Apple’s iPhone 16 series has finally arrived and is certainly interesting. Not only does the base model get features that were only available on last year’s Pro models, but now Apple is making the iPhone 16 Pro models more versatile, adding new camera controls to the entire lineup.
But what if you already own an iPhone 15 Pro? Should you upgrade to the iPhone 16 Pro? Let’s’ examine the situation.
iPhone 16 Pro & iPhone 15 Pro: Features
| iPhone 16 Pro | iPhone 15 Pro | |
| size | 149.6 x 71.5 x 8.25mm 5.89 x 2.81 x 0.32 inches | 146.6 x 70.6 x 8.25mm 5.77 x 2.78 x 0.32 inches |
| weight | 199 grams 7.03 ounces | 187 grams 6.60 ounces |
| see | 6.3-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display 2622 x 1206 pixel resolution at 460ppi 120Hz refresh rate 1,000 nits typical brightness 1,600 nits HDR brightness 2,000 nits peak outdoor brightness 1 nit minimum brightness | 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display 2556 x 1179 pixel resolution at 460ppi 120Hz refresh rate 1,000 nits typical brightness 1,600 nits HDR brightness 2,000 nits peak outdoor brightness |
| durability | IP68 Up to 6 meters deep, up to 30 minutes | IP68 Up to 6 meters deep, up to 30 minutes |
| colours | Blaccoloursnium White Titanium Natural Titanium Desert Titanium | Black Titanium White Titanium Natural Titanium Blue Titanium |
| Processor | A18 Expert | A17 Expert |
| Data storage | 8GB | 8GB |
| Save | 128GB 256GB 512GB 1TB | 128GB 256GB 512GB 1TB |
| software | iOS 18 | iOS 17 |
| Update | At least 5 years | At least 5 years |
| Apple Intelligence | yes | yes |
| Camera Control | yes | no |
| Visual intelligence | es | no |
| Rear camera | 48MP fusion camera, f/1.78 48MP ultra-wide camera, f/2.2 12MP telephoto, 5x optical zoom, f/2.8 | 48MP main camera, f/1.78 12MP ultra-wide camera, f/2.2 12MP telephoto, 3x optical zoom, f/2.8 |
| FrontCameraa | 12MP TrueDepth camera | 12MP TrueDepth camera |
| battery | Up to 27 hours of video playback | Up to 23 hours of video playback |
| charge | 50% charge in 30 minutes with 20W adapter 25W MagSafe Wireless Charging | 50% charge in 30 minutes with 20W adapter 15W MagSafe wireless charging |
| price | Starting at $999 | Available from authorized dealers |
| examine | Coming soon | iPhone 15 Pro Review |
iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro: Design
The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 15 Prlookks are very similar in terms of design, but Apple has added a few new hardware additions this year. The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro feature the titanium and flat edges that Apple has housed since the iPhone 12 series. The triple-lens camera setup is the same. The gesture and volume buttons are also retained.
But this year, the iPhone 16 Pro has new hardware elements. Era C is located at the bottom right of the titanium frame. It’s a physical button that sits flush with the bezel and can be pressed fully. There’s also an integrated touch sensor that allows for swiping gestures for additional control.
Aside from the camera controls, the overall appearance of the two devices is very similar. The iPhone 15 Pro comes in four colours: Black Titanium, White Titanium, Blue Titanium, and Natural Titanium. The iPhone 16 Pro comes in the same colours but replaces the blue option with Desert Titanium.
However, the recycled colours on the iPhone 16 Pr differ, with the White and Natural Titanium appearing brighter and the Black Titanium appearing darker. Other than that, they are two very similar smartphones.
iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro: Display
The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro feature the same Super Retina XDR displyand, an OLED panel. They also feature ProMotion technology with always-on functionality and a 120Hz refresh rate. Both phones have a typical brightness of 1,000 nits, 1,600 nits for HDR content, and a peak brightness of 2,00s for outdoor use.
However, Apple has adjusted to the iPhone 16 Pro this year. The iPhone 15 Pro has a 6.1-inch screen, while the iPhone 16 Pro has a 6.3-inch screen, making it slightly larger due to the smaller bezels. The iPhone 16 Pro can also be set to a minimum brightness of 1 nit in low-light environments, making it more comfortable to view in a dark room or at night.
