Here's everything Apple killed at its 'Spring loaded' April event

Apple New Imac Spring21 Lifestyle02
Apple New Imac Spring21 Lifestyle02 (Image credit: Apple)

Apple's 'Spring loaded' event was certainly loaded with a ton of new product and service announcements, and that means that there are some things the company is saying goodbye to as well.

So, what did Apple kill off at its April event? Let's dive in!

The Siri Remote

New Apple Tv 4k 2021 Banner

New Apple Tv 4k 2021 Banner (Image credit: Apple)

If there is one product that has been finally killed off, it's the last generation of the Siri Remote. Today, along with an update to the Apple TV 4K, Apple has also introduced a new Siri Remote that kills the things that people absolutely HATED about the last one.

"Apple TV 4K is in a category of its own, leveraging a deep integration of Apple hardware, software, and services that delivers a massive upgrade to any TV for the very best cinematic experience," said Bob Borchers, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "With the A12 Bionic and the all-new Siri Remote, Apple TV 4K lets customers enjoy their favorite shows, movies, and more in the highest quality, with simple and intuitive controls. And of course, Apple TV 4K offers easy access to Apple services, along with thousands of apps on the App Store for even more entertainment options."

The new Siri Remote, instead of featuring a completely touch experience for navigation, is bringing back buttons in a circular design that is actually reminiscent of the iPod click wheel. While everyone who has wanted button navigation back will rejoice, those who liked the current Siri Remote can still breathe easy as the click pad will still be touch-enabled.

Apple also has gone back to a gray aluminum color rather than the black color of the current remote, which should hopefully be easier to find.

A-series chips in the iPad Pro

Ipad Pro

Ipad Pro (Image credit: Apple)

Apple also announced a new iPad Pro today that brings the M1 processor, which was exclusively reserved for the Mac, to the iPad for the first time. Bringing M1 to the iPad Pro enabled huge performance gains according to Apple:

The 8-core CPU design features the world's fastest CPU cores in low-power silicon — delivering up to 50 percent faster CPU performance than A12Z Bionic. The 8-core GPU is in a class of its own, delivering up to 40 percent faster GPU performance.

The A-series chips are still present in the iPad Air, iPad mini, and base-model iPad...for now!

The old design of the iMac

Apple New Imac Spring21 Hero 04202021 Full Bleed Image.jpg.large 2x

iMac (2021) (Image credit: Apple)

Apple announced a completely redesigned iMac today that also brings color back to the Mac. The iMac has looked the same for a long time now and has been due for a major refresh, and Apple has delivered on that promise.

"M1 is a gigantic leap forward for the Mac, and today we're excited to introduce the all-new iMac, the first Mac designed around the breakthrough M1 chip," said Greg Joswiak, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. "With its striking design in seven stunning colors, its immersive 4.5K Retina display, the best camera, mics, and speakers ever in a Mac, and Touch ID, combined with the amazing performance of M1 and the power of macOS Big Sur, the new iMac takes everything people love about iMac to an entirely new level."

The new design is sure to start a preference war, but you can't deny that the old design language of the iMac is dead. Long live color on the iMac!

The 720p FaceTime camera

Apple New Imac Spring21 Pf Orange Photoshop 04202021 Big.jpg.large 2x

Apple New Imac Spring21 Pf Orange Photoshop 04202021 Big.jpg.large 2x (Image credit: Apple)

Speaking of the new iMac, Apple has also killed the 720p "potato cam" that people have complained about for years now. The new iMac features a new 1080p FaceTime camera that works with the M1 processor to create a much clearer, higher-resolution image when you are on those FaceTime and Zoom calls.

iMac features a 1080p FaceTime HD camera — the best ever in a Mac — which delivers high-quality video and great performance in low light. iMac also takes advantage of the image signal processor in the M1 chip and the Neural Engine, enhancing camera image quality with better noise reduction, greater dynamic range, and improved auto exposure and white balance. So whether connecting with family or on a video call while working from home, users will always look their best.

I don't think anyone will miss the old FaceTime camera. Hopefully, today's announcement will mean a new FaceTime camera is coming to the rest of the Mac lineup as well.

Tile?

Apple Airtag Official Banner

Apple Airtag Official Banner (Image credit: Apple)

Okay, this is a little bit of a jab, but Apple may have just killed Tile with its announcement of AirTag, the company's own tracking device that works with the Find My app.

Tile is able to make its device compatible with the Find My app so that it could play in the same sandbox as Apple, but until it does, Apple has this space mostly to itself for iPhone users.

If Tile doesn't jump on board, it stands to lose a ton of customers in the Apple ecosystem as they will prefer AirTag due to its tight integration with Apple's software and hardware.

Anything else?

While these were the easy ones that came to mind, there are sure to be a lot of other things that Apple killed (or potentially killed) at its 'Spring loaded' event. Is there anything we missed? Is there anything you're particularly bummed about? Let us know in the comments!

Joe Wituschek
Contributor

Joe Wituschek is a Contributor at iMore. With over ten years in the technology industry, one of them being at Apple, Joe now covers the company for the website. In addition to covering breaking news, Joe also writes editorials and reviews for a range of products. He fell in love with Apple products when he got an iPod nano for Christmas almost twenty years ago. Despite being considered a "heavy" user, he has always preferred the consumer-focused products like the MacBook Air, iPad mini, and iPhone 13 mini. He will fight to the death to keep a mini iPhone in the lineup. In his free time, Joe enjoys video games, movies, photography, running, and basically everything outdoors.