For as long as we can remember, Apple has included a little gift when you buy a new iPhone, Mac, or iPad that makes users feel like they are valued members of a community: A small sheet with two Apple logo stickers. However, if you buy one of the new iPad Pros or iPad Airs, you won’t receive any.
According to 9to5Mac, Apple has distributed a memo to its store employees explaining the change, which is due to the environmental push to remove all plastic from its packaging. Stickers are included in products as recent as the new M3 MacBook Airs that were released in March, though notably the Vision Pro does not come with any.
9to5Mac reports that stores will have stickers on hand and will hand them out on request when someone buys one of the new iPads. However, if you don’t buy your new iPad from the Apple Store, it’s unclear whether you’ll be able to get them. The site says Apple won’t ship stickers to third-party retailers but you may be able to get one by bringing proof of purchase to an Apple Store and asking nicely.
At any rate, we doubt many people are going to actually ask for their stickers or even notice. And so begins the beginning of the end of another benefit that’s just going to go away, like EarPods, a cleaning cloth, and a power adapter. As for us, we’ll be cherishing our Space Black stickers a little more now.
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor
Michael Simon has been covering Apple since the iPod was the iWalk. His obsession with technology goes back to his first PC—the IBM Thinkpad with the lift-up keyboard for swapping out the drive. He's still waiting for that to come back in style tbh.