Engadget's Ben Stegner charts how the iPhone has evolved since the iPhone 13 launched in 2021, tracing changes to its display, buttons, camera, charging port, operating system and software design. The piece highlights how features once reserved for Pro-tier models, such as faster refresh rates, have gradually trickled down to the standard iPhone lineup, and notes that the upcoming iPhone 18 series, expected within months, could bring further divergence from earlier designs.

Key shifts include the move from Apple's proprietary Lightning connector to USB-C from the iPhone 15 onwards, prompted by an EU law, and the replacement of the long-standing mute switch with a customisable Action Button starting on the iPhone 15 Pro models, later extended across the range from the iPhone 16. The iPhone 16 and 17 (excluding the "e" models) added a new Camera Control button, while displays gained ProMotion's adaptive refresh rate (up to 120Hz) across Pro models since the iPhone 13 and all iPhone 17 variants. The notch, introduced with the iPhone X, was slimmed down on the iPhone 13 before being replaced by the Dynamic Island on Pro models from the iPhone 14 onwards, alongside the rollout of always-on displays.