The iPhone Pro is usually an easy testimonial . If you ’re rat for a new iPhone and have a bit more money to expend , splurging for the Pro is typically a no - brainer . But this year is different .
The regulariPhone 16is the best non - Pro iPhone released in old age , and it ’s so good that it makes excuse the iPhone 16 Pro more complicated than you may have thought . That ’s not to say the iPhone 16 Pro is a bad phone ( it ’s very honest ! ) , but the mathematical group of people who should go for it over the regular model is smaller than in retiring years . Do you pass into that group ? Let ’s find out .
About our iPhone 16 Pro review
The iPhone 16 Pro was liberate on September 20 , 2024 , and our brushup was in the beginning published on September 30 by Joe Maring . On November 4 , the review was updated by Christine Romero - Chan with her thoughts in the “ iPhone 16 professional : a second opinion ” section .
iPhone 16 Pro specs
Front :
4 K , up to 120 Federal Protective Service
4 K , up to 60 fps
Bluetooth 5.3
DisplayPort
iPhone 16 Pro: a second opinion
I ’ve been using the iPhone 16 Pro as my principal phone since launching Clarence Day . Though I ’m not a fan of how the design has not changed from former age , I have been quite happy with the iPhone 16 Pro — for the most part .
The big reason I ’m happy with the iPhone 16 Pro is the photographic camera . I had the iPhone 15 Pro last twelvemonth , and though I loved the size , I was riled that it only had a 3x optical rapid growth telephoto camera . Apple gave both Pro models equal camera feature of speech conservation of parity this year , and I ’ve been very happy about that . No longer do you have to get the biggest phone to get the best tv camera .
With the improved telephoto camera , I can get even close to subjects than ever before . Though you could do 5x whizz along with the iPhone 15 Pro , it was digital zoom , which mean a release of quality the nearer you got . Now , I do n’t have to care about that with the iPhone 16 Pro , and I fuck the incredibly elaborated shots I ’m getting with the 5x optical soar . As someone who loves to take picture of wildlife , it ’s been fork over excellent results — and I do n’t have to disturb the animals .
The ultrawide lens is now 48MP on the iPhone 16 Pro instead of 12MP , and theresults are also a giving melioration . Out of the three lenses , I think the ultrawide is my least used compared to the other two , but it does get in handy for sure situations . With the gamey resolution , detail are incisive than before , and it works even better in lowlight scenario . Macro shots , which use the ultrawide genus Lens , also cease up looking much clearer , with less distortion .
Now , permit me talk a little bit about Camera Control . I was looking forward to this Modern little button , but after over a month , it ’s just become my dedicated tv camera launcher and nothing else .
It’snot that I do n’t like the Camera Control — it ’s just in a bad position for me . If it were a little bit lower and well-situated to press , it would have been better . The current location is a bit embarrassing for landscape photos for me , and it still needs a bit of force per unit area ( even afterchanging it to the lightest background ) to press , which can cause camera shake and can end up with a blurred image . I also encounter it faster to alter options on the screen than using the Camera Control ’s finicky half - pressure and swoop gestures .
Though the iPhone 16 isverygood this twelvemonth , it still lack features I require that are only available in the Pro variant . And for me , as someone who prefers smaller phones , Apple did a good job this year with the iPhone 16 Pro . It has adequate photographic camera with the orotund Pro Max , 1 TB storehouse , A18 Pro , and more or less better battery life than its predecessor .
While I would haveloved a pinkish iPhone 16this year , the iPhone 16 Pro is just for me .
Great hardware, familiar design
The iPhone 16 Pro is an implausibly well - built smartphone . Like theiPhone 15 Pro , it has a atomic number 22 frame with a matte finish . It ’s lovely and well improved from the old stainless brand frame Apple used on its older Pro smartphones . The 2-dimensional sides are easy to transfix , the rounded corner are well-heeled in your hand , and the overall fit and finish are 2d to none . It ’s fundamentally the same computer hardware experience from last year ’s Pro , though that ’s not needfully a bad thing .
The Action button replication for another twelvemonth and is just as convenient as ever . I wish Apple had allowed more customization , but being capable to press and hold the clit to turn on the flashlight , start a voice recording , or do whatever else you want stay a expectant addition . This year , it ’s also joined by the eldritch and wonderfulCamera Control .
The iPhone 16 Pro is an incredibly well - built smartphone .
Camera Control is a new button on the right side of the iPhone 16 Pro . On the surface , it ’s very straight . exhort the button to spread the camera app , press it again to take a picture , and press and arrest the button to record a video . However , thinly iron out and slither your finger across the push button allows you to pick out and set numerouscamera control — including your rapid growth , depth of subject , aperture , and more .
The whole system convey some time to get used to , but once you ’ve grow the hang of it , it becomes a fantastic addition to the iPhone . It ’s satisfying to apply , frees up the Action button to do something else , and has quickly become my favorite way of life to launch the tv camera . I also fuck that you could lightlycustomize the Camera Control , such as changing it to open Instagram instead of the regular camera app . I wish it were placed slightly lower on the frame , but otherwise , it ’s splendid .
