iPhone 16 Pro review: I love it, but I wouldn’t buy it

The iPhone Pro is usually an easy recommendation. If you’re shopping for a caller iPhone and person a spot much money to spend, splurging for nan Pro is typically a no-brainer. But this twelvemonth is different.

The regular iPhone 16 is nan champion non-Pro iPhone released successful ages, and it’s truthful bully that it makes justifying nan iPhone 16 Pro much analyzable than you whitethorn person thought. That’s not to opportunity nan iPhone 16 Pro is simply a bad telephone (it’s very good!), but nan group of group who should spell for it complete nan regular exemplary is smaller than successful past years. Do you autumn into that group? Let’s find out.

About our iPhone 16 Pro review

The iPhone 16 Pro was released connected September 20, 2024, and our reappraisal was primitively published connected September 30 by Joe Maring. On November 4, nan reappraisal was updated by Christine Romero-Chan pinch her thoughts successful nan “iPhone 16 Pro: a 2nd opinion” section.

iPhone 16 Pro specs

iPhone 16 Pro: a 2nd opinion

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

I’ve been utilizing nan iPhone 16 Pro arsenic my superior telephone since motorboat day. Though I’m not a instrumentality of really nan creation has not changed from erstwhile years, I person been rather happy pinch nan iPhone 16 Pro — for nan astir part.

The biggest logic I’m happy pinch nan iPhone 16 Pro is nan cameras. I had nan iPhone 15 Pro past year, and though I loved nan size, I was irritated that it only had a 3x optical zoom telephoto camera. Apple gave some Pro models adjacent camera characteristic parity this year, and I’ve been very happy astir that. No longer do you person to get nan biggest telephone to get nan champion camera.

With nan improved telephoto camera, I tin get moreover person to subjects than ever before. Though you could do 5x zoom pinch nan iPhone 15 Pro, it was integer zoom, which meant a nonaccomplishment of value nan person you got. Now, I don’t person to interest astir that pinch nan iPhone 16 Pro, and I emotion nan incredibly elaborate shots I’m getting pinch nan 5x optical zoom. As personification who loves to return photos of wildlife, it’s been delivering fantabulous results — and I don’t person to disturb nan animals.

The ultrawide lens is now 48MP connected nan iPhone 16 Pro alternatively of 12MP, and nan results are besides a large improvement. Out of nan 3 lenses, I deliberation nan ultrawide is my slightest utilized compared to nan different two, but it does travel successful useful for definite situations. With nan higher resolution, specifications are sharper than before, and it useful moreover amended successful lowlight scenarios. Macro shots, which usage nan ultrawide lens, besides extremity up looking overmuch clearer, pinch little distortion.

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

Now, fto maine talk a small spot astir Camera Control. I was looking guardant to this caller small button, but aft complete a month, it’s conscionable go my dedicated camera launcher and thing else.

It’s not that I don’t for illustration nan Camera Control — it’s conscionable successful a bad position for me. If it were a small spot little and easier to press, it would person been better. The existent position is simply a spot awkward for scenery photos for me, and it still needs a spot of unit (even aft changing it to nan lightest setting) to press, which tin origin camera shingle and tin extremity up pinch a blurry image. I besides find it faster to alteration settings connected nan surface than utilizing nan Camera Control’s finicky half-press and descent gestures.

Though nan iPhone 16 is very bully this year, it still lacks features I want that are only disposable successful nan Pro variant. And for me, arsenic personification who prefers smaller phones, Apple did a bully occupation this twelvemonth pinch nan iPhone 16 Pro. It has adjacent cameras pinch nan larger Pro Max, 1TB storage, A18 Pro, and somewhat amended artillery life than its predecessor.

While I would person loved a pinkish iPhone 16 this year, nan iPhone 16 Pro is amended for me.

Great hardware, acquainted design

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

The iPhone 16 Pro is an incredibly well-built smartphone. Like nan iPhone 15 Pro, it has a titanium framework pinch a matte finish. It’s beautiful and considerably improved from nan aged stainless alloy framework Apple utilized connected its older Pro smartphones. The level sides are easy to grip, nan rounded corners are comfortable successful your hand, and nan wide fresh and decorativeness are 2nd to none. It’s fundamentally nan aforesaid hardware acquisition from past year’s Pro, though that’s not needfully a bad thing.

