As 2025 involves an in depth, Macworld is proud to current our Apple awards, a glance again at the most effective and worst of every little thing launched over the previous 12 months. It was a busy yr for Apple, with new merchandise throughout its complete vary of merchandise, together with iPhone, iPad, AirPods, Mac, and even Imaginative and prescient Professional. So be part of us as we acknowledge the merchandise that made probably the most influence in 2025:
iPhone/iOS
Emma Rowley / Foundry
iPhone of the 12 months: iPhone 17
The iPhone 17 isn’t simply the most effective iPhone of 2025; it’s the most effective iPhone of the final 5 years. Apple lastly stopped holding again options that ought to be desk stakes for an $800 telephone. You get double the storage, 120Hz ProMotion, 50 % increased peak brightness, always-on show, higher cameras, and velocity and battery life that each exceed final yr’s Professional mannequin. All with out elevating the value. There’s by no means been a greater yr not to go Professional. — Jason Cross
Apple
iOS function of the yr: Tackling Spam
Name Screening will silently reply unknown numbers and ask them to say why they’re calling, and you may see all of it proper on display. It’s a good way to get rid of spam calls with out lacking legit calls from numbers that simply aren’t in your contacts. Couple that with new spam filtering in Messages, in addition to within the Cellphone app and FaceTime, and Apple is lastly doing one thing about one of many greatest ache factors of utilizing a smartphone. There’s nonetheless a protracted technique to go, however since upgrading to iOS 26 and enabling these options, I’ve seen a giant drop within the variety of occasions a day I choose up my telephone solely to instantly hold up on a solicitation message. — Jason Cross
Britta O’Boyle
Colour of the 12 months: Cosmic Orange
For the corporate that ostracized beige because the default coloration in computing when it launched the out-there Bondi Blue iMac in 1998, Apple has been quite tame when it comes to its latest coloration decisions. The iPhone 17 Professional’s Cosmic Orange is subsequently a refreshing shock to the system and a vibrant return to type. Orange is now not restricted to visitors cones and dodgy Seventies furnishings. The Apple Retailer ought to hand out sun shades for the crowds choosing up the colourful new iPhone and ignoring the darkish blue one. There’s even a rising vary of orange equipment out there for the brand new telephone. — Simon Jary
Apple
Oddity of the 12 months: iPhone Pocket
Readers of a sure classic who nonetheless fondly bear in mind when Apple launched a pair of socks for its iPod again in 2004, had been rocked as soon as once more with the surprising—and certainly unasked-for—iPhone Pocket, which the corporate described as “a singular 3D-knitted building designed to totally enclose iPhone, whereas increasing to suit your on a regular basis gadgets”. Designed together with the Issey Miyake design studio well-known for Steve Jobs’ trademark turtleneck, the iPhone Pocket is available in eight loopy colours, together with Peacock, Sapphire, and Cinnamon. All of us laughed till it bought out in mere minutes. — Simon Jary
Foundry
Flop of the 12 months: Liquid Glass
Liquid Glass was Apple’s daring new, all-encompassing design language that radically modified the look of Apple’s software program throughout the entire OS 26 software program updates. Alan Dye, Apple’s vp of Human Interface Design, tried to channel his interior Jony Ive by describing it as making “even the only of interactions extra enjoyable and magical.” We didn’t get that. As an alternative, Liquid Glass is the worst instance of flamboyance over perform, the other of Ive’s philosophy. — Simon Jary
Mac/macOS
Foundry
Mac of the 12 months: M3 Extremely Mac Studio
Total, 2025 was a quiet yr for Mac {hardware}, however one Mac made a large influence on Apple’s lineup. The Mac Studio was a little bit of a shock as a result of its M3 Extremely chip was launched out of sequence with Apple’s regular cadence. Nonetheless, within the Mac Studio, it’s the quickest Mac out there, leaving the M2 Extremely Mac Professional behind—means behind. At hundreds much less, it mainly renders the Mac Professional irrelevant to everybody who doesn’t actually need an enlargement card. With its exhilarating CPU velocity, highly effective GPU efficiency, and sturdy expandability, the Mac Studio grew to become King of the Macs in 2025. — Roman Loyola
Apple
Chip of the 12 months: M5
