September is right around the corner, and that means we’re just a few weeks away from Apple’s iPhone 15 event. This year, it looks like we’re definitely going to get the iPhone 15 lineup, as well as the Apple Watch Series 9 and, perhaps, an Apple Watch Ultra 2. The rumor mill has been going particularly strong recently as we inch ever closer to the announcement.
But one of the latest reports from 9to5 Mac seems to indicate that Apple is getting rid of the gold color option for the iPhone 15 Pro and adding a “Titan Gray” (natural titanium, similar to Apple Watch Ultra) and Dark Blue colors instead. This also seems to indicate that the crimson red color rumor from a few months ago is also inaccurate, as we’re getting a “blue” instead.
So, if we take a look at the lineup, this is what we’re possibly getting: Space Black, Silver (white), Titan Gray, and Dark Blue. Simply put, it sounds like the most boring iPhone Pro color lineup yet.
Apple’s history with a lack of color for Pros
I have been lamenting the lack of “fun” colors for the Pro models for several years now, but it looks this year’s lineup will be the worst if the rumors are true.
Apple has always given the Pro models have more muted colors compared to the standard iPhone models. It’s almost like Apple believes that “Pros” don’t like fun colors. That’s why I’ve had to buy bold and vibrant cases to slap on my iPhone Pros for the past several years — I like to make a statement with my phone.
I’ve gotten every generation of iPhone since the original. One of my absolute favorites was the iPhone 6s, which was the first to introduce Rose Gold to the lineup, and I loved it because, despite the name, it was pink.
The iPhone 11 Pro was the first Pro model iPhone, and it finally added some color back to the mix with Midnight Green after only having the standard Space Gray, Silver, and occasional Gold. I jumped at the Midnight Green color immediately because green was another one of my favorite colors, and I like having whatever shade is considered “new.”
Then the iPhone 12 Pro came around, and I adored the Pacific Blue color. This was a rich, deep, and saturated blue that was absolutely gorgeous. I liked the subtle green of Midnight Green before it, but Pacific Blue was one of the best Pro colors Apple has ever made. It gave me hope that Apple knew how to do colors on a “Pro” iPhone.
But then we got Sierra Blue for the iPhone 13 Pro. While I liked it more than the other standard launch colors, it was a little too pale for me and, honestly, hard to photograph. Apple released Alpine Green in the middle of the iPhone 13 life cycle, which ended up being my favorite and the one I would have bought if it was available on launch day. A richer green hue than the Midnight Green from two years ago, the Alpine Green became a personal favorite, even if it wasn’t super popular with everyone else.
With the iPhone 14 Pro line, Apple nixed the blues and greens of the past and brought in Deep Purple. When I first heard that Apple was bringing in purple, I was envisioning a royal purple kind of color, which would have been stunning. However, what we actually got ended up looking more like a gray-tinted purple most of the time. If you have it in the right light, I suppose it can look pretty purple, but that isn’t 100% of the time.
Still, at least the Deep Purple gave me a more exciting color option than Space Black, Silver, or Gold. I just like to have a bit of color for my gadgets. Is that such a big ask?
You can have any color, as long as it’s gray
Now, let’s take a look at what we could be getting with the iPhone 15 Pro. Again, that’s Space Black, Silver, Titan Gray, and Dark Blue. But if you look at the render that’s floating around from TheAppleHub, well, they all have one thing in common: they’re all various shades of gray.
Space Black is the classic black/dark gray color that Apple has been using for years. However, it seems that it is ever so slightly different each year.
Silver is another traditional color, though the back glass appears to more of a white or off-white color, and the frame is what I’d consider “silver.” Still, it’s also a shade of gray, technically, and also rather boring.
Titan Gray appears to be a new one this year, and it looks like what I would think of when I hear the word “gray.” I feel like this could be more of a natural titanium color like on the Apple Watch Ultra, which is very likely considering that rumors indicate the iPhone 15 Pro models will have a titanium frame rather than stainless steel. Still, I’ve never been a big fan of middle-of-the-road gray hues, and Titan Gray looks to be exactly that.
Dark Blue is the most interesting of the bunch, but it still doesn’t hold a candle to the iPhone 12 Pro’s Pacific Blue. Honestly, the Dark Blue isn’t what I would call blue — it’s more like a blue-tinted dark gray. In fact, if the image of the Dark Blue color wasn’t next to the three other color options, I’d be hard-pressed to even call that a proper blue hue.
If this is, in fact, the lineup of colors for the iPhone 15 Pro, I am going to be so, so disappointed. This would be the most muted selection yet, and to me, they are all just a different shade of gray. Nothing fun or exciting about them at all.
Titanium dictates the shades
The reason that Apple may be going with such bland colors this year could be due to the switch over to a titanium frame, as rumors seem to indicate. Titanium is more lightweight and durable than stainless steel, which is currently what the iPhone 14 Pro models use, but titanium is harder to work with in terms of colors.
I am actually excited if Apple is indeed using titanium, as I’ve always liked how much more lightweight and durable it is. I had a titanium Apple Watch Series 5 that I was using up until I got an Apple Watch Ultra a few weeks ago, and it had no scratches or scuffs on it, even after years of use.
Despite that, I’m still disappointed that a better material means less interesting colors — especially when the early rumors seemed to show that a crimson red could have been coming.
Maybe one day Apple can make some actually fun colors for its flagship phones — Android phone manufacturers clearly have Apple beat there. But these iPhone 15 Pro colors? They aren’t fun.
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