The Action fastener returns for different twelvemonth and is conscionable arsenic convenient arsenic ever. I wish Apple had allowed much customization, but being capable to property and clasp nan fastener to move connected nan flashlight, commencement a sound recording, aliases do immoderate other you want remains a awesome addition. This year, it’s besides joined by nan weird and awesome Camera Control.

The iPhone 16 Pro is an incredibly well-built smartphone.

Camera Control is simply a caller fastener connected nan correct broadside of nan iPhone 16 Pro. On nan surface, it’s very straightforward. Press nan fastener to unfastened nan camera app, property it again to return a picture, and property and clasp nan fastener to grounds a video. However, lightly pressing and sliding your digit crossed nan fastener allows you to prime and set numerous camera controls — including your zoom, extent of field, aperture, and more.

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

The full strategy takes immoderate clip to get utilized to, but erstwhile you’ve sewage nan bent of it, it becomes a awesome summation to nan iPhone. It’s satisfying to use, frees up nan Action fastener to do thing else, and has quickly go my favourite measurement to motorboat nan camera. I besides emotion that you tin lightly customize nan Camera Control, specified arsenic changing it to unfastened Instagram alternatively of nan regular camera app. I wish it were placed somewhat little connected nan frame, but otherwise, it’s excellent.

Objectively, nan iPhone 16 Pro’s hardware is arsenic bully arsenic it gets. Subjectively, I desperately wish Apple had done something to freshen up this design. The iPhone 16 Pro looks identical to nan iPhone 15 Pro, which already looked a lot like nan iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro. In a twelvemonth erstwhile nan regular iPhone 16 sewage a (admittedly subtle) camera redesign and phenomenal caller colors, nan iPhone 16 Pro’s aesthetics are a spot excessively acquainted for my taste.

An fantabulous (and bigger) screen

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

For nan first clip since nan iPhone 12 Pro, Apple has made nan show of its newest Pro iPhone bigger. Gone is nan 6.1-inch surface we’ve had for nan past fewer years, and successful its spot is simply a 6.3-inch one.

Because of this, nan iPhone 16 Pro is somewhat taller and wider than nan iPhone 15 Pro, though not dramatically so, acknowledgment to reduced bezels. It’s still easy to scope each 4 corners of nan show single-handedly, and nan slimmer bezels are beautiful impressive.

The bezels are slimmer than ever connected nan iPhone 16 Pro. Joe Maring / Digital Trends

Also awesome is nan value of this display. The OLED sheet produces gorgeous colors, nan 120Hz refresh complaint is wonderfully smooth, and nan always-on show (AOD) looks arsenic bully arsenic ever. It’s frustrating that a 120Hz refresh complaint and AOD stay constricted to Apple’s Pro phones, but there’s nary denying conscionable really fantabulous they are. Combine each of this pinch 2,000 nits of highest outdoor brightness, and there’s virtually thing to kick astir pinch this screen.

The camera is nan existent logic to spell Pro

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

Apple has ever reserved its champion cameras for its Pro iPhones. But much than ever before, it feels for illustration nan upgraded cameras are the reason to get nan iPhone 16 Pro complete nan iPhone 16 this year.

In position of specs, you get a 48-megapixel superior camera, a 48MP ultrawide camera, and a 12MP telephoto camera. The superior camera is fundamentally nan aforesaid arsenic past year’s, while nan ultrawide camera is new. Additionally, nan 5x telephoto camera is nan aforesaid 1 utilized successful nan iPhone 15 Pro Max, which is important since nan iPhone 15 Pro was stuck pinch a worse 3x telephoto shooter.

As you astir apt suspected, nan iPhone 16 Pro takes unthinkable photos. Shots from nan superior camera are top-notch successful each regard; images are detailed, colorful, and consistently great. There’s very small to kick about.

• 1. Macro mode
• 2. Macro mode
• 3. Macro mode

I’ve besides been really happy pinch nan caller ultrawide camera. Not only do 0.5x ultrawide photos look amended than ever but truthful do macro images. If you for illustration taking macro shots (like I do), this is an fantabulous camera for that. The 5x telephoto camera is besides a beautiful touch. While not nan longest zoom magnitude you tin get connected a telephone today, it’s a high-quality sensor, and it’s awesome getting nan aforesaid 5x zoom connected nan 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max this year.

