Overview

• Apple set China preorders for iPhone Air on October 17 with retail availability on October 22 following regulatory approval for an eSIM-only model.
• The device will be Apple’s first eSIM-only iPhone in China, a requirement driven by its 5.6mm thickness that precludes a physical SIM slot.
• During his Shanghai visit, Tim Cook met Pop Mart CEO Wang Ning and creator Kasing Lung, who presented a custom Labubu figure modeled after Cook.
• Cook noted on Weibo that Lung demonstrated sketching on an iPad Pro with Apple Pencil, and Lung shared images of the custom figure on Instagram.
• Cook also stopped at the Apple Pudong store, met Lilith Games’ AFK Journey team, and visited singer Wang Feifei on a music-video set filmed with an iPhone 17 Pro.