportedly considered including an "Edge" successor - a dedicated slim model - in next year's lineup, while removing the "Plus" variant. Instead, the company decided to retain the current three-model lineup of base, Plus and Ultra. The slimmer design may indicate that Samsung is folding its slim-series into the base model rather than releasing a separate one.
Apple, on the other hand, seems undeterred. After introducing the iPhone Air in September - which at 5.6 millimeters was 0.2 millimeters thinner than Samsung's Edge - Apple is reportedly working on a successor. According to Chinese tech leaker Digital Chat Station, Apple is preparing the "Air 2," sharing sketches earlier this month showing the new model with two rear cameras instead of one. While details may still change, industry insiders believe rumors of the Air line being discontinued are unlikely.
Neither company achieved strong sales with their slim phones. Samsung's Edge model, released in May, sold only 1.31 million units by August, according to Hana Securities. That figure lags far behind the standard S25 model at 8.28 million units and the S25 Ultra at 12.18 million.
Apple's iPhone Air performed similarly. Japanese firm Mizuho Securities reported last month that Apple had increased production of its base, Pro and Pro Max models by two million, one million and four million units respectively, while cutting production of the Air model by one million.

Even so, Apple appears confident in pursuing the ultra-thin segment. Lee Joo-hyung, an analyst at Eugene Investment & Securities, attributed this to "Apple's strong footing in China." According to Counterpoint Research's third-quarter report released on Oct. 31, Apple was the only major smartphone brand to post growth in China. Apple's 15 percent share still trailed Vivo at 18 percent and Huawei at 16 percent, but was up about one percentage point from a year earlier. In contrast, Samsung continues to post a near-zero market share in China.
The iPhone Air even sold out within minutes of its presale launch in China on Oct. 17, suggesting Apple retains the brand power to take another shot, despite early setbacks.
Some analysts say the Air has proven more useful to Apple as a marketing tool than a commercial hit. In a report published Friday, the Wall Street Journal noted that iPhone sales have stagnated from 2021 to 2024, calling the Air the most innovative iPhone design since the iPhone X in 2017. Nabila Popal, an analyst at market research firm IDC, was quoted as saying that while the Air was not a blockbuster in sales, it was a blockbuster in marketing.

The bad news for Samsung Electronics is that other manufacturers are also entering the ultra-thin race by leveraging affordability. In October, Motorola released the Moto X70 Air at 5.99 millimeters thick. Though not the slimmest, it features a sizable 4,800-milliampere-hour battery and retails for 700 pounds ($920) in Britain - significantly cheaper than Apple's Air or Samsung's Edge, both priced at 1,199 pounds.
The strategy echoes how Chinese brands have overtaken Samsung in the foldable phone market by focusing on cost competitiveness. Huawei also released the Mate70 Air in China with a 6.6-millimeter profile and an even larger 6,500-milliampere-hour battery - not breaking the 5-millimeter threshold, but offering extended battery life as a t...

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