The iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus will be available in a refreshed selection of colors, with at least five different shades to choose from, recent rumors suggest.
According to the Twitter leaker known as "Unknownz21," who has provided an extensive amount of information about Apple's upcoming devices, at least six different colorways were tested for the iPhone 15:
These are the colors that were tested on the base model iPhone 15, throughout different development stages: - Pink / Rose Gold / Blush Gold
- Green
- Blue
- Yellow
- Orange (inconsistent mentions)
- Black / Midnight / Dark / Basalt We should see at least some of these — Unknownz21 🌈 (@URedditor) August 21, 2023
Yesterday, it emerged that Apple appears to be planning to accompany each of the devices in the iPhone 15 lineup with a color-matched braided USB-C to USB-C cable for the first time. With the exception of the black version, each of the cables has a glossy white plastic shell at either end. Unlike the Apple Watch magnetic charging cable and MagSafe 3, the braided USB-C cables feature strain relief tubes.
To date, all iPhone models have come with a white cable featuring a white rubber jacket, regardless of the color option chosen for the device itself. Apple has gradually been moving to braided cables across most of its devices, and all MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models with MagSafe 3 come with a color-matched braided cable, so doing the same for the iPhone seems plausible amid its transition to USB-C.
Apple device prototype collector "Kosutami" affirmed that they had seen design validation test (DVT) samples of the new cables. Now, Kosutami has shared images of what they claim are genuine Apple cables:
Orange, Yellow, Blue
White and Black.#Apple #appleinternal #iPhone pic.twitter.com/uRDUaOraXt — Kosutami (@KosutamiSan) August 22, 2023
The orange cable shown by Kosutami has appeared to look pink in other images, causing some confusion online, suggesting that it is, in fact, more of a coral shade. This may also explain the "inconsistent mentions" of the orange iPhone 15 highlighted by Unknownz21. Apple offered a Coral version of the iPhone XR in 2018, so there is precedent for the color option being offered in the past.
The Coral iPhone XR (2018).A single report from February suggested that the iPhone 15 would be available in Pink and Blue. Blue is still expected according to the latest information, but the rumored pink shade may have become coral.
The shades of the braided USB-C cables match up with several of the color options Unknownz21 says Apple tested. All in all, this may be roughly what to expect in terms of colors to choose from on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus compared to the current models:
iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus
- Midnight
- Starlight
- Yellow
- Blue
- Purple
- PRODUCT(RED)
iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus
- Midnight/Black
- Starlight/White
- Yellow
- Blue
- Orange/Coral
iPhone lineups in recent years have launched with just five options, with a sixth following in the spring to boost sales midway through the device's product cycle. It looks like that could continue this year, with only five different USB-C cable colors having been spotted.
In April 2021, Apple made the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini available in Purple. Apple introduced a new Green color for the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini, and a new Alpine Green color for the iPhone 13 Pro models, the following year. As part of a spring color refresh earlier this year, Apple introduced a new Yellow color option for the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus.
Since PRODUCT(RED) is noticeably absent from Unknownz21 and Kosutami's information, it seems possible that there may be no iPhone in that color this year. In early 2017 and 2018, the new hue introduced for the iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 was PRODUCT(RED), so it is entirely possible that PRODUCT(RED) could return on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus as an additional color option in the spring of 2024.
