Every product Apple discontinued with the launch of the iPhone 16

Another year, another Apple product. Gone are the days when Apple released something truly revolutionary, like the iPhone X, the iPad or the Apple Watch. Every year we see little improvement in the iPhone and Mac lineups we’re already familiar with – with the exception of increasingly rare new lineups like the Apple Vision Pro. Despite Apple’s lack of new devices, at least a handful of products are on the chopping block and are one step closer to vintage status. We’ve just reached the release of the iPhone 16, the biggest release event of a year and the one that sees several SKUs quietly disappear from Apple’s website.

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What did Apple decide to stop sales and production this year? Not much, so don’t worry if you want to buy a cheaper MacBook Air M2 or an iPad. Here are the five devices and accessories you need to find from a third-party instead.

What you may not have known is that Apple is discontinuing its Pro models just a year after release. Why? Ostensibly because – given how similar iPhones have been lately – people would probably just go with last year’s version to save some money. Apple forces you to take action by only leaving the latest version on the table. This has been the case since the iPhone

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The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max weren’t groundbreaking, but they did have a few new, worthwhile features. First of all, they were the first iPhones that could play AAA games like Resident Evil 4 and Assassin’s Creed Mirage. In addition, they ditched the mute switch and added the action button, the Pro Max got a 5x telephoto zoom, and the 15 series was the first to switch to USB-C. Last but not least, the Pro models used titanium frames to reduce weight without sacrificing durability.

Unfortunately, the 15 professionals were not without mistakes. Ironically, the Titan’s rigidity ultimately meant the screen broke more easily, as drop test comparisons with the 16 Pro suggest the new models have improved on this weakness in durability. Additionally, the 15 Pro had an infamous overheating issue, which Apple fixed with a design change on the 16 Pro. There have already been jokes on the internet that the iPhone 16 Pro is actually just a 15 Pro S, a slight improvement over last year at the same price. So it’s not so sad that the 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max are no longer available.

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Apple usually has a few generations of its standard iPhone available at a cheaper price. A budget option, if you will, since the iPhone SE happens to be available.

The iPhone 13 was the cheapest phone you could buy so far, as it was replaced by the 14 as the new lowest priced iPhone. The 13 somehow survived, even after Apple discontinued the iPhone 13 mini released with it. It’s a real shame that you can no longer buy a 13 from Apple, as the iPhone 14 was hardly an improvement over its predecessor – after all, it had the same processor, the same RAM and almost everything the same. It was just more expensive. The 13 may have been the last iPhone worth writing an entire song and dancing about rather than emailing everyone a summary.

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Back then, the iPhone 13 was quite a successful phone. According to CNET, thanks to its success, Apple achieved its biggest profit ever, with a 9% increase over sales of the 12. In addition to a new chip and a better battery, it included an improved display, doubled the entry-level storage, and added new cinematic camera modes. Certainly not a paradigm shift, but it was well received. That era is over, at least on Apple’s side, so you’ll have to get the discontinued iPhone 13 somewhere else.

The AirPods Max launched in 2020 and became Apple’s first pair of over-ear headphones to join the lineup, adding to the growing inventory of AirPods Bluetooth earbuds. The cans were pretty impressive. They had great sound, excellent noise cancellation, and a handful of differentiating features like a digital crown, lack of a power button, and easily replaceable earcups.

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Of course they weren’t perfect. They were heavy, had a questionable protective case, poor battery life, and cost an absurd $549. Some could justify the cost if they were audiophiles, owned a lot of Apple products, and had money to burn. Now, kids might be tempted to grab a nice discount, as Apple has discontinued the AirPods Max with Lightning to make room for an updated version.

This might seem like a good thing if Apple had delivered a worthy successor. People had high hopes for the AirPods Max 2 since there had been no update since 2020. We wanted the improved H2 chip, a better case, longer battery life, new software features like personalized volume and conversation recognition, all in all. Instead, we got the exact same headphones with new colors and USB-C for the exact same price. Literally nothing else.

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It felt like an April Fool’s joke since it seemed like updating the chip was the least Apple could do. On the positive side, the old AirPods Max with Lightning – now discontinued – will likely see significant price reductions from third-party providers. They’re exactly the same headphones and they all support the same features, so the hassle of using Lightning can really save you money.

If the AirPods Max announcement was disappointing, then here’s some good news: Apple has released the AirPods 4, and it appears to be the biggest improvement we’ve seen to the base AirPods yet.

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Many features that were exclusive to the AirPods Pro were introduced this year, such as noise cancellation, touch sensors, and support for the latest software enhancements like nodding to respond to Siri. Better yet, Apple has split the AirPods into two versions: a budget version without noise cancellation for $129 and a new premium version with the latest and greatest features for $179. That means you can get the $249 AirPods Pro 2 for $70 less most of the way.

There probably won’t be many people sad about the AirPods 2 and 3 being discontinued. Compared to the new AirPods 4, they are objectively significantly worse in almost every way. However, if sound quality or battery life isn’t that important to you, this is an excellent chance to get it at a bigger discount. We hope that the AirPods Pro 2 will be discontinued soon to make way for the AirPods Pro 3 with a new generation of H3 chips.

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Remember FineWoven? This was part of Apple’s eco-friendly, carbon-neutral initiatives at the time of the iPhone 15’s release. According to Apple Newsroom, FineWoven is “an elegant and durable twill made from 68 percent post-consumer recycled content. FineWoven offers a subtle sheen and a soft, suede-like feel.” So basically an eco-friendly leather replacement for MagSafe accessories. Sounds good, right? Despite Apple’s best intentions, FineWoven turned out to be one of the biggest product failures of all time – one that you shouldn’t even buy if you find it on sale.

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The main reason for this was that FineWoven cases and wallets were pathetically easy to damage. By pathetic, we mean you could permanently scar them with your fingernail. They also felt cheap, like you’d buy it on Alibaba for two dollars, not $59.

The public outcry was unanimous, with major reviewers not backing down and calling it a disaster. As is typical with Apple, they didn’t publicly admit that FineWoven was problematic. Instead, they simply didn’t release any products for the iPhone 16 and removed most FineWoven products from their website, seemingly selling out the rest of their inventory.

At the time of writing, you can see for yourself that the FineWoven page on Apple’s website doesn’t have any products to speak of, but if you dig around a bit, you might find a remaining MagSafe FineWoven wallet deep inside. That’s as good a tombstone and tacit admission from Apple as we’ll ever get. Rest in peace, FineWoven. Unfortunately, no one will miss you as much as the money they wasted on you.

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