Apple’s Rough iPhone Launch 10 Years Ago Compared to Now

When I look back on Apple’s many product events, the one that comes to mind is the iPhone 6 event a decade ago. It was a two-hour live stage event that gave us a bounty of new products that changed our world. But so much drama came from this event and the days that followed. 

And we may see nothing like it ever again. 

On Sept. 9, 2014, we were introduced to the iPhone 6 — the first phone to come in a Plus size — and a phone that was later tied to “Bendgate” headlines. Ten years later, no iPhone has ever been as thin, but we may see a thinnest iPhone ever next year.

At that same event, CEO Tim Cook introduced the Apple Watch to the world, with a vision of it being a high-end luxury jewelry heirloom product worth tens of thousands of dollars. A decade later, the luxury models are obsolete, and fashionistas might find themselves departing with their expensive bands. The redesigned 10th edition of that Watch, rumored to be revealed in a few weeks, may not be compatible with older wristbands. 

Most Apple users, however, remember something else from this event. It was the day Apple put a U2 album on everyone’s iPhone. The band performs live for the crowd, and then Bono gets on stage with Cook to announce in that very moment, everyone got the album Songs of Innocence on their devices.

And then everyone was left confused as to how to remove Songs of Innocence from their machines. (Turns out you couldn’t delete it from iCloud.) Bono apologized (twice), and Apple needed to create a fix for the situation.

In this week’s episode of One More Thing, which you can watch embedded above, I dive into these and other awkward moments from the launch a decade ago. In the days that followed this event, Apple also botched an iOS 8 update and had to recall the software for causing major bugs to cellular connections. This event also marked the launch of Apple Pay; numerous follow-up stories covered why retailers didn’t want to play ball with Apple’s new mobile payment system. Apple’s promise to replace your wallet still hasn’t quite come true a decade later, but it did improve. 

As we approach the launch of the iPhone 16 and the 10th anniversary of the Apple Watch, it’s wild to think how much has changed, and what feels the same. And for all the stumbles that occurred in the days surrounding that event, I do long for the days Apple was bold enough to take so many risks and have a live show (with a musical act, no less). I’m not sure we’ll see a live event like this again — but I hope we do.