Objectively , the iPhone 16 Pro ’s computer hardware is as good as it gets . Subjectively , I desperately wish Apple had donesomethingto freshen up this design . The iPhone 16 Pro search identical to the iPhone 15 Pro , which already look alotlike the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro . In a class when the regular iPhone 16 got a ( admittedly subtle ) television camera redesign and phenomenal new color , the iPhone 16 Pro ’s aesthetics are a bit too conversant for my taste .
An excellent (and bigger) screen
For the first time since the iPhone 12 Pro , Apple has made the show of its raw Pro iPhone large . get going is the 6.1 - column inch screen door we ’ve had for the last few years , and in its place is a 6.3 - inch one .
Because of this , the iPhone 16 Pro is slightly taller and wider than the iPhone 15 Pro , though not dramatically so , thanks to contract bezels . It ’s still easy to reach all four corners of the exhibit single - handedly , and the slight bezels are pretty impressive .
Also impressive is the caliber of this display . The OLED panel produces gorgeous colors , the 120Hz refresh charge per unit is wonderfully smooth , and the always - on video display ( AOD ) looks as dependable as ever . It ’s frustrative that a 120Hz refresh pace and AOD remain circumscribed to Apple ’s Pro phones , but there ’s no abnegate just how fantabulous they are . Combine all of this with 2,000 nits of peak out-of-door luminance , and there ’s near nothing to complain about with this screen .
The camera is the real reason to go Pro
Apple has always reserved its full cameras for its Pro iPhones . But more than ever before , it feels like the upgraded cameras arethereason toget the iPhone 16 Pro over the iPhone 16this year .
In terms of eyeglasses , you get a 48 - megapixel principal camera , a 48MP ultrawide television camera , and a 12MP telephotograph camera . The master camera is essentially the same as last twelvemonth ’s , while the ultrawide tv camera is new . to boot , the 5x telephotograph tv camera is the same one used in theiPhone 15 Pro Max , which is substantial since the iPhone 15 Pro was stuck with a bad 3x telephoto shooter .
As you credibly suspected , the iPhone 16 Pro takes incredible photos . shot from the basal tv camera are top - notch in every gaze ; images are detail , colorful , and consistently great . There ’s very little to complain about .
I ’ve also beenreallyhappy with the young ultrawide camera . Not only do 0.5x ultrawide photos depend upright than ever but so do macro images . If you like taking macro pellet ( like I do ) , this is an first-class camera for that . The 5x telephoto camera is also a lovely touch . While not the longest zoom distance you could get on a telephone today , it ’s a in high spirits - timbre sensing element , and it ’s great getting the same 5x zoom on the 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max this yr .
Like the iPhone 16 , the iPhone 16 Pro also getsApple ’s new Photographic Styles . Think of them like Instagram filters , except that they one by one change the feeling and color of your photos rather than practice a exclusive , generic look over the integral matter . This is how Photographic Styles have always worked , but Modern for the iPhone 16 folk , you may change them after you ’ve taken a photo and fine - tune the look and experience of each style .
As someone who has never chafe with Photographic Styles on previous iPhones , I ’ve had a short ton of playfulness play with them on the iPhone 16 Pro . I consider myself a pretty casual lensman , but I ’ve bask stretching my creative muscles by toying with Photographic Styles . It ’s much simple than shoot in RAW and taking effigy into Photoshop , yet more professional - looking than slap on a filter . I believe it ’s a wild middle ground that a lot of people are endure to sleep together .
That enjoin , for the people who do want to take their mobile photography skills up a notch , that ’s where the iPhone 16 Pro sets itself aside from the iPhone 16 . The iPhone 16 Pro also gives you Apple ProRAW shot , dark fashion portrayal , 4 K Dolby Vision video recording at 120fps , ProRes telecasting transcription , Log video transcription , and a “ studio - quality ” four - mic apparatus .
Those are impressive features , and for someone who wants to utilise their iPhone as a creative dick for their YouTube channel or moviemaking , it ’s easy to look at those additional photographic camera lineament as lawful reasons to bribe the iPhone 16 Pro over the base model . But if you do n’t care about those things , it really make out down to how badly you desire the telephoto camera and the improved ultrawide sensor .
Performance, battery life, and charging
It should n’t be surprising that the iPhone 16 Pro is a fast smartphone . Whether you ’re recoil between dissimilar apps , playing the latest games , or spending lots of clock time in the camera app fiddle with the fresh Photographic Styles , the iPhone 16 Pro treat everything with repose .
This is all thanks to Apple ’s new A18 Pro chip . It ’s one of the most capable chips you’re able to get in a smartphone today , and no matter what you befuddle at the iPhone 16 Pro , it can handle it well .
My one carrying into action concern lies with how red-hot the iPhone 16 Pro can get . One day , while bouncing back and onward between Microsoft Teams , Asana , and Arc ( an excellent web web web browser ) on a 5 gibibyte connection , my iPhone 16 Pro gotreallyhot — almost to the point where it was uncomfortable to retain . This has n’t happened since then , and I was true using my earpiece a wad that Clarence Shepard Day Jr. , but I thought it was deserving observe . This one gaff apart , operation on the iPhone 16 Pro has been keen .
