iPhone 16 Review: Tough choice between the base and pro models

Design

With new teal, pink and ultramarine colours that are far more vivid thanks to a new manufacturing process that infuses colour throughout the glass back, the iPhone 16 lineup this year really pops with vibrancy in a way that make the titanium colors on the Pro a little too subtle and unexciting. Out and about, the new ultramarine iPhone 16 I had on hand grabbed eyeballs and attention everywhere it went—these iPhones lean hard into the new colors and are the exact opposite of boring.

Also read: Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max review: Do you want the same phone every year?

Like the Pros, the 16 even has the new Ceramic Shield glass protection and while the use of titanium has made the heavy phones slightly lighter, the iPhone 16 (and its larger Plus variant) still weigh less and are easier to handle. Around the rear is the vertically stacked dual-camera system, reminiscent of the iPhone X, designed to allow for spatial video and photo capture that can be viewed on Apple's Vision Pro headset.

Now while Apple may have stuck to the same form factors and dimensions as the previous gen iPhone 15, two inclusions bring the iPhone 16 right alongside the Pros this year. First off, the Action Button in place of the mute switch, which you can set to do anything you need, from turning on the flashlight, launching a shortcut and yes, using it as a mute toggle if you don’t like change.

Then there’s the new Camera Control button across the 16 series that lets you quick launch the camera and cycle through camera modes and different Photographic styles. It takes some getting used to and I wish the button placement was a bit better for vertical use, but I’ve found the Camera Control excellent for slow, careful photo control, not for fast settings control, for which the screen is still a bit faster. The Camera Control feature is implemented in typical Apple fashion, with the Taptic engine adding this nice little haptic feedback to every press or swipe. Along with the Dynamic Island, the iPhone 16 doesn’t feel held back design wise this year, making it a particularly enticing proposition for those upgrading from older iPhones.

Performance

New iPhones have never been lacking on performance, but in recent years, the base iPhones typically used to receive one-generation old chipsets to widen the performance gap with the Pros. This year, each phone in the lineup starts from the same point—the A18 chipset, with the Pros getting a ‘Pro’ version with larger CPU cache size and one added graphics core for slightly better overall performance, particularly in professional use cases.

In day-to-day use, there’s little to tell the iPhone 16 apart from the iPhone 16 Pro Max—apps open instantly, graphics intensive games like Resident Evil work well, and the only reason the Pro Max feels snappier than the iPhone 16 is thanks to the ProMotion 120Hz display (more on this later). The iPhone 16 also benefits from thermal dissipation tweaks which allows for better sustained performance but more importantly, the beefier, current generation hardware allows the iPhone 16 to join the Pros from the 16 (and 15 series) in being able to run Apple Intelligence when it rolls out in India in 2025.

The other benefit the A18 chip delivers is significantly lower power draw, which boosts the slightly larger 3561mAH battery on the iPhone 16 to last a full day of use with about 15% left in the tank. Charging speeds also see an upgrade, notably with the new MagSafe puck supporting 25W of charging speeds. It’s not fast charging given where the industry has reached, but a half-hour charge does deliver 50 percent battery, with a full charge taking a little over an hour and a half. It’s a pity the iPhone 16 doesn’t see an upgrade as far as wired data transfer speeds are concerned, and we’re still stuck at the USB 2.0 speeds (480 megabits per second)—granted, it only will impact you if you regularly use a cable to transfer large video files, as the iPhone 16 has support for Wi-Fi 7 for wireless data transfer.

Display

While staying the same size as iPhones past keeps the form factor familiar, the iPhone 16 bumps up the display brightness to match the Pros, so you get 1600 nits peak brightness (HDR) and 2000 nits peak brightness under outdoor use, and the display ramps down to 1 nit minimum brightness for nighttime use. Plenty bright when you need it to be, and easy on the eyes and on the partner when you’re doomscrolling in bed at night. The more serious omission is the lack of the 120Hz refresh rate, and even with Apple’s ability to deliver smooth, fluid animations, 60Hz is a dated figure to be stuck with in 2024. Seeing zippy 120Hz displays on phones a third of the iPhone 16’s price and not on a premium device like the iPhone 16 is probably the biggest knock on the otherwise well-rounded device, and the number one reason to consider the pricier Pros. Older base iPhone upgraders won’t notice it, but anyone coming over from the other side certainly will. An always-on display is missed as well.

Cameras

With the upgrade to the 48MP Fusion main camera (similar to the Pro, but with a slightly narrower aperture) on the iPhone 16 along with a 12MP ultrawide with autofocus, you’re getting a package that holds its own in the camera department even when compared to the Pros. Those 24-megapixel shots from the main camera are replete with detail and serve up good contrast levels, plus you get access to all those great new color-grade capabilities in the Photographic Styles as you do on the Pros. The ultrawide sees a massive boost in low-light chops, plus with autofocus, you get the ability to get in close and personal with your subjects (flowers, insects, and just about anything tiny) with macro shooting capabilities. You will miss the 5X telephoto camera of the Pros, though—the 2X zoom on the iPhone 16 gets you some reach, but only some.

Now, while videos only go up to 4K Dolby Vision at 60 fps (the Pros now go up to 120fps), the bit I really liked was that Apple included its new Audio Mix feature into the base iPhones. This lets you change the audio quality of your videos, after the fact, by cutting out the background noise altogether (Studio mode) or sprinkling in some of the background while keeping the people in the center of the frame in audio focus (Cinematic mode). It seems like a small feature but you have to use it to see how big a deal it is—you can now record video in a noisy spot and isolate the sound later for a cleaner voice track—a benefit that even amateurs will appreciate, let alone content creators.

So why go Pro?

To summarize, the iPhone 16 Pros have an extra graphics core, the ultrawide is a 48-megapixel shooter plus there’s a 12-megapixel 5x telephoto, you get 120fps video recording plus a faster 10GB/second transfer data port. These are some good features to have, but the gap between the entry-level iPhone 16 and the iPhone 16 Pro/Pro Max is narrower than ever, at least for stuff most people need. Need, not want, mind you. With the 16, you're getting pretty much everything that matters, and you’re not going to regret trading down one bit, plus you’ll save yourself a ton of cash in the bargain. Especially if you pick up the one in blue…so gorgeous. One only wishes Apple Intelligence would roll out sooner so that more folks could sample the iPhone 16 series’ biggest selling point.

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