We’ve officially reached that time of the year when you'll definite want to hold off on buying a new iPhone until the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro are announced. We're likely just a couple of weeks away from the big Apple September event, where all the new iPhone models will be revealed, and they might have the type of upgrades that matter to you.
I’ve been following iPhone 16 rumors from even before the iPhone 15 came out last fall, so let’s talk about what you can expect and get excited for, specifically when it comes to the Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max models.
iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max screen sizes
The Pros are growing. Apple is really thinking big this year as there have been multiple rumors that Apple is supersizing the iPhone 16 Pro phones. The regular iPhone 16 Pro is tipped to be growing from 6.1 inches to 6.3 inches, making it more of a mid-size phone.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is apparently going to be 6.9 inches, which would be a pretty big jump from 6.7 inches on the iPhone 15 Pro Max. By comparison, the Galaxy S24 Ultra and Google Pixel Pro XL are both 6.8 inches. So the new iPhone 16 Pro Max would be the largest flagship in the U.S. that’s not a foldable.
That makes me a bit nervous though — I like the size and weight of the iPhone 15 Pro Max and it’s pretty massive when you put on a case. I’m definitely interested to see what shoppers think of the sizes, if these rumors end up being true.
iPhone 16 Pro colors
While we’re talking about design I have sone news about the iPhone 16 Pro colors.
Apple is reportedly ditching the blue titanium model for a new Desert Titanium color. Think bronze or dark gold, which looks just okay in leaked photos. Desert Titanium would join the returning, black, gray and white options.
I'm personally going to miss the blue if it's going away, and I hope the new hue looks better than the leaked photo.
A18 and Apple Intelligence
While all iPhone 16 models are set to get Apple’s new A18 chip, we’re still likely to see a split between the regular and Pro phones. I’m expecting the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max to get an A18 Pro chip with more GPU cores.
But the biggest processing upgrade will likely come with the Neural Engine, which is tipped for significantly more cores, and should provide more powerful AI and machine learning performance. So, what will you be able to actually do with all that power? Think of things that we’ve seen teased with Apple Intelligence alongside iOS 18 — like creating images on the fly with Image Playground, getting transcripts of phone calls and voice notes, and help writing.
As exciting as that all sounds, I think Apple will need to show at least some Apple Intelligence features that are exclusive to the new iPhone 16 Pros.
iPhone 16 Pro Capture button
Probably the biggest design change we’ve heard about is the addition of an all-new Capture button on the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max. I’ll admit, we have heard conflicting rumors about this one but it’s clear to me from seeing dummy models and early case samples that Apple is adding a so-called Capture button this year. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, this dedicated camera button would work just like a real camera shutter. If you press half-way down on the button you’ll engage auto-focus, and if you press all the way you’ll snap a photo. This would mean that your Action Button could be assigned to something else, or a shortcut, while you have a dedicated way to take photos and videos quickly.
But that’s not all. Apparently, swiping your finger over the Capture button would zoom you in and out while shooting photos and videos. Now it makes a lot of sense for this button to be exclusive to the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max, kind of like the Action Button was this year, but some rumors say it could end up on the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus, too. Guess we’ll just have to see.
iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max camera upgrades
So what about the cameras themselves? Both the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro max are tipped to feature a 48MP ultra wide camera, up from 12MP on the iPhone 15 series. That means you should expect sharper ultra wide shots, and also more flexibility when it comes to cropping. The new sensor should also let in more light for brighter pics, especially in low-light situations.
More important, we're going to see zoom parity on both the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max. They're expected to get the same tetra prism zoom lens. So we’re talking 5x optical zoom and 25x digital zoom at least, which would be a pretty significant upgrade.
Better battery life
If you’ve checked out our iPhone 15 Pro review, you’ve probably heard us talk about how last year’s phone turned in very good battery life results in our testing, but you can never have too much endurance. Apple is tipped to use stacked battery technology on the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max for the first time, which would likely allow for more capacity. As a result, the iPhone 16 Pro could have a 3355 mAh battery and the iPhone 16 Pro Max could pack four 4676 mAh battery according to leaked specs.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max are both rumored to get 40W wired charging and 20W MagSafe charging. That would be a nice — and very, very overdue — upgrade from 27W wired and 15W wireless. Honestly, even if the battery life doesn’t last longer but we get faster charging, I think that’ll be an upgrade a lot of people have been waiting for.
iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max prices
The iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max pricing could see a slight shakeup this year. Based on an iPhone 16 specs leak, the regular iPhone 16 Pro could get a hike from $999 to $1,099. But the base storage would go from 128GB to 256GB, which would be the same level as the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro Max would start at $1,199 just like last year. That would be good for Apple to hold the line there as the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra starts at $1,299.
Outlook
There’s plenty of other rumored upgrades for the iPhone 16 Pro, including a new thermal design to prevent overheating, a new 5G modem and new Wi-Fi 7 connectivity. But if you're thinking about upgrading the above rumors are the most important ones you need to know.
Make sure you check out our Apple September event hub and iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max hubs for more info, as we'll be updating those pages often between now and the big launch day.
