Apple iPhone 16 Plus and iPhone 15 Plus

The iPhone Plus is the least popular iPhone because it’s too close to the Pro price-wise, but it also has fewer features, a 60Hz refresh rate, and the infamous OLED glitch. Still, its thin and lightweight design and impressive battery life may make sense for some buyers, who will probably want to know how the new Apple iPhone 16 Plus differs from the previous iPhone 15 Plus.

table of contents:

First, you can compare the complete spec sheet or proceed directly with the editor’s rating. In the text below.

To summarize, the iPhone 16 Plus has a new chip that promises AI features, improved screen glass, expanded camera capabilities, and faster wireless charging in the future. There are also added action keys and new camera controls. But all this fits on the specs page. Let’s take a look at how different the two devices really are in real-world usage.

size comparison

The iPhone 16 Plus has the same footprint as the iPhone 15 Plus, which isn’t surprising. Both phones measure 160.9 x 77.8 x 7.8 mm. iPhone 16 Plus weighs 199g, which is 2g lighter than iPhone 15 Plus.

One difference is that Apple says the new iPhone 16 Plus should be more durable. It features a new generation Ceramic Shield front and is believed to be 50% more rugged than its iPhone 15 Plus predecessor.

The iPhone 16 Plus also has two new buttons that the iPhone 15 doesn’t have. The action keys are exclusive to the iPhone Pro, and there are also new camera controls here.

Display comparison

The iPhone 16 Plus has the same display as the iPhone 15 Plus, a 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR OLED with great HDR capabilities and high resolution, but with a standard refresh rate of 60Hz. Both panels are advertised as capable of 1,000 nits of standard brightness and 2,000 nits of maximum brightness.

Well, according to the display measurements, the iPhone 16 Plus has a brighter screen than the iPhone 15 Plus, with 180nits (1823 vs 1642) higher in auto brightness and 70nits (891 vs 820) higher in manual mode. It’s not that big of a difference, but still.

battery life

The iPhone 16 Plus has a larger battery than its predecessor, going from 4.383 mAh to 4,674 mAh. This is a fairly modest increase of about 7%, but I’ll accept it.

However, the more significant changes come from the increased efficiency of the new Apple A18 chipset and possibly internal improvements in iOS 18.

As a result, the new iPhone 16 Plus achieved a record-breaking active usage score of 18:49h. This is chart-topping battery durability, meaning that compared to the iPhone 15 Plus, the new Plus model can deliver 10 hours more voice calls, 2.5 hours more web usage, and 1 hour more video streaming. It’s probably safe to say that this is the iPhone with the best battery life ever.

charging speed

The iPhone 16 Plus supports fast wired charging, but Apple hasn’t revealed the maximum power rating. The company estimates that it can be charged to 50% in 30 minutes using a 20W USB-PD charger.

Fast wireless charging up to 25W is also supported via the new MagSafe charger when connected to a 30W+ power adapter. If you have a compatible Qi2 charger, the iPhone 16 Plus gets up to 15W. Meanwhile, the iPhone 15 Plus MagSafe wireless charging is up to 15W.

To give the iPhone the best chance, we ran a charging test using a 45W PD charger. Both phones took about the same amount of time to charge. After using the charger for an hour, the iPhone’s battery was charged to 85%, and the last 15% took over 30 minutes.

speaker test

iPhone 16 Plus and iPhone 15 Plus have identical stereo speakers. These are hybrids where the earbuds are one of the speakers. The other speaker is located on the bottom of the phone, next to the USB-C port.

The iPhone 16 Plus got a Very Good mark in the loudness test, while the iPhone 15 got a Good mark. You can hear the difference using an audio playback tool, but it will be difficult to do so in practice.

performance

The big upgrade for the iPhone 16 Plus this year is the Apple A18 chipset, which is two generations older than the A16 chipset in the iPhone 15 Plus. This is a second generation 3nm chip that is more powerful and efficient.

The Apple A18 has a faster 6-core processor and a superior 5-core GPU with support for improved hardware raytracing. RAM has also been increased to 8GB.