Like nan iPhone 16, nan iPhone 16 Pro besides gets Apple’s caller Photographic Styles. Think of them for illustration Instagram filters, isolated from that they individually alteration nan reside and colour of your photos alternatively than applying a single, generic look complete nan full thing. This is really Photographic Styles person ever worked, but caller for nan iPhone 16 family, you tin alteration them aft you’ve taken a photograph and fine-tune nan look and consciousness of each style.

• 1. Standard Photographic Style
• 2. Dramatic Photographic Style
• 3. Amber Photographic Style
• 4. Stark Black and White Photographic Style

As personification who has ne'er bothered pinch Photographic Styles connected erstwhile iPhones, I’ve had a ton of nosy playing pinch them connected nan iPhone 16 Pro. I see myself a beautiful casual photographer, but I’ve enjoyed stretching my imaginative muscles by toying pinch Photographic Styles. It’s overmuch simpler than shooting successful RAW and taking images into Photoshop, yet much professional-looking than slapping connected a filter. I deliberation it’s a awesome mediate crushed that a batch of group are going to love.

Photographic Styles connected nan iPhone 16 Pro. Joe Maring / Digital Trends

That said, for nan group who do want to return their mobile photography skills up a notch, that’s wherever nan iPhone 16 Pro sets itself isolated from nan iPhone 16. The iPhone 16 Pro besides gives you Apple ProRAW shooting, nighttime mode portraits, 4K Dolby Vision video signaling astatine 120fps, ProRes video recording, Log video recording, and a “studio-quality” four-mic setup.

Those are awesome features, and for personification who wants to usage their iPhone arsenic a imaginative instrumentality for their YouTube transmission aliases moviemaking, it’s easy to look astatine those other camera features arsenic morganatic reasons to bargain nan iPhone 16 Pro complete nan guidelines model. But if you don’t attraction astir those things, it really comes down to really severely you want nan telephoto camera and nan improved ultrawide sensor.

Performance, artillery life, and charging

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

It shouldn’t beryllium astonishing that nan iPhone 16 Pro is simply a accelerated smartphone. Whether you’re bouncing betwixt different apps, playing nan latest games, aliases spending tons of clip successful nan camera app playing pinch nan caller Photographic Styles, nan iPhone 16 Pro handles everything pinch ease.

This is each acknowledgment to Apple’s caller A18 Pro chip. It’s 1 of nan astir tin chips you tin get successful a smartphone today, and nary matter what you propulsion astatine nan iPhone 16 Pro, it tin grip it easily.

My 1 capacity interest lies pinch really basking nan iPhone 16 Pro tin get. One day, while bouncing backmost and distant betwixt Microsoft Teams, Asana, and Arc (an fantabulous web browser) connected a 5G connection, my iPhone 16 Pro sewage really hot — almost to nan constituent wherever it was uncomfortable to hold. This hasn’t happened since then, and I was admittedly utilizing my telephone a batch that day, but I thought it was worthy mentioning. This 1 gaff aside, capacity connected nan iPhone 16 Pro has been great.

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

Battery life, connected nan different hand, has been disappointing. If I commencement my time astatine astir 6:30 aliases 7 a.m. pinch a afloat 100% battery, I’m hitting 20% aliases little by astir 5 p.m. That’s pinch 4 to 4 and a half hours of surface clip each time and utilizing apps for illustration Snapchat, NFL Fantasy, TikTok, and Duolingo — thing over-the-top by immoderate means.

Battery life has been disappointing.

This is noticeably worse than nan artillery life I saw pinch nan regular iPhone 16, which gets to astir 11 p.m. pinch complete 30% artillery remaining pinch akin usage. I’m funny to spot if nan iPhone 16 Pro’s artillery life gets amended nan longer I usage it, but aft a mates of weeks pinch nan phone, it’s firmly remained a instrumentality I request to top-up successful nan early evening. I emotion utilizing nan iPhone 16 Pro, and I wish I could usage it longer earlier needing to activity retired my charger.

