After the dust cleared at Apple’s Far Out event, we pretty much got what we expected, with only a few exceptions: the opening + pill notch of the iPhone 14 Pro is actually called Dynamic Island, the AirPods Pro still have steals, the Apple Watch Pro is actually the Apple Watch Ultra. But if you had kept up with the rumors, the products that Apple released were basically right.
But there were still some big misses. Here are the top five rumors we expected to see on Wednesday that didn’t make the presentation:
iPhone 14 Pro: 8K video
After learning about the new camera system of the iPhone 14 Pro and the action mode for recording video, Apple looked ahead to the launch of 8K video recording. Instead, we only got the 4K Cinematic mode and will have to wait at least another year for the extra Ks.
Apple
AirPods Pro: Lossless Audio
Although we had almost given up on the once-rumored redesign for the AirPods Pro, we were still hoping for a new proprietary audio codec to bring lossless audio through Apple Music. We did get personalized spatial audio and adaptive transparency, though, so we can’t complain too much.
AirPods Pro: New Design
For more than a year, we heard reports that Apple was working on a completely new look for the AirPods Pro, with no handles and a close-in-ear fit. Not only did we not get that, we got the same design as before. Nothing has changed in the design of the AirPods other than the addition of touch controls. Given how often Apple updates its AirPods, it will probably be years before we get the design we really want.
Apple
Apple Watch SE: Always On Display
We’re not exactly sure why the second-generation SE exists. It has a newer S8 processor and crash detection (thanks to an improved accelerometer and gyroscope) and… that’s it? It also has the same screen, sensors, battery life and features as the original SE. And the one thing we really wanted, an always-on screen, didn’t make it. Sure, it’s cheaper, but you’ll be much better off trying to find an Apple Watch Series 7 for $100 off.
iPhone 14: Astrophotography Mode
This one was pretty shocking. After sending an invite with a sea of stars and the slogan “Far Out”, we definitely thought that a new photography mode for shooting the night sky was coming to the iPhone 14. Tim Cook even called the event “stellar” in a tweet Wednesday morning. But nothing about astrophotography came up during the keynote. Sure, we got Emergency SOS via satellite, but otherwise pointing our iPhones up to the sky won’t do much good.
