Here’s What Apple Didn’t Announce at Its ‘Wonderlust’ Event
Apple on Tuesday held its special event, “Wonderlust,” at which the company introduced the iPhone 15, Apple Watch Series 9, Apple Watch Ultra, and some new accessories. But before the event, rumors had been hinting at the launch of some products that have yet to see the light of day. Here’s what Apple didn’t announce at this week’s event.
Black Apple Watch Ultra
The first generation Apple Watch Ultra was only available in natural titanium… so is the second generation. Both ShrimpApplePro and Apple was developing a black version of the Apple Watch Ultra, which would make sense since the titanium iPhone 15 Pro is available in four different colors.
However, Apple Watch Ultra 2 has only one color option available, and it’s not black.
iPhone 15 Ultra
There were a lot of conflicting rumors when it came to the larger iPhone Pro with a 6.7-inch screen. Some rumors suggested that Apple would rename its most expensive iPhone to “Ultra” since it would be the only one to have the new periscope lens for better optical zoom. Others reported that Apple could end up introducing both the iPhone 15 Pro Max and the iPhone 15 Ultra.
While Apple may still introduce a new iPhone Ultra eventually, it didn’t happen this year. There are only two Pro models: the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
Multiple USB-C accessories
As the entire iPhone 15 lineup now has a USB-C port instead of Lightning, Apple has also updated some of its accessories that still relied on Lightning. For instance, there’s a new version of the AirPods Pro 2 with a USB-C charging case, and Apple has also launched new wired EarPods with USB-C.
A few days before the event, Apple had been working on many new USB-C accessories, including MagSafe Duo and a redesigned MagSafe Battery Pack. It turns out that both MagSafe Duo and MagSafe Battery Pack were discontinued by Apple instead of being updated with USB-C.
Of course, Apple has yet to update its other accessories, such as the Magic Mouse and Magic Keyboard, to use the new charging port.
Color-matching USB-C cables for iPhone
Multiple sources, including the anonymous “Majin Bu,” reported that Apple would provide new braided USB-C cables for the iPhone 15. These cables would be available in different colors to match the colors of the new iPhones, similar to what Apple did with the MagSafe charger for MacBooks.
Although every iPhone 15 does come with a braided USB-C cable, they all have the same white cable – and there are no color options available separately. The leaked colored cables might have been designed for another product, such as a new iMac (which comes with a Magic Keyboard and Mouse included in the box).
Thunderbolt support for the new iPhones
Although the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro have a USB-C port, only the Pro models are compatible with USB 3 speeds, which reach up to 10 Gbps for data transfer. A ChargerLAB report last month suggested that all the new iPhone 15 models would support Thunderbolt for even faster data transfer, but this didn’t happen.
Faster charging speeds on iPhone 15
Last month, 9to5Mac also heard from sources that some iPhone 15 models would support faster charging speeds of up to 35 W. For comparison, the iPhone 14 Pro is limited to charging at 27 W, while the iPhone 14 is limited to 20 W.
Apple made no mention of faster charging on the iPhone 15 during the event, and the Tech Specs webpage for the iPhone 15 Pro still mentions “50% charge in around 30 minutes with 20W adapter.”
It’s still unclear whether the limits remain the same as those of the iPhone 14 or whether the new devices are capable of being recharged at faster speeds when using a different charger.
New iPads and Macs
There were no new Macs or iPads at the event. Although Apple usually waits until October or November to announce new Macs, the company has introduced new iPads alongside new iPhones in the past – but that didn’t happen this year.
The company has been expanding its internal testing of Macs powered by the M3 chip. Among the new models are updated versions of the 13-inch MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro, iMac, and Mac mini, all with the new chip.That Apple is likely to announce a new iPad Air next month via press release.
