September is just around the corner, and that means one thing: new iPhones are about to be announced.
More specifically, we’re expecting Apple to lift the lid on the iPhone 16 collection at an event sometime in September, and if rumors and leaks are to be believed, the range is set for a bunch of upgrades and new features, from slimmer bezels to improved camera tech and potentially even a new Capture button for photography.
With that said, here’s everything there is to know about the iPhone 16 range, from release date and pricing rumors to the latest spec and feature leaks.
iPhone 16 at a glance
- iPhone 16 collection due for release in September
- Redesigned camera housing for iPhone 16 & 16 Plus, complete with new colours
- New Capture button alongside Action button on all models
- Slightly bigger iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max screens
- Entire range to get A18 chipset
- Huge focus on GenAI with Apple Intelligence
iPhone 16 rumored release date and pricing
- Due in September, likely on 10 September
- Release a few weeks later
- Could be more expensive this year
If there’s one thing that’s practically guaranteed in the tech calendar, it’s Apple’s September iPhone launch. While there have been one or two that have broken the rules in the past, it’s fair to say that Apple aims for an early September reveal for its latest iPhone range, with release following within a couple of weeks.
That said, we’ve not yet had any specific iPhone 16 event leaks, though judging by Apple’s reveal schedule, it seems to prefer the second Tuesday of September. That falls on 10 September this year, suggesting that we could be just a few short weeks away from the grand reveal – but we’ll update this section if we hear otherwise.
Pricing for the iPhone 16 range is also unknown, and while we’d expect (or maybe just hope) that the iPhone 16 range will match their iPhone 15 counterparts, there’s still potential for a price hike here – judging by the competition, at least.
The likes of the Galaxy S24 Ultra and Google Pixel 9 are up by $100 in the US, and it could be a similar story with the iPhone 16 range – we’ll just have to wait and see for now.
iPhone 16 design and screen rumors
- Redesigned camera housing for some models
- Action button across the range, alongside a new Capture button
- Slightly bigger screens for Pro models
While rumors suggest that the iPhone 16 won’t get a Pixel 9-level redesign, that’s not to say it’ll be a carbon copy of the iPhone 15 range either.
Reports claim that we could see a refresh to the regular iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus’ camera housing, sporting a vertical alignment that’s said to be not too dissimilar to the iPhone X. It’s also rumored that the new collection could boast a unified volume button in place of the two buttons that currently exist, though this is allegedly only available on one of the prototype designs.
That seemingly aligns with alleged leaked photos of the entire iPhone 16 collection, showcasing the new vertical camera alignment on the regular and Plus models while the Pro and Pro Max stick with the same triple camera system as recent Pro-level iPhones.
Colour options could vary wildly this year, with the regular iPhone 16 collection available in shades including Black, White, Blue, Teal Green and Baby Pink – if the leaked images are on the money, that is.
That said, the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are said to be entirely more muted than the colourful regular models, with rumors suggesting a new brown/gold colour option in place of the Blue Titanium of the iPhone 15 Pro, sat alongside White, Grey and a new even darker Black colour option.
What’s more interesting, and backed up by several different sources, is the introduction of the Action Button to the regular models of iPhone. Introduced last year with the iPhone 15 Pro collection, the Action Button is essentially a programmable button that replaces the volume slider of older iPhones, and the regular iPhone 15.
The entire iPhone 16 range is also said to benefit from a new button, unofficially dubbed the capture button. It’s said that this would essentially be a physical control for the iPhone’s camera, with the ability to focus, capture and even swipe to zoom.
When it comes to display tech, the iPhone 16 is rumored to boast significantly slimmer bezels thanks to the use of Border Reduction Structure (BRS) technology. What’s more, this isn’t set to be a Pro-level exclusive either, with all four models of iPhone said to offer the upgraded tech and slimmed-down bezels as a result.
That means that the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus will likely have slightly smaller footprints than their predecessors, while Apple is rumored to make the most of the extra space generated on the Pro models by boosting screen sizes, up from 6.1 to 6.3 inches and 6.7 to 6.9 inches respectively.