Apple also uses the latest generation of Ceramic Shield on the iPhone 16 Pro, while the iPhone 15 Pro uses the previous generation. However, Apple claims that both versions are “m” more durable than any smartphone glass,” “so you can expect both versions to offer good drop protection. However, in my personal experience, small scratches can be a different story.
iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro: Camera
Apple has made several improvements to the camera system in the iPhone 16 Pro, making it an improvement over its predecessor in several ways.
The iPhone 15 Pro has a 48MP primary camera, a 12MP ultra-wide camera, and a 12MP telephoto lens that can only achieve 3x optical zoom. Due to size constraints, Apple could not fit the new telephoto lens capable of 5x optical zoom on the iPhone 15 Pro and could only fit it on the iPhone 15 Pro Max. The TrueDepth front-facing camera is 12MP.
The iPhone 16 Pro has a new 48MP Fusion camera (the new term for wide or main), a 48MP ultra-wide camera, and a 12MP telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom. You heard me. Thanks to the slightly larger physical size of the iPhone 16 Pro, you get that 5x optical zoom that wasn’t available last year. The TrueDepth front-facing camera is still just 12MP.
The iPhone 16 Pro has some new photo and video tricks you won’t find on the iPhone 15 Pro, including 48MP macro photos, 4K Dolby Vision video recording, an improved studio-quality quad-mic array, wind noise reduction, audio mixing, and more.
The iPhone 15 Pro still has a good camera system, but the iPhone 16 Pro is a step ahead. And if you tend to shoot more professionally, there’s no harm in picking up the iPhone 16 Pro. We’ll see how both camera systems perform in the real world soon, but we expect to see some nice improvements in the iPhone 16 Pro, especially in the ultra-wide and telephoto cameras.
iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro: Software and Performance
The iPhone 15 Pro initially shipped with iOS 17 and is upgradeable. iOS 18 to Apple does not provide exact figures like its competitors, so about five more years of support.
The iPhone 15 Pro (and its bigger siblings) feature an A17 Pro chip and 8GB of RAM, meeting the minimum requirements for Apple’s Apple ‘science features in iOS 18. The iPhone 15 Pro held up pretty well in everyday use. Apps and games opened quickly, switching between apps quickly and smoothly, and everything ran smoothly.
But the iPhone 16 Pro should take things a step further. Apple claims its new A18 Pro chip will offer a 2 per cent increase in memory bandwidth, double the hardware-accelerated ray tracing, and a 2 per cent improvement in sustained performance. It should also be more power efficient than its predecessor.
The iPhone 16 Pro is built from the ground up to take full advantage of Apple Intelligence. You get Visual Intelligence with camera control, which the iPhone 15 Pro doesn’t. InIntelligencis is similar to Google LNS but uses Apple Intelligence and Siri. The iPhone 15 Pro isn’t bad. It’ll be’ ll-testing to see if the iPhone 16 Pro is noticeably faster in everyday use. Stay tuned.
iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro: Battery life and charging
According to Apple, the iPhone 15 Pro has a 3,274 mAh battery, equivalent to about 23 hours of video playback. When you bought the iPhone 15 Pro last year, the battery life was initially good, but now it needs a midday charge to last a full day.
Apple details on the size of the iPhone 16 Pro battery, but it looks like it’lit’llbslightly larger than last yearyear’sAple claims around 27 hours of streaming video playback with the iPhone 16 Pro, which would make sense if the increased size allowed for a bit more battery life. And with the A18 Pro chip, we could see more power efficiency. When we get our hands on the iPhone 16 Pro, we’lwe’lltt how well the battery holds p, and whether it’sit’soiceably better than the iPhone 15 Pro.
When it comes to charging, Apple hasn’t improved the wired charging speeds of the iPhone 16 Pro at the same rate as before (50% charge in 30 minutes with a 20W adapter). But wireless charging can now go up to 25W, compared to the previous 15W for wireless MagSafe charging.
iPhone 16 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro: Verdict
If you already own an iPhone 15 Pro, it might be difficult to recommend upgrading to an iPhone 16 Pro. After all, the iPhone 15 Pro can run Apple Intelligence features in iOS 18, and it’s still a very good phone even a year after its release.
However, we recommend upgrading to the iPhone 16 Pro to access the new camera controls that unlock Visual Intelligence and the improved 48MP ultra-wide lens and 5x optical zoom. Taking advantage of a trade-in deal that gets you up to $1,000 off the iPhone 16 Pro might be worth it for that alone. It’s a must-have upgrade, but considering that, if you find it nice and think you’ll get a lot out of the camera controls and new camera sensor, it’s worth it.
Stay tuned; we’ll review the new iPhone 16 Pro ourselves soon.