Ignore the engagement-hungry headlines and cynism - there’s plenty news in the iPhone 16 lineup

The first 36 hours of reporting after the annual Apple iPhone event has been exhausting. It usually is, but feels worse this year.

The takeaway that parts of the tech community seemingly got together and decided to have, is that this year's iPhone are boring and there are limited improvements. So let me counteract that, because it's a cynical and simplistic take.

Here’s what actually new in this year’s iPhone lineup, starting with the non-Pro phones:

• Camera Control. Cynically called “just a new button”, but this goes way further than that. Check out this 4 minute actual hands-on withthis new “button”. You will agree with me after watching it. Also check out Jason Snells column in MacWorld about this, quoting parts of it here:

"I got to spend some time trying out Camera Control this week and I think it’s got a lot of advantages that will make the iPhone a better camera.

"The Camera Control button is a winner when it comes to being tactile. When you press it down all the way to launch the Camera app or to take a photo, there’s a satisfying popping feeling on your finger, courtesy of a little extra haptics. Taking a picture is as simple as pulling your phone out of your pocket and feeling for the Camera Control button. This was the solution for physical cameras for years, and now it’s on the iPhone. Apple has even aped the old-school camera interface where you press halfway to focus and then all the way to take a picture."

"Camera Control is as complicated as you want to make it. At its core, it really is point-and-shoot. When you press the button all the way, you take a picture."

• New camera system
  • New 12MP Ultra Wide camera with autofocus, enabling macro photography.
  • The new Ultra Wide camera also gathers up to 2.6x more light for higher image quality.
  • Can now take spatial photos and videos for Apple Vision Pro
  • Video can now be captured in Spatial Audio for immersive listening with AirPods, Apple Vision Pro, or a surround sound system
• New chip
  • The new A18 delivers a huge leap in performance and power efficiency
  • An upgraded 16-core Neural Engine is optimized for large generative models and runs ML models up to 2x faster.
  • The 6-core CPU is 30 percent faster and faster than all the competition.
  • It is also more power efficient and can run the same workload with 30 percent less power
  • The 5-core GPU is up to 40 percent faster and 35 percent more efficient
• Massive battery life improvements. This unfortunately was undersold by Apple as well in the event, beyond saying big improvements they neglected to say how big. Their tech specs later revealed they were the biggest generation-to-generation jump in battery performance in the iPhone history. Expect between 4-10 hours longer battery life depending on model.

• Latest-generation Ceramic Shield with an advanced formulation that is 50 percent tougher than the first generation and 2x tougher than glass on any other smartphone
• Internal design has been reengineered to allow for an even larger battery and to better dissipate heat, while making battery service easier
• The Action button comes to iPhone 16, allowing users to easily access a variety of functions with just a press. Users can quickly open the camera, flashlight, or controls; switch between Ring and Silent; recognize music with Shazam; activate Voice Memos, Focus, Translate, and accessibility features like Magnifier; or use Shortcuts for more options.
• Faster wireless charging (25W vs 15, provides 50 percent power in 30 minutes)
• Support for 45w fast charging via usb c, this makes the iPhone 16 charge up to 50% faster than previous models when combined with a supported charger
• Wi-Fi 7 (Better speed, less wireless congestion, and lower latency. In other words, better-performing Wi-Fi, more often.)
• 5G speeds are up to 26% faster due to an upgraded cellular modem
• Environmental improvements
  • More than 30 percent recycled content overall
  • Including 85 percent recycled aluminum in the enclosure and 80 percent or more recycled steel across multiple components
  • The battery is made with 100 percent recycled cobalt and — in a first for iPhone — over 95 percent recycled lithium

iPhone 16 Pro

• Camera Control - read the iPhone 16 section for more as this is a big one
• Larger screens: 6.3" on Pro and 6.9" on Pro Max
• Camera improvements
  • A new 48MP Fusion camera with a faster, more efficient quad-pixel sensor, unlocking 4K120 fps video recording in Dolby Vision — the highest resolution and frame-rate combination ever available on iPhone or any other smartphone .
  • The quad-pixel sensor can read data 2x faster, enabling zero shutter lag for 48MP ProRAW or HEIF photos.
  • A new 48MP Ultra Wide camera also features a quad-pixel sensor with autofocus, so users can take higher-resolution 48MP ProRAW and HEIF images when capturing uniquely framed, wider-angle shots or getting close to their subjects with macro photography.
  • The powerful 5x Telephoto camera now comes on both models, allowing users to catch the action from farther away, no matter which model they choose.
  • Takes spatial photos in addition to videos to help users relive memories with remarkable depth on Apple Vision Pro.
  • Users can capture 4K120 fps in Slo-mo or Video mode, and adjust the playback speed after capture in the Photos app, including a quarter-speed playback, a new half-speed option for a dreamy effect, and a fifth-speed option that corresponds to 24 fps.
  • Both Pro models feature four new studio-quality mics that preserve true-to-life recorded sounds, and video can now be captured in Spatial Audio for immersive listening with AirPods, Apple Vision Pro, or a surround sound system.
• The same massive battery improvements as the iPhone 16 (so read that section), but the impact is even larger on the Pro models
• New chip
  • The new A18 Pro chip is designed with industry-leading compute power to propel Apple Intelligence, ushering in a new era of pro performance.
  • Built with second-generation 3-nanometer technology and featuring a new architecture with smaller, faster transistors, A18 Pro delivers unprecedented efficiency.
  • A new 6-core CPU is the fastest in a smartphone, with two performance cores and four efficiency cores that can run the same workload as the previous generation 15 percent faster while using 20 percent less power.
  • The new 16-core Neural Engine is faster and more efficient than the previous generation, powering remarkable on-device performance for Apple Intelligence.
  • A 17 percent increase in total system memory bandwidth — the highest ever in iPhone
  • The bandwidth increase also benefits the 6-core GPU, which is up to 20 percent faster than the previous generation
• Thinner borders on the display than any other Apple product
• The same Ceramic Shield (front glass) improvements from iPhone 16 - 50% more durable than iPhone 15 and 2x better than any other smartphone
• Wi-Fi 7 (Better speed, less wireless congestion, and lower latency. In other words, better-performing Wi-Fi, more often.)
• Faster wireless charging (25W vs 15, provides 50 percent power in 30 minutes)
• Support for 45w fast charging via usb c, this makes the iPhone 16 charge up to 50% faster than previous models when combined with a supported charger
• Environmental improvements.
  • iPhone 16 Pro uses more recycled metals than ever:
    • 95% recycled lithium in the battery.
    • 100% recycled gold in the plating of the USB-C connector and camera wires.
    • 100% recycled copper foil in the MagSafe inductive charger.
  • The packaging for iPhone 16 Pro is 100% fiber based for the first time. And it’s thinner, which reduces the carbon impact for shipping.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this year is as much of an upgrade in any recent iPhone year, going back as far as to at least iPhone X which was obviously quite the leap. But the point of a mature product like iPhone is not to have every year be an iPhone X year, because that just wouldn't work, but to continuously refine and improve. Another point that seemingly too few people remember, is that very few people actually upgrade their iPhone year-to-year. I do, sure, but the vast majority do not. So the point of each new iPhone should and never be to convince every current iPhone version owner to buy the next one, that would be absurd, but rather making sure that when someone is ready to take the plunge, and upgrade 2-4 generations, they will get a fantastic upgrade and the impact of all those new generations - which add up over time.

Either way, for my own part, I am very excited to pre-order my iPhone 16 Pro Max in natural titanium on Friday - the Camera Control alone would have convinced me as it really looks and sounds awesome, and I cannot wait to use it on a daily basis.