Will iPhone 16 Plus be the worst 'downgrade' in iPhone history?

In theory, most people believe any iPhone 16 model is better than the equivalent iPhone 15 model. However, leaks show that's not happening with the iPhone 16 Plus model, and that's a worry.

Will iPhone 16 Plus be the worst 'downgrade' in iPhone history? Picture 1

Lower battery capacity may cause iPhone 16 Plus battery life to be worse.

Rumors suggest that all iPhone 16 models, except the iPhone 16 Plus, will come with larger capacity batteries. As for the iPhone 16 Plus, the battery capacity will be reduced compared to the iPhone 15 Plus and even the iPhone 14 Plus.

Users' initial reaction to the information was: 'How does Apple cut down on the battery for such a large screen phone?'. iPhones usually have smaller batteries than comparably sized Android phones, but it would make more sense to equip a 6.7-inch phone with a 5,000 mAh battery, instead of hovering around the 4,000 mark. mAh. But thinking about it more makes people wonder whether Apple may have indirectly signaled the death of the iPhone Plus line in the near future.

Returning to the iPhone 15 Plus (and iPhone 14 Plus), this product stands out thanks to having the longest battery life of all iPhone models and ranks 10th in Tom's smartphone rankings with the best battery life. Guide. This has given Plus an advantage in each year of launching the iPhone quartet, which is a highly durable model.

The small difference in battery life may cause users to turn away from the iPhone 16 Plus.

The reduction in battery capacity on the iPhone 16 Plus could mean that the battery life will be shorter, equal, or if any, very little improvement compared to the iPhone 15 Plus. In Tom's Guide's iPhone 15 battery test, the iPhone 15 Plus beat the second-place iPhone 15 Pro Max by a margin of 12 minutes, while outperforming the two 6.1-inch models by more than 3 hours. So while the iPhone 16 Plus will probably still beat the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro, it may lose out to the iPhone 16 Pro Max in battery tests this year.

Let's assume that the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus are designed identically, except for the battery and screen size. Because of those two factors, users will spend more than 2 million VND to get the Plus model. While it's true that a larger screen may still attract customers, the gap in battery life makes the iPhone 16 Plus even less appealing. Instead, users can save money by choosing the standard model or spend a little more to get Pro power and not lose too much battery life.

Apple once had to discontinue the iPhone mini line due to poor sales.

And that's why the iPhone 16 Plus could be 'in danger'. Apple has discontinued the iPhone mini since the iPhone 13 mini due to low sales. Therefore, if not careful, Apple may reduce it to only three new iPhone models per year, leaving users with fewer choices.

Of course, there's still plenty of time for Apple to perfect the iPhone 16 models, so hopefully the company will rethink battery capacity adjustments for the iPhone 16 Plus to ensure the product keeps the battery life crown on the iPhone.

Marvin Fry

Update 19 April 2024