The A18 CPU is touted to be 30% faster than the iPhone 15 Plus CPU and 60% faster than the iPhone 12 CPU. The GPU should be 40% faster than the iPhone 15 Plus and 2x faster than the iPhone 12.

benchmark performance

In our tests, the new Apple A18 CPU in the iPhone 16 Plus scored about 20% higher than the A16 in the iPhone 15 Plus. GPU performance is also increased by 30% to 60% depending on the 3D test.

The A18 chip has a new NPU that scores about twice as high as the NPU in the iPhone 15 Plus.

Thanks to the new iPhone chip, all the high-end games that weren’t compatible with the iPhone 15 Plus now work great on the iPhone 16 Plus. If you’re a gamer, this is probably the most notable upgrade.

Thanks to the new chipset, you’ll also have access to Apple Intelligence features once it’s released as long as you live in a supported region (other than the European Union and China).

Camera comparison

The iPhone 16 Plus essentially borrows its main camera setup from the iPhone 15 Plus. It’s very powerful – 1/1.56 inch size, 48MP sensor with 1.0μm individual pixels and sensor shift OIS. In front of it is a fast f/1.6 lens. The same goes for the selfie camera – the 12MP shooter has already proven itself to be good, and also comes with phase detection autofocus.

The only upgrade is a new ultra-wide camera. It’s still a 12MP unit. But this year, a faster lens with an f/2.2 aperture has arrived. Additionally, and perhaps best of all, it has autofocus and can also be used as a macro camera for close-ups.

Of course, there are also new camera controls. This is an actual physical button that actually moves when you press it. It also integrates capacitive sensors to enable touch and swipe interactions, and high-precision force sensors to detect light presses.

image quality

No matter what Apple tries to convince you, the quality of daytime photos will hardly improve. The iPhone 16 Plus takes the same photos as the iPhone 15 Plus. Detailed images with natural colors, low noise, and excellent dynamic range. The foliage depiction isn’t our favorite, especially when shot at the default 12MP.

The samples below were taken at different times at the same location.

iPhone 16 Plus: 0.5x, 1x, 2x, selfie

iPhone 15 Plus: 0.5x, 1x, 2x, selfie

iPhone 16 Plus now also lets you take macro photos with the new ultra-wide camera.

iPhone 16 Plus – Macro with UW camera

Photos taken with the main camera in low light are almost the same in both 1x and 2x modes. On the iPhone 15 Plus, the camera app didn’t select night mode, but the quality still remains the same.

The ultra-wide camera’s bright aperture helps at night, and the iPhone 16 Plus’s ultra-wide photos are brighter, with more detail, and less noise.

iPhone 16: 0.5x • 1x • 2x

iPhone 15: 0.5x • 1x • 2x

video quality

New video options added to iPhone 16 Plus. It has a studio-grade microphone for better audio quality, and also features spatial video and audio recording.

Other than that, video quality remains the same for all cameras.

Daytime video from all three cameras is excellent overall, including stabilization.

Below are some frame captures from videos taken with the two phones at each focal length for easy comparison.

iPhone 16 Plus: 0.5x, 1x, 2x, selfie

iPhone 15 Plus: 0.5x, 1x, 2x, selfie

Improved low-light video quality with the ultra-wide camera. Better exposure, sharper details, and less noise.

iPhone 16 Plus: 0.5x • 1x

iPhone 15 Plus: 0.5x • 1x

verdict

iPhone 16 Plus is a great premium smartphone with flagship-grade features that excel in all areas that matter: design, screen, battery life, speakers, performance, and camera.

The iPhone 16 Plus is the faster of the two phones, with a better ultra-wide camera and faster wireless charging. Battery life is better, and if Apple is to be believed, durability is also improved. You can now also get action keys and camera controls.

Although they offer roughly the same user experience, the iPhone 16 Plus is objectively a better phone than the iPhone 15 Plus.

However, the iPhone 15 Plus costs about 250 euros less than the 16 Plus and has almost the same quality. Which one you choose will depend on your budget and whether you value the extra features that the iPhone 16 Plus offers.