This week was the annual iPhone launch. The announcement came on Monday, pre-orders began on Friday, and shipping and open sales begin next Friday. Will you be among those who decide to upgrade to the iPhone 16?
Let’s start with the review. The 16 series features the more powerful Apple A18 and A18 Pro chipsets that can support AI, specifically Apple Intelligence. However, this won’t be available for at least a month, and if you’re in the EU or China, it could take much longer.
Key Features of the Apple iPhone 16
The other major change this generation is the action button, which is a customizable shortcut button that replaces the alert slider, and the camera control. The latter is a multi-function capacitive touchpad. Both will be adopted by apps and third-party companies, such as unlocking a Ford with the action button or adjusting Snapchat sharing settings with the camera control.
There are camera improvements, but they’re relatively minor. The Pro models have a new 48MP ultra-wide-angle camera, but the telephoto module still uses a 12MP sensor. At least the little Pro now matches the big Pro Max with a 5x periscope (up from 3x zoom on the 15 Pro).
iPhone 16 Family
“Small” and “big” are relative terms. The two Pro models now have 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch displays, while the two regular models stick with the old 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch sizes. It’s also worth mentioning that the 16-series phones have higher charging rates — a peak of 45W over USB-C and up to 25W over MagSafe.
The two regular phones now have more RAM (needed for AI) and also have new cameras — it’s just autofocus and a macro mode for the ultra-wide (still 12MP), no telephoto. Apple added spatial video and photo modes so you can create content for the Vision Pro, but who buys a $3,500 VR headset and skimp on their smartphone? Well, spatial capture is there if you want it.
We would be remiss if we didn’t mention the pricing. In short, these are the same prices as last year (except the 16 Pro is cheaper in India than the 15 Pro was last year).
| iPhone 16 | iPhone 16 Plus | iPhone 16 Pro | iPhone 16 Pro Max | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | $799 | $899 | 999 dollars | $1199 |
| Great Britain | 799 pounds | 899 pounds | 999 pounds | 1199 pounds |
| Germany | 949 euro | 1,099 euros | 1199 euro | 1449 euro |
| India | 79,900 Indian Rupees | 89,900 Indian Rupees | 119,900 Indian Rupees | 144,900 Indian Rupees |
| China | 5999 yuan | 6999 yuan | 7999 yuan | 9999 yuan |
| Japan | 124,800 yen | 139,800 yen | 159,800 yen | 189,800 yen |
Okay, let’s get to the voting. First up is the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max. Now measuring 77.6mm wide and weighing 227g (compared to the 15 Pro Max’s 76.7mm and 221g), has the big iPhone become too big? Or is the extra screen real estate a bonus?
Next up is the Apple iPhone 16 Pro. Its predecessor was one of the best small flagships of 2023 – not that there was much competition – but now Apple is saying the Pros need to be bigger than their regular counterparts. What do you think?
The Apple iPhone 16 Plus (like its smaller sibling) is still stuck with a 60Hz display. Only Apple can afford it – or can it?
Finally, the Apple iPhone 16 is the cheapest iPhone with an OLED display. We’re specifying this to rule out the old SE – we’ve heard the new SE will also have an OLED display. So if you just want a small, cheap iPhone, is the 16 the one for you, or would you consider waiting to see what the new SE looks like?
