Whoever told you iPhone 15 will look the same as iPhone 14 lied: 10 features Apple is taking away

Apple is taking away 10 familiar features and design elements from this year’s iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro: Goodbye, Lightning port, notch, Mute switch, 12MP camera, and stainless steel

The first five features and design elements expected to be replaced in this year’s iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro are in the category of “very likely departures”. In other words, we have strong evidence coming from numerous leaks and rumors that those changes will indeed take place...

That being said, despite the multiple leaks and rumors, it’s good to note that Apple is known for being one of the very few smartphone makers able to hold on to some secrets/surprises, so I wouldn’t say these features are going away with 100% certainty. But maybe 90%?

iPhone 15 waves goodbye to the Lightning port

Of course, the most notable omission and change to this year’s iPhone 15 series is expected to be the Lightning port, which should be replaced by the universal USB-C port 11 years after debuting on the iPhone 5. While the reversible Lightning port was extremely convenient at the time of its release (a year before the USB-C port), today, almost all of Apple’s other products come with a USB-C port, which should make this transition rather smooth and positive

The notch will no longer be part of the iPhone’s display with iPhone 15

Seven years after “blessing” the front of the decade-defining iPhone X, one of the iPhone’s most polarizing design elements is finally expected to make way for something (a little less annoying) - the Dynamic Island, Apple’s new display cutout is now coming to the vanilla iPhone 15 models too, and while it’s not exactly the sleekest solution around, it’ll probably make sure the notch won’t be missed (sorry, iPhone users - Touch ID seems to be forever gone too)

The Mute/Ring switch is going to be removed from the iPhone 15 Pro 15 years after it debuted on the original iPhone

The legendary Ring switch debuted on the original iPhone all the way back in 2007 as the quickest and easiest way to mute your iPhone, and therefore it’s safe to assume it might be the most noticeable design change to this year’s iPhone 15 Pro. The Ring switch will be replaced by an actual button that (allegedly) will let users perform more quick actions. The catch is that the Ring switch is actually expected to remain in place in the vanilla iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus, which I’m sure will elicit mixed feelings amongst users

Apple’s beloved 12MP primary camera is set to make way for a 48MP camera sensor on all iPhone 15 models

In some good news for the smartphone camera enthusiasts, eight years after making its debut on the iPhone 6S, the 12MP primary camera is finally expected to go missing from this year’s iPhone 15 series. Of course, Apple already replaced the 12MP snapper with a 48MP one last year but this only applied to the iPhone 14 Pro models. This year, the vanilla iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus are also set to get the new 48MP sensor, which should also bring back the iPhone’s zooming capabilities thanks to the 2x sensor-crop zoom enabled by the higher resolution.

The premium stainless steel frame that Apple’s been using since iPhone X is set to go away this year

Again, a change only expected on the iPhone 15 Pro models, the durable stainless steel frame of the premium iPhones is expected to go bye-bye. The good news is that seven years after debuting on the Xpensive iPhone X, the stainless steel material will be making way to something even more durable and premium - a titanium frame, which is also expected to help make this year’s iPhone 15 Pro models lighter by some 10-20g.

No gold iPhone 15 this year; no Pro Max iPhone; no $1,000 iPhone; no glossy iPhones; and a new charging cable?

The following five iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro design elements expected to be removed and replaced are in the category of “less likely to happen”, and that’s because of the mixed leaks and rumors around them.

This means you should take this information with a healthy grain of salt. Although, to be honest, I still feel like at least 2-3 of them will most likely happen - but that’s just my “nerd feeling” talking…

The Gold iPhone might no longer be part of Apple’s plans on the iPhone 15 series

Ten years after the debut of the first gold colored Apple flagship, the iPhone 5, mixed leaks and rumors are pointing towards a new lineup of iPhone 15 Pro colors which include Silver, Space Black, Titan Grey, and Dark Blue. As you can see, the flashy gold color is nowhere to be seen.

The white rubber iPhone cable we all have (and some of us hate) might not be in the box of the iPhone 15

Although this one technically isn’t about the iPhone itself, removing the white rubber cable from the box of the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro feels like a small but monumental change because this cable has been in the box since the 2007 original iPhone. Don’t worry, it looks like Apple will give you a cable with your iPhone 15 - only this time, it might be color-matched to the iPhone color you picked, braided, and… USB-C.

The glossy, fingerprinty glass back of the iPhone 14 might be replaced by something better

13 years after debuting on the iPhone 4, the glossy back glass is also rumored to go away this year. As you might know, Apple has been using a matte glass back for the Pro iPhones for a few years now, but a few rumors have suggested that this style of glass could finally make its way on to the vanilla iPhone 15 models too.

The $1,000 iPhone might be going away this year

Although this one might sound positive at first, unfortunately, the potential disappearance of the $1,000 iPhone means Apple’s entry-level premium iPhone will most likely go up in price ($1,100-1,200) for the first time in six years. The reason I’ve put this one into the “less likely” category of changes is because we’ve been hearing rumors of an iPhone price increase for the past three years now, and they always ended up being false (at least as far as the US price of the iPhone is concerned).

The Pro Max iPhone is likely to disappear from the iPhone 15 lineup (sort of)

And finally, the “Pro Max” iPhone might also go bye-bye, four years after the debut of the first Pro Max iPhone, the iPhone 11 Pro Max. Of course, we’re only talking about a potential name change, as the “Pro Max” name might be replaced by something even more pretentious - “Ultra”. Again, the leaks and rumors on the alleged “iPhone 15 Ultra” are very mixed, so don’t be quick to brag about buying the “Ultra” iPhone.

iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro will be different than iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro in many ways - only none of them will be major

Finally, bear in mind that iOS 17 will also bring a ton of updates to the iPhone. For example, the legendary “hey” part from having to say “Hey, Siri” will no longer be necessary to summon the voice assistant. However, few (if any) of the new iOS 17 features will be exclusive to the iPhone 15 series, which is why I haven’t included them in the list.

However, when doing the research for this story, it was particularly interesting to find out about the features/things found on the original iPhone (2007) that the new iPhone 15 might be doing away with like the Mute/Ring switch and the white charging cable. If you take into account the other hardware elements that have been around in the past 5-10 years, some of those changes start to seem more “major” - although they are still minor in practice.

Anyway… Just like we began, I guess the silver lining here is… Who told you iPhone 15 looks exactly the same as iPhone 14?! Ten design changes, baby. The new iPhone will be totally unrecognizable. No kidding.