I upgraded to an iPhone 16 Plus – and here’s what I thought.

Every fall, Apple releases four new iPhones, but until last year, I only had eyes for the Pro. Not standard, not mini or plus (depending on year), not even pro max. Truly Pro. It’s a great combination of high-end features and compact body.

But in 2023, things have changed. Mainly because my colleague already had access to review samples of the Pro and Pro Max, and editorially it made more sense for me to go for the Plus. I made this decision with bad elegance and low expectations, thinking that this phone would be the worst of both worlds: too big to fit comfortably in my pocket and lacking in specs and features. I put it down. However, I was pleasantly surprised by how much fun I had using the 15 Plus and decided to give the 16 Plus a try this year, especially since my colleagues thought it was the best choice.

But what’s it like to upgrade from an iPhone 15 Plus to a 16 Plus? Here’s what I learned from the process.

16 Plus looks better. it just happens

That sounds weird, right? Considering that Apple has kept pretty much the same design this year as well. But I like the look of the new phone much better, thanks to some small aesthetic tweaks.

For one thing, the colors are much more vibrant. In both cases I went for the pink and plumped it up, but the 2023 pink was a washed-out rose blush that looked almost white in the photo, but the 2024 pink is incredible. I will discuss my thoughts on the importance of good pink in another article.

David Price / Foundry

David Price / Foundry

David Price / Foundry

I also like the camera module on the back. It’s not too noticeable thanks to the vertical configuration, and I also liked that there’s no cutout on the left edge of the case because of the action button. It gives you a cleaner, more satisfying look.

Action buttons are better, but not that great

This is one of the downsides of using the 15 Plus last year. As for the action button, one of the flagship Pro features for 2023, I couldn’t figure it out. I’m using it for the first time now. I apologize if the hot takes below are cold.

This is my view. Having an action button instead of a mute switch is clearly better. Because it looks good (see above), it’s easy to use, it doesn’t get clogged with dust, it’s probably less likely to break down, and it can be programmed to perform other functions. It’s more convenient than mute/unmute if you need it. But I don’t really understand why you would use the other core features, the last feature is the main advantage.

It’s nice to have easy access to mute controls. While using the 16 Plus, I wasn’t willing to sacrifice it for another control. I use my flashlight less often and it’s now easily accessible from my lock screen. The latter point also applies doubly to the camera, which can be accessed from the lock screen or the new camera controls. Shazam is a nice niche feature that I can imagine myself using a couple of times a year. For Magnifier, that number probably goes up by a factor of 5-6. And let’s be honest, most people don’t jump into shortcuts to create their own actions.

[アクション]The only alternative use for the button is translation. When I go on vacation to a place where I don’t speak the language, I switch the button to that function and use my iPhone as a handy sci-fi translator. But for the rest of the year, it will remain as a glorified mute switch.

The camera is much better for close-ups, but that’s about it

Cameras are a key element in a smartphone’s arsenal, so I’ve been intensively testing the 16 Plus’ photo capabilities…and to be honest, 90% of the time, there’s no noticeable difference. The brand name of the main camera has been changed to “Fusion”. sound Well, the ultra-wide aperture has been improved from f/2.4 to f/2.2, and the photography style has also been updated. But none of that resulted in better photos, at least in my subjective experience.

Except for the new macro photography feature. Close-ups are much better, but not even close (I’m not kidding).

If you spend a lot of time taking pictures of small painted models to post on the internet, this could be a great upgrade.

I don’t really like the camera controls. Not now and probably never will be

So the camera itself doesn’t change much, but the way you access it changes. There’s a new button on the far right called “Camera Control” that lets you open the camera app with one click and take a photo with a second click.

My problem with this is twofold. First of all, as mentioned above, this is not really necessary. The Camera app is already easy to open by swiping right from the lock screen. Second, this button is located in an awkward spot on the chassis, meaning that if you pick up the phone with your left hand, your ring finger will unintentionally press it, and if you pick up the phone with your left hand, your right index finger will have a hard time reaching it. Horizontal. It’s a little too far along the edges for comfort. (This may be a problem specific to the longer-sided Plus models; I haven’t tried the standard iPhone 16.)

David Price / Foundry

David Price / Foundry

David Price / Foundry

That’s before we get into advanced controls. A “tap” on the camera controls allows you to adjust exposure, depth of field effects, zoom, style, and more. You can toggle between them by pressing twice. But these actions are so counterintuitive and so tedious to do correctly that I have no interest in using them… which means I’m unlikely to get any better. The good news is that you can turn it off.

Wind noise reduction doesn’t seem to be very effective.

All four 16 series phones come with a new feature that Apple calls “Wind Noise Reduction.” It uses “powerful machine learning algorithms to reduce unwanted noise and improve sound quality.” I recorded myself talking stupidly into my phone on a windy, rainy day with both the 15 Plus and 16 Plus, and when I looked back at the video, I didn’t notice any difference. . In both cases, the wind was hardly a problem. However, the noise of passing cars was very loud.

A look at the spec sheet shows that (at least in theory) it’s pushing its processor forward two generations this year. From the A16 Bionic on the 15 Plus to the A18 on the 16 Plus. Apple is cautious about the exact specs of its proprietary chip, but my speed benchmark results confirmed the idea that this is a big step forward. The 16 Plus was about 25% faster than the 15 Plus in the Geekbench 5 and Geekbench 6 CPU tests, and an astonishing 45% faster in the GB5 Compute test.

However, while it is a remarkable improvement on paper, the real-world effect is hardly noticeable. Currently, there are no iPhone tasks that require that much theoretical speed. You’ll probably find, like me, that the 16 Plus doesn’t actually feel fast.

However, you can add an extra year or two to prepare for the future. Apps will become more demanding to take advantage of the greater processing power coming to the market. And of course, there’s Apple Intelligence. Speaking of which…

Connor Jewys / Foundry

Connor Jewys / Foundry

Connor Jewys / Foundry

And we’re still waiting for Apple Intelligence

Apple Intelligence is an important feature and an upgrade that Apple built around the entire iPhone 16 launch, so it feels strange to see it last. But that hasn’t happened yet, and probably won’t happen for another few weeks. It is difficult to judge this.

Most obviously, if major features aren’t available until almost two months after launch, you can hardly expect customers to be so eager to upgrade. But more insidiously, you’re asking people to buy an iPhone for a feature that no one outside of Apple Park has tested, and that feature may not immediately live up to the hype. (perhaps I should say “almost certainly not expected”). . Apple would have to build its own AI platform almost from scratch, and it can’t expect it to perform as well as ChatGPT or other established rivals from day one. AI requires time and training data, and Apple doesn’t have much of either. Apple intelligence could take years to come into its own.

Apple enthusiasts are sometimes accused of buying the latest iPhone on launch day, regardless of whether the upgrade is worth it or not, and this is not entirely without reason. But at least before, those fans had a rough idea of ​​what to expect. This time, Apple is forcing users to pry open their wallets before anyone has seen the major features, which seems like a risk to everyone.

Bottom line: Is it worth upgrading?

If you have an iPhone 15 Plus, we don’t recommend upgrading to iPhone 16 Plus. I don’t feel like it’s faster. Cameras are only good for certain use cases. I don’t rate the camera controls at all. The color is better, but I can’t justify spending this much money.

If you need to upgrade, wait at least until Apple Intelligence is released at the end of October. That way you’ll know if the main event is worth the price of admission.