Plenty of Apple fans miss red iPhones, if responses to an X.com post Monday from Apple marketing chief Greg Joswiak is anything to go by.
He talked about the company’s donations on World AIDS Day through customer purchases. Joswiak didn’t even mention hardware, but the commenters sure did.
World AIDS Day: Some Apple fans want a red iPhone 17
For years, Apple added special-edition hardware to its Product (Red) lineup to benefit such philanthropic programs, starting with an iPad nano lauched in collaboration with U2 rocker Bono in 2006. The eye-catching red color of the devices stood out among a sea of Apple silver and black.
However, Apple stopped releasing red iPhones after the iPhone 14 lineup in 2022.
Joswiak’s post on Monday focused on Apple’s ongoing efforts to fund health programs to fight AIDS. He didn’t discuss hardware, yet numerous responses to the post harkened back to the discontinued Product (Red) iPhones.
“For 19 years we’ve partnered with @RED to help fight AIDS and fund health programs that save lives,” Joswiak wrote. “Our work continues this year on #WorldAIDSDay. Apple will donate $5 to the @GlobalFund for every purchase at Apple made with Apple Pay from now until Dec 7, up to $3M.”
Whatever happened to red iPhones?
We need the OG RED coloured iPhones back! Those looked so good, and it was also supporting a good cause! (Image credit to u/thomasso0072 from r/iPhone) pic.twitter.com/s6aEAHXI4F
— Roland Udvarlaki (@Techusiast) December 1, 2025
Then came a torrent of wishes for Product (Red) iPhones
“What would be amazing is to have (oh I don’t know) a special iPhone 17 Pro in a beautiful red for the occasion,” noted Ismaël (@Ismascarade).
“We need the OG RED coloured iPhones back! Those looked so good, and it was also supporting a good cause!” wrote Roland Udvarlaki (@TEchusiast) replied, in a post sporting a photo of red iPhones from Series 7 through 13.
“What happened to all the Product Red devices?” Rich (@RichPIc) asked.
Another post suggested Apple got greedy by dropping the Product (Red) lineup.
In 2021, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria said Apple had donated $250 million to its cause.
David Snow, an expert on Apple hardware and software, writes on a variety of technological and cultural topics for Cult of Mac. They include Apple news, technology buying guides, and features about computer setups and Apple TV shows and movies.
With 30 years of experience covering technology and other subjects, he has written and edited for numerous print and online publications, including CMP Media, TechTV.com, CNET, Wired News, Red Herring magazine, Law.com, The National Law Journal and Law Technology News magazine. Among other roles, he served as executive editor of the Law.com network of websites and editorial director, technology, for ALM Media.
Snow graduated with a B.A. from Syracuse University with majors in magazine journalism and psychology. While there, he worked as a reporter for The Daily Orange newspaper and associate editor of Equal Time magazine.
Founder of the blog At the Waterline, he can be reached on X (formerly Twitter) via @atthewaterline and on Mastodon via @dsnow.
