5 things Apple didn’t tell you at iPhone 16 launch event

Now that we’ve had two days to dig into every little detail Apple shared at Monday’s “It’s Glowtime” event, it’s time to focus on the stuff that was left unsaid.

There were quite a few details Apple never mentioned — but perhaps should have — at the event. For the consumers, some of these are good, some bad, and some ambiguous, but they’re all quite important, especially if one is looking to buy one of the new Apple gadgets shown at the event.

Here’s our list of all the hidden details that Apple sort of glossed over on Monday, and if you’ve noticed any others, do let us know in the comments!

FineWoven cases are out, but FineWoven wallets are still here

Ahead of the event, rumors swirled that Apple wasn’t too happy about users being very unhappy about the company’s FineWoven accessories. The FineWoven stuff, reports said, is on its way out, and the reports were accurate — well, partially.

Apple’s FineWoven accessories did not get a mention from Apple at its event this year, but all of the FineWoven cases for the iPhone were removed from the Apple Store. Oddly enough, the FineWoven wallets are still available. It’s hard to speculate on why Apple chose to remove the cases but leave the wallets, but my guess is that the cases, being the more expensive gadget, drew more anger from users when they started to wear down.

It’s also worth noting that Apple didn’t replace the FineWoven cases with a new, leather-like-but-environmentally-friendly material. Instead, the company now only offers Apple-branded clear cases and silicone cases for iPhones.

All of this makes it a little hard to give a clear verdict; FineWoven cases obviously didn’t stand the test of time, but we hoped for a replacement, which just hasn’t happened.

Verdict: Mixed

The mystery of iPhone 16’s battery life

Now we know. Well, sort of.
Credit: Apple

Throughout the event, Apple kept saying that the new iPhones, both the 16 and 16 Pro variety, have improved battery life, but the company wouldn’t share a single, precise figure related to it.

Those battery life figures came later in the form of Apple’s spec sheets for the devices, and the figures look great, promising (roughly) a 15 percent improvement in battery life across the board (read my detailed report for more).

Still, one has to wonder: Why was Apple so coy about the battery life improvements? Perhaps the company just decided not to drown the audience in more numbers. Or, if we’re being really optimistic, maybe the company knows the battery life improvements are so good, that it wants independent reviewers to be amazed when they test the phones themselves.

We’ll know for sure when we spend some more time with the devices. Until then, based on the official specs, we’ll call this a win.

Verdict: Probably good

AirPods Max still don’t support lossless audio

We had our fingers crossed, but it was not meant to be.
Credit: Apple

The AirPods Max did not get a true upgrade on Monday; instead, it got the AirPods Pro 2 treatment, in which Apple added new colors, a few software features, and switched the Lightning port out in favor of the more universal, and EU-preferred, USB-C port.

One thing that irked me when the AirPods Max launched was that they didn’t support Apple Music Lossless (lossless audio compression) in any way, shape or form. Here’s Apple’s own document confirming it. That was four years ago, when the AirPods Max were originally released and now, in 2024, there’s a slightly updated version of AirPods Max which…still doesn’t support lossless.

Did we really expect it to happen? No, but it’s still a bummer.

Verdict: Bad

But you can buy cushions in new colors for your existing AirPods Max

Really love the purple AirPods Max? You can get just the cushions, for $69.
Credit: Apple

If you have the old version of AirPods Max, you probably don’t need to upgrade to the new AirPods Max, as the only big differences are the colors and the USB-C port replacing Lightning.

But if you really like the new colors, which are namely Blue, Purple, Midnight, Starlight, and Orange, you can get official ear cushions for the AirPods Max in these new colors. It’ll cost you $69, but if the old cushions are worn out, perhaps that’s a better upgrade than dishing out $549 for the entire headphones.

Verdict: Good

The displays on the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro have a new trick

1 nit minimum brightness: check!
Credit: Apple

The bad news here is that iPhone 16 and 16 Plus still don’t support ProMotion, meaning their displays are capped to 60Hz. They also do not support Always-On, which remains reserved for the Pro models. It’s a bummer, given that many mid-range Android phones these days have 120Hz displays.

We like the fact, however, that all of the new models — iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max — support 1 nit minimum brightness.

If I had to explain how that will benefit the iPhone 16 models, I’d mutter something unintelligible while awkwardly staring at the floor, because the 1 nit minimum brightness makes the most sense when paired with Always-On and StandBy, saving battery life and making the phone easier to look at in near-total darkness. But those features remain reserved for the Pro models for now; perhaps the 1 nit minimum brightness is signal that Apple will bring them to the regular iPhones, too?

Verdict: Mixed