iPhone 16 and iPhone 15: what changes in Apple's new phones?

September 09, 2024, Apple finally presented the iPhone 16, its new generation of cell phones for 2024. The entire line offers interesting new features, both in terms of technical specifications and features, making it one of the company's most notable launches.

While the iPhone 15 delivered an improved yet familiar experience, the iPhone 16 seeks to reinforce those qualities and introduce new features. Among the most exciting additions is the "Camera Control," a new tactile button for managing camera functions — also improved.

However, the differences are not only external but also internal. The iPhone 16 marks the debut of the first Apple devices built to handle the demands of Apple Intelligence, a set of tools powered by generative artificial intelligence.

Therefore, like every year, We compare the new features of the iPhone 16 to those of the iPhone 15.

♦ iPhone 16 and iPhone 15: What has changed? ♦

▪ New Camera Control

The main new feature of the iPhone 16 is the "Camera Control." The capacitive button is positioned on the side of the phone and can interpret gestures and different levels of pressure.

This versatility guarantees component support for multiple functions, all integrated into the iOS 18 camera app. With it, the user can take photos, start recording videos, access camera functions (zoom and exposure, for example) and more.

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▪ New Apple Fusion Cameras

Still speaking of cameras, the lenses are now named "Apple Fusion." The base model has two sensors: the main 48 MP and a 12 MP ultrawide, while the Pro models ship the same 48 MP main lens, 48 ​​MP ultrawide and 12 MP telephoto.

On the base iPhone 16 models, the improved ultrawide sensor supports a macro photography function. In addition, thanks to the vertical positioning of the cameras, the phones also support spatial video capture.

The differences in the iPhone 16 Pro are more significant: the ultrawide lens went from 12 MP on the iPhone 15 Pro to now delivering 48 MP of resolution. The improvement can provide images with more extraordinary richness of detail, especially in macro photography or wide shots.

▪ Apple A18 Bionic Chipset

In 2024, Apple finally embraced generative AI into its ecosystem through Apple Intelligence. The feature set uses local processing and the company's data centers to deliver various features in iOS 18.

Apple is positioning the iPhone 16 as "made for Apple Intelligence." This preparation is evident in the new Apple A18 and Apple A18 Pro chipsets, present in the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro, respectively.

Overall, the A18 Bionic and its bigger sibling deliver more performance than their counterparts from last year. The improvements to the Neural Engine (Apple's nickname for NPUs) aim to provide exemplary performance in this year's new devices and ensure longevity for future additions.

Likewise, the energy optimizations of the 3nm lithography and improvements in other areas of the chipset, such as the integrated GPU, deliver longer battery life, better graphics rendering performance and more multitasking capacity.

▪ More colors

Apple is betting on a more colorful palette for the iPhone 16. The iPhone 16 Pro features a gold color, maintaining the more sober design of the more expensive line and highlighting the titanium finish.

The idea of ​​offering color options remains in the base iPhone 16: there are still five options, but they are now more vivid with the arrival of blue and green.

▪ Action Button on iPhone 16

To close the list of new features, the Action Button arrived on the base models of the iPhone 16. The component's features, previously exclusive to the most expensive units, are included across the entire line.

The Action Button was introduced on the iPhone 15 Pro. The component replaces the ring/silent button but has extra functions that make it even more useful for everyday use, such as activating the camera, turning on the flashlight, making translations, activating/deactivating the volume and accessing accessibility features.

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♦ iPhone 16 and iPhone 15: What hasn't changed? ♦

In this most recent release, few features were preserved in the new devices. Perhaps the main similarity is the construction: the iPhone 16 comprises the same aluminum and infused colored glass back as the iPhone 15.

The iPhone 16 Pro also maintained the titanium construction introduced by the iPhone 15 Pro, thus consolidating the proposal to use the material to distinguish devices aimed at the premium market.

Another similarity of the new generation of phones is the Dynamic Island. The component was kept in all iPhone 16s, as in the iPhone 15 — apparently, it was a novelty that is here to stay.

Finally, the USB-C input is also introduced in the previous generation.

▪ iPhones 16 are more expensive

However, the package of new features did not come for free: the iPhone 16s were launched with suggested prices even higher than the previous generation — some devices are up to U$100 more expensive.

Pre-orders of the new iPhone 16 began on September 13th.