To say, “Apple is on a roll,” undercuts how a lot momentum the corporate has with its chips. Apple silicon is downright killing it, and the M5 chip exemplifies why. Making its debut within the MacBook Professional, the M5 supplies a really perfect and unprecedented mixture of processing velocity, graphics energy, and vitality effectivity in a consumer-level chip. The M5 is so good that Apple felt that it might wait till subsequent yr to launch the M5 Professional and Max variants. — Roman Loyola
Foundry
Disappointment of the 12 months: Mac Professional
Whereas each different Mac has some model of the M4 and the 14-inch MacBook Professional has an M5, Apple’s costliest Mac nonetheless has the identical M2 Extremely chip it obtained again in June 2023. In the meantime, the Mac Studio with a superior M3 Extremely prices a few thousand {dollars} much less, and I’m left to surprise: How can Apple cost upwards of $10,000 for a Mac with a two-plus-generation-old chip? There have been loads of alternatives to replace the Mac Professional in 2025, however as an alternative, Apple let it languish one other yr with the identical ageing processor. — Roman Loyola
iPad/iPadOS
Foundry
iPad of the 12 months: iPad Professional M5
Apple up to date three of its 4 iPads in 2025 (sorry iPad mini), however the M5 iPad Professional is actually the one one which might be thought-about for this distinction. All three updates had been basically chip refreshes (A14 to A16 (iPad); M2 to M3 (iPad Air); M4 to M5 (iPad Professional), however solely the iPad Professional delivered a noticeable increase over its predecessor. Add in 50 % extra entry-level RAM, quicker Wi-Fi, and quick charging, and also you’ve obtained an improve worthy of a professional. — Michael Simon
Apple
Replace of the yr: iPadOS 26
This yr’s WWDC keynote was jam-packed with options, from Liquid Glass to Stay Translation and revamped app designs. However the star of the present was iPadOS 26, which launched a brand new interface that integrated most of the visible and productiveness components customers have wished for years, with resizable home windows, macOS-like multitasking, and a brand new lease on life. — Michael Simon
Apple Watch
David Worth / Foundry
Watch of the yr: Apple Watch SE 3
Strictly talking, the Collection 11 was the most effective Apple Watch to come back out this yr (I discover the Extremely fashions too cumbersome for on a regular basis put on), however the SE 3 was certainly the one I’d suggest to a pal. It’s almost pretty much as good and much better worth. As a part of the 2025 refresh, the SE gained an always-on show, a much bigger and longer-lasting battery, improved scratch resistance, new well being options and gestures, on-device Siri, and the choice of 5G. And all that for $249! Neglect the Collection 11; this has every little thing you want from a smartwatch at a wonderful value. — David Worth
Companies
Apple
Apple TV present of the yr: ‘Pluribus’
There’s one thing nerve-wracking about recommending a TV present in the course of a run–significantly one as unpredictable as Pluribus. Who is aware of the place it’ll go from right here? However simply six episodes into the debut season of this ceaselessly humorous, often harrowing sci-fi drama, and even in opposition to sturdy competitors from the second season of Severance, I really feel (fairly) assured naming this because the Apple TV present of the yr. As you’d anticipate from a Vince Gilligan manufacturing, Pluribus flips seamlessly between slow-burn magnificence and sudden stunning motion, between grief and humor and thriller. And Rhea Seehorn is excellent because the final sad lady on the earth. Possibly it’ll go downhill sooner or later, however let’s benefit from the trip whereas it lasts. — David Worth
Foundry
Service of the yr: Information +
Apple TV and Music could get all the eye, however Apple Information+ got here into its personal in 2025. Apple’s each day puzzles had lengthy revolved round considerably pedestrian choices, equivalent to crosswords and Sudoku, however a totally unique idea, Emoji Sport, rapidly grew to become a novel and extremely entertaining possibility for customers looking for unique ideas. And for these of us who’ve grown sick of the fluff and intrusive adverts we come throughout when Googling recipes, Apple Information+ added a brand new search perform that allows you to discover recipes and think about the substances and instructions in a clutter-free interface. Neat, proper? It will get higher. You possibly can immediately set timers primarily based on the acknowledged durations and add the listed substances to your Reminders app. — Mahmoud Itani
