Energy label for smartphones: why are iPhones (and Apple tablets) not in class A?

From 20 June 2025, all smartphones and tablets in Europe will be required to display an energy label indicating energy efficiency, battery life, repairability, shock resistance and other parameters. Energy efficiency is calculated with an index (IEE) based on a formula that considers the battery life per cycle, the nominal voltage and the nominal battery capacity, tested with a standardized protocol that simulates realistic and reproducible use of the device. The classification scale goes from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient).

It has caused quite a stir that Apple iPhones are not in class A, which includes a large number of brands and models from the biggest manufacturers. The Apple smartphone, which has always been at the top of the category in terms of performance (and prices), is in fact in the second step, class B. Even worse are the tablets, which are relegated to categories E and G.

The mystery, in reality, is easy to solve: it is a voluntary choice by Apple.

According to the tests, iPhones obtain scores that would place them in class A, but the Cupertino company has decided to self-degrade its smartphones to class B. This choice was made to minimize the risk that third-party laboratories, interpreting the European regulation differently, could assign a lower score, thus creating discrepancies and confusion among consumers. Apple has taken a cautious approach while waiting for the testing methods to be clarified and better standardized, given that some metrics defined by the EU are still ambiguous or incomplete. The same voluntary downgrading has also been applied to other parameters, such as drop resistance. Here is the explanation of Apple itself: "Apple has chosen to voluntarily reduce the scores to a level B to minimize the likelihood that a third-party tester interpreting the regulation differently would obtain a lower level. For the same reason, we have also downgraded the scores for the Repeated Drop Reliability class".

The affected iPhones are the iPhone 16 (A3287), iPhone 16 Pro (A3293), iPhone 16 Plus (A3290), iPhone 16 Pro Max (A3296), iPhone 16e 5G (A3409), iPhone 15 (A3090), and iPhone 15 Plus (A3094).