The Subtle Sexism of Apple’s iPhone

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I’m going to make a bit of a bold claim here: the iPhone design is subtly sexist. Apple likely didn’t mean it to be. This is potentially unconscious bias. But it benefits them substantially, which makes me question their motives. No one seems to be pointing it out, but here we go.

Women are more likely to decorate their home and personal items with bright, vibrant colors. Feminine design is defined by those bright colors. Apple treats design that involves bright vibrant colors as “cheap” or “lesser.” Apple sees feminine designs as less valuable than masculine designs. In doing so, they also reinforce the idea that women neither care about technology nor should we. This isn’t a universal idea. Other phone manufacturers have made bright and vibrant versions of their flagship devices, with beautiful iridescent colors. Apple’s the lone holdout.

I’m sure someone at Apple thought of this. They may have even pointed it out. Women will be more drawn to the cheaper models of the iPhone. Apple’s giving a lower value to women and our preferences. Apple’s stating that feminine = cheap, masculine = expensive. It affects women’s choices, and it reinforces the idea that our opinions matter less.

Basically?

The iPhone is sexist.

It… WHAT?

I know, I know, that sounds kind of bonkers, right? Like something that some incel would put on an anti-feminist meme. But let’s break it down and really look at this rationally.

1. Women prefer bright colors, men prefer muted colors, or at least, society pushes us towards those choices.
2. This is the primary difference between feminine and masculine design.
3. Apple believes that colorful design is cheap.
4. Apple believes that feminine design is cheap.
5. If feminine design is lesser than masculine design, then women’s opinions are lesser than than men’s opinions.
6. If our opinions mean less, Apple reinforces the idea that women are lesser than men.

This isn’t some incredible leap. In fact, I’m sure that, as soon as some people read the title, they knew exactly what this was going to be about. Women were likely on board from the moment they saw the first few lines.

Apple believes that their most colorful phones are their cheap phones. Apple signals value based on whether or not the devices have femininity or not. Devices that express femininity are cheap and worth less than Apple devices that exude masculinity.

Apple was willing to add one color to their lineup this year. Just one. What was it? “Midnight Green.” It was forest green, a color that reflects camouflage and nature more than technology. It’s a muted and masculine color. Dark green is a “safe” color for men. When it comes to making the “Pro” models of the iPhone colorful, only masculine colors are allowed. The lone holdout is gold, which can be feminine, but don’t tell kings, rap artists, or watch makers that. Gold is still an expression of class. It’s gender neutral. When it comes to colors, not tones, the only colors Apple will allow are masculine ones.

We’re Losing the Best Devices

I won’t lie, part of the draw to the iPhone 11 for me was the beautiful red color I could get it in (review in the works, by the way). From a practical standpoint, it’ll save me $180 over upgrading to the iPhone 11 Pro this year, I got a larger screen out of the deal, and I wasn’t losing much. A telephoto camera I never used on the iPhone XS? A small difference in screen quality? A small battery bump? It just didn’t seem worth it.

But that color? That shiny, beautiful, and charity-supporting (Product) Red color? Yeah, I wanted that.

“When Apple unveiled photos of the new iPhone 11 series, my wife excitedly decided that she wanted the lavender iPhone 11—but with the upgraded triple lens of the iPhone 11 Pro (using the iPhone Upgrade Program).”

“Needless to say, once we sussed out which camera belonged to which iPhone, she wasn’t pleased at all.”

-Anthony Karcz, Forbes

And I saw similar sentiments elsewhere. Multiple reviewers said their female partners would love the colors on the cheaper phones. Male reporters and journalists defended their masculinity by saying that the colors of the iPhone 11 weren’t for them, except for black. One of my friends stated that the black one was “really the only one [he] could buy.”

Apple’s Using Sexism Against Women and Men

There’s a clear message Apple’s sending here. The cheaper models is for women, because feminine designs are cheap and women don’t care about tech anyway, and men should feel emasculated for buying the cheaper model. Keep in mind that, as the Pro’s benefits are negligible, at best, the iPhone 11 is the most prudent and rational buy of the two. It costs over $300 less, $400 if you pick sensible storage capacities! It’s the logical choice, but Apple is using sexism, both that men aren’t permitted to be expressive and that women are worth less, to push men towards the more expensive model.

Frankly, it’s been staring us in our faces for years, and it just didn’t click for me until I started writing my iPhone 11 review and comparing my notes. My personal thoughts compared to those of my (mostly male) friends and coworkers were quite different. I sifted through some reviews and, sure enough, it was obvious. Apple’s color-coding the cheap model of the iPhone for women, because feminine design is worth less and so are we. They’re pushing men to shy away from anything feminine into the more expensive model.

No one wins from sexism except those who profit from keeping women down and men restrained. Right now, that’s Apple. Apple uses sexism to boost iPhone 11 Pro sales and push women into cheaper models, and once you notice it, you can’t un-see it.

Apple believes femininity is worth less than masculinity, and that is sexism. Therefore, the iPhone is sexist.