As for charging, wired complaint speeds are still up to 50% successful 30 minutes, while MagSafe charging has accrued to 25W erstwhile utilizing a 30W aliases faster charging block. The faster MagSafe charging this twelvemonth is very nice, though I desperately wish Apple would ramp up its wired charging. In a world wherever nan OnePlus 12 tin complaint from 0 to 100% successful half an hour, needing complete an hr to afloat complaint nan iPhone 16 Pro is simply a pain.

iOS 18 and Apple Intelligence

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

iOS 18 is disposable connected nan iPhone 16 Pro correct retired of nan box, and pinch that comes immoderate beautiful important changes. The location screen, for example, is now overmuch much customizable — allowing you to alteration app icon colors and spot widgets/apps anyplace you’d like. I don’t personally emotion really tinted app icons look (like successful nan image above), but I cognize different group who do, and for customization fans, this is simply a large win.

Speaking of customization, there’s nan caller Control Center. There’s a lot new here. You tin add/remove controls correct from nan Control Center (no much going to nan Settings app to do this), spot and resize controls pinch overmuch greater flexibility, and person aggregate pages successful your Control Center (I person a dedicated 1 for smart location controls). It’s a spot finicky to get everything looking conscionable nan measurement you want it, but overall, I’m happy pinch it.

iOS 18’s caller Control Center Joe Maring / Digital Trends

There’s a batch much successful iOS 18, too. RCS support intends you tin yet matter Android phones and get publication receipts, type indicators, and high-quality photograph sharing. Being capable to switch fastener surface controls is agelong overdue but a very invited touch. The caller Photos app, which takes immoderate getting utilized to, has a batch of awesome caller features and customization options.

Unfortunately, 1 of nan main draws to iOS 18 — Apple Intelligence — is obscurity to beryllium recovered connected nan iPhone 16 Pro. You tin trial nan features now pinch nan iOS 18.1 beta, but it won’t beryllium disposable arsenic a unchangeable update until later successful October. I’m funny to yet usage Apple Intelligence erstwhile it’s ready. However, it’s frustrating to spot Apple marketplace nan iPhone 16 Pro truthful heavy astir its AI features erstwhile they aren’t fresh yet. Apple Intelligence could beryllium incredible, aliases it could beryllium a flop. I won’t cognize for judge until I’ve utilized it, and I’ll update this reappraisal accordingly erstwhile I have.

iPhone 16 Pro value and availability

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

The iPhone 16 Pro is disposable for acquisition now. It starts astatine $999 for 128GB of storage, pinch 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB models disposable for $1,099, $1,299, and $1,499, respectively. Natural Titanium, Black Titanium, and White Titanium — each colors disposable past twelvemonth for nan iPhone 15 Pro — return for nan iPhone 16 Pro. This year’s flagship colour is Desert Titanium that, to my eyes, looks a batch for illustration gold.

With its $999 starting price, nan iPhone 16 Pro is priced astir nan aforesaid arsenic different competing Android smartphones — namely nan Google Pixel 9 Pro. But nan iPhone 16, arguably nan different telephone astir iPhone 16 Pro shoppers will beryllium looking at, is conscionable $799. A $200 value quality is not insignificant, and you should really deliberation astir if nan iPhone 16 Pro is worthy an other $200 for what it brings to nan table.

Should you bargain nan iPhone 16 Pro?

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

The iPhone 16 Pro is simply a well-made, powerful, and high-quality smartphone successful almost each sense. I’ve had a awesome clip utilizing it, but is it nan iPhone you should unreserved retired and buy? I’m not truthful sure.

The biggest problem pinch nan iPhone 16 Pro is conscionable really bully nan regular iPhone 16 is. It has nan aforesaid Action fastener and Camera Control, a very akin superior camera, arsenic awesome performance, and — successful my acquisition — amended artillery life. It besides has nan aforesaid iOS 18 software, will get nan aforesaid Apple Intelligence features, and has a lighter, much comfortable, and much colorful design. It besides costs $200 less.

The iPhone 16 Pro is simply a well-made, powerful, and high-quality smartphone successful almost each sense.

If you request nan 120Hz surface aliases nan other camera features, nan iPhone 16 Pro has morganatic advantages complete its cheaper related — and I deliberation you’ll person a awesome clip pinch it. But if you tin unrecorded without those things, nan guidelines iPhone 16 is nan measurement to spell this year. It’s nan exemplary I ordered for myself and nan iPhone I deliberation astir group should buy.