A separate report goes into more detail on the Pro models, claiming that the iPhone 16 Pro will measure in at 149.6 x 71.5 x 8.3mm with 1.2mm thick bezels, while the 16 Pro Max will boast a 163 x 77.6 x 8.3mm build with even slimmer 1.15mm bezels.
According to the original leaker, the iPhone 16 Pro Max “will be the world’s closest smartphone to a borderless sci-fi form factor”.
iPhone 16 camera rumors
- Minimal changes to iPhone 16 cameras
- Boosted 48MP ultrawide on Pro models
- Improved telephoto performance on Pro models
With so much going on in other areas of the iPhone 16 experience, it’d be easy to imagine camera tech falling to the wayside – but it actually looks like the iPhone 16 could further boost the iPhone’s camera capabilities. The Pro models, anyway.
That’s because, despite featuring the same 48MP main sensor as the iPhone 15 range, the sensor is rumored to be bigger at 1/1.14 inches, up from 1/1.28 inches, which should deliver more light and better detail.
The bigger upgrade is said to come to the ultrawide lens, with the 12MP snapper allegedly upgraded to match the main camera’s 48MP resolution. Some suggest it might even offer full 48MP ProRes shots, as with the main camera.
While the 12MP telephoto lens isn’t getting the 48MP treatment – maybe that’ll come with the iPhone 17 Pro – it’s also said to offer improved performance. Importantly, the 5x tetraprism telephoto lens of the iPhone 15 Pro Max is trickling down to this year’s iPhone 16 Pro for boosted zoom capabilities.
Aside from that, there’s very little to report on the camera front. All models are said to use the same 12MP selfie cameras as recent models, and the collection will once again cap out at 4K@60fps for video.
iPhone 16 performance and software rumors
- Apple A18 chips across the range
- Pro models may get a slightly faster chipset
- Apple Intelligence smarts
Let’s start with the big one: Apple is said to restore a little parity between the top-end iPhone 16 Pro models and the regular iPhone 16, with both rumored to feature the A18 series chipset.
That’s a stark difference from Apple’s recent approach of shipping year-old chipsets with the regular models, with the iPhone 15 getting 2022’s A16 chipset while the Pro models got the new A17 Pro chipset.
That’s not to say the entire iPhone 16 collection will share the exact same chipset – the Pro models will likely get a slightly better-performing Pro-level variant of the A18 – but it’s still a big boost for the regular models.
Of course, the big focus for the iPhone 16 range as a whole is Apple’s spin on GenAI dubbed Apple Intelligence, or AI for short. You see what Apple did there?
We’ve extensively covered Apple Intelligence and some of the coolest features headed to iPhones later this year separately, so we won’t go into much detail here, but the headline features are a much smarter Siri that’s more conversational and generally more helpful, along with elements like ChatGPT integration, GenAI-created emoji dubbed Genmoji, new photo editing tools and much, much more.
There is a catch however; it’ll only be available in the US initially, and not all Apple Intelligence features will be available at launch, instead rolling out throughout the year as the features are ready to go.
Trusted Take: What we think the iPhone 16 needs
The iPhone 15 range is pretty solid, so Apple really has its work cut out if it wants to tempt existing owners to upgrade. The good news is that there are a few relatively easy ways to do so.
The first would be to close the gap between the regular and Pro models, as it feels like the gap has only widened in recent years with moves like Apple giving the regular models a year-old chipset and leaving elements like telephoto cameras, and even the Action button, exclusive to the top-end Pro models.
Thankfully, this seems like it could be the case with the iPhone 16, rumoured to feature both the Action Button and a new Capture button, and it’s said to offer the A18 chipset across the range.
It’s a similar story with the Pro model, which lost out on the boosted 5x telephoto of last year’s Pro Max, though that’s also rumoured to be rectified with this year’s iPhone 16 Pro.
With the competition going all-in on GenAI capabilities in 2024, we also felt that the iPhone 16 would need to do something to stand out in this regard – and, as we saw at WWDC 24, Apple Intelligence is going to be a huge part of iOS 18, with some features no-doubt exclusive to the upcoming range.
A boost to charge speeds would also be appreciated, as despite praising the battery life of the iPhone 15 range, we still felt that it was a little bit slow to recharge compared to much of the flagship competition.
