5 reasons not to buy iPhone 16 Pro

1. No upgrade to front camera and telephoto camera

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Apple hasn't upgraded much in the iPhone 16 Pro's camera department. The main camera and ultra-wide camera promise improved image quality thanks to newer sensors. However, the 12MP 5x telephoto camera and 12MP TrueDepth front camera remain unchanged.

The only "upgrade" is that the smaller iPhone 16 Pro now also gets a 5x telephoto camera, previously only available on the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

The best Android camera phones all have 5x optical zoom cameras with resolutions of 48MP or higher. The Google Pixel 9 Pro even has a 42MP wide-angle selfie camera. The higher resolution will allow the telephoto lens and front camera to capture more detailed photos with improved sharpness.

2. The Action button is placed in an inappropriate position

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First introduced on the iPhone 15 Pro, the Action button seems useful in theory. You can customize the Action button to trigger shortcuts, open third-party apps, turn on the flashlight, and more. However, Apple hasn't done a great job of implementing this. The button is placed too high, making it inconvenient to use frequently.

With the iPhone 16 Pro line, Apple has kept the Action button in the same location, limiting its usefulness. The button's customization and potential are rendered useless when it's hard to reach. This is even more of a problem because the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max have larger screens, making them slightly taller than the iPhone 15 Pro line.

3. No exclusive Apple Intelligence features on iPhone 16 Pro

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The iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max use Apple's latest A18 Pro chip, which promises a significant leap in performance for the CPU, GPU, and Neural Engine. Apple also talked a lot about Apple Intelligence when it launched the iPhone 16 Pro line.

Despite all the power, the new iPhones don't have exclusive access to any of Apple's AI features. Like the iPhone 15 Pro series, they only run certain AI tasks on the device, with the rest handled in the cloud.

In the long run, however, the iPhone 16 Pro's A18 Pro chip, with its faster Neural Engine, will gain power and possibly new AI features. But for now, that's not happening.

4. iPhone 15 Pro still works great

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The lack of any proprietary Apple Intelligence features on the iPhone 16 Pro line is all the more troubling when considering the performance of the iPhone 15 Pro. A year after its launch, the A17 Pro chip inside the iPhone 15 Pro can still work on its own, running all your favorite iOS apps and games smoothly.

iOS 18.1 will introduce Apple Intelligence and ChatGPT integration, which is also expected to arrive in late 2024. So there's virtually no difference between the software experience of the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 16 Pro, making upgrading to the iPhone 16 Pro almost pointless.

5. No groundbreaking hardware upgrades

Apple's iPhone 16 Pro lineup includes the usual yearly hardware upgrades: fast chips, big screens, and slimmer bezels. The capacitive Camera Control button is the only major addition this year. But it won't make a significant difference to your workflow unless you use your iPhone to take hundreds of photos almost every week.

Likewise, the larger 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch displays are welcome improvements but not a necessity today. Plus, Apple doesn't offer new multitasking options on the iPhone 16 Pro Max to make the most of its larger 6.9-inch display.

As an iPhone 15 Pro Max user, upgrading to the iPhone 16 Pro Max will improve your day-to-day user experience. The newer iPhone promises a more complete experience, especially with longer battery life and better heat management. However, these reasons alone are not enough to justify the upgrade. You're better off saving your money and upgrading to the iPhone 17 Pro in 2025.

Samuel Daniel

Update 12 September 2024