Battery life sentence , on the other hand , has been dissatisfactory . If I start my mean solar day at around 6:30 or 7 a.m. with a full 100 % battery , I ’m reach 20 % or lower by around 5 post meridiem That ’s with four to four and a half hours of screen time each day and using apps like Snapchat , NFL Fantasy , TikTok , and Duolingo — nothing over - the - top by any means .
shelling life has been disappointing .
This is noticeably worse than the battery life-time I saw with the even iPhone 16 , which buzz off to around 11 p.m. with over 30 % bombardment remain with like usage . I ’m curious to see if the iPhone 16 Pro ’s assault and battery life make better the longer I use it , but after a couple of week with the headphone , it ’s hard rest a machine I want to top - up in the former evening . I love using the iPhone 16 Pro , and I wish I could use it longer before require to attempt out my charger .
As for charge , cable charge speeds are still up to 50 % in 30 mo , while MagSafe charging has increased to 25W when using a 30W or faster charging block . The faster MagSafe charging this year is very nice , though I desperately wish Apple would storm up its wired charging . In a macrocosm where theOnePlus 12can charge from 0 to 100 % in half an hour , necessitate over an time of day to fully charge the iPhone 16 Pro is a pain .
iOS 18 and Apple Intelligence
Io 18is uncommitted on the iPhone 16 Pro right out of the loge , and with that arrive some fairly significant changes . The home silver screen , for deterrent example , is now much more customizable — allowing you to change app image colorsand position widgets / apps anywhere you ’d like . I do n’t personally love how tinted app icons look ( like in the picture above ) , but I know other mass who do , and for customization fans , this is a big win .
Speaking of customization , there ’s the new Control Center . There’sa lotnew here . you may add / remove controls powerful from the Control Center ( no more go to the preferences app to do this ) , place and resize controls with much corking flexibleness , and have multiple pages in your Control Center ( I have a dedicated one for wise home controls ) . It ’s a flake finicky to get everything see just the mode you want it , but overall , I ’m glad with it .
There ’s a lot more in iOS 18 , too . RCS supportmeans you’re able to finally text Android phones and get read revenue , case indicator , and in high spirits - quality photo sharing . Being able to exchange lock screen controls is long overdue but a very welcome ghost . The new Photos app , which withdraw some commence used to , has a lot of great Modern feature of speech and customization options .
Unfortunately , one of the main draws to iOS 18 — Apple Intelligence — is nowhere to be discover on the iPhone 16 Pro . you could test the feature article now with the iOS 18.1 beta , but it wo n’t be available as a static update until later in October . I ’m curious to in the end use Apple Intelligence once it ’s quick . However , it ’s thwarting to see Apple marketplace the iPhone 16 Pro so hard around its AI features when they are n’t ready yet . Apple Intelligence could be incredible , or it could be a floating-point operation . I wo n’t know for certain until I ’ve used it , and I ’ll update this review accordingly once I have .
iPhone 16 Pro price and availability
The iPhone 16 Pro is available for purchase now . It starts at $ 999 for 128 GB of storage , with 256 GB , 512 GB , and 1 TB models available for $ 1,099 , $ 1,299 , and $ 1,499 , severally . Natural Titanium , Black Titanium , and White Titanium — all colour available last class for the iPhone 15 Pro — return for the iPhone 16 Pro . This year ’s flagship color is Desert Titanium that , to my eyes , looks a lot like amber .
With its $ 999 starting price , the iPhone 16 Pro is priced about the same as other competing Android smartphones — namely theGoogle Pixel 9 professional . But the iPhone 16 , arguably the other phone most iPhone 16 Pro shopper will be look at , is just $ 799 . A $ 200 price difference is not unimportant , and you should really retrieve about if the iPhone 16 Pro is deserving an extra $ 200 for what it brings to the table .
Should you buy the iPhone 16 Pro?
The iPhone 16 Pro is a well - made , powerful , and high-pitched - caliber smartphone in almost every good sense . I ’ve had a keen time using it , but is it the iPhone you should rush out and corrupt ? I ’m not so indisputable .
The magnanimous job with the iPhone 16 Pro is just how good the regular iPhone 16 is . It has the same Action button and Camera Control , a very similar main tv camera , equally majuscule public presentation , and — in my experience — better battery life . It also has the same Io 18 software system , will get the same Apple Intelligence feature , and has a promiscuous , more comfortable , and more colorful design . It also cost $ 200 less .
The iPhone 16 Pro is a well - made , powerful , and high-pitched - quality smartphone in almost every sense .
If you need the 120Hz screen or the extra tv camera features , the iPhone 16 Pro has legitimate advantage over its brassy sibling — and I call up you ’ll have a great time with it . But if you may endure without those thing , the base iPhone 16 is the means to go this yr . It ’s the framework I ordered for myselfand the iPhone I think most mass should buy .
