The Best Iphones

New iPhones for nan AI era. | Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge

The hold is complete — benignant of. Apple’s iPhone 16 bid is now wide available, including nan kinda affordable 16E, and its much-hyped Apple Intelligence has arrived courtesy of iOS 18.1. But if you’re expecting a caller benignant of iPhone experience, well, I person immoderate bad news for you. The AI features introduced successful iOS 18.1 and more recent updates, including nan penning devices and ChatGPT integration, are modular fare astatine this point. And though Siri has a caller overgarment of paint, it’s fundamentally nan aforesaid aged Siri.

Apple has promised overmuch more, but nan Apple Intelligence rollout is going to beryllium a slow pain that lasts good into nan fall. This is each to opportunity that if you don’t person immoderate complaints astir really your existent telephone is working, you decidedly shouldn’t unreserved retired and get a caller 1 conscionable for Apple Intelligence.

That’s really nan gist of our telephone buying philosophy: bent connected to nan 1 you’ve got. If you’re not nan type of personification to get excited astir a caller camera button, updated photograph processing options, aliases incremental capacity upgrades, past there’s nary logic to tally retired and bargain an iPhone 16.

But if you’re questioning whether it’s nan twelvemonth to switch your iPhone 11 aliases 12 (or you’re concerned astir a value summation arsenic a consequence of nan current tariff situation), past I deliberation nan reply is an easy yes. There are existent gains this clip around, particularly successful nan basal iPhone 16 and 16 Plus, without moreover considering AI. And if Apple Intelligence turns retired to beryllium thing typical eventually, well, you’ll beryllium fresh for it.

---

The champion iPhone for astir people

Screen: 6.1-inch, 2556 x 1179 OLED, 60Hz refresh complaint / Processor: A18 Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.6 main pinch sensor-shift IS; 12-megapixel ultrawide; 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not advertised / Charging: 27W wired, 25W wireless MagSafe, 15W Qi2, 7.5W Qi / Weather-resistance rating: IP68

Apple’s basal iPhone enjoyed a important hardware boost this clip around, playing an overdue crippled of catch-up to nan Pro series. The iPhone 16 includes nan Action Button from 2023 Pro models — useful if there’s an app successful your life you want to entree astatine nan touch of a fastener — and nan caller Camera Control. So if buttons are thing to spell by, this telephone is two better than nan last-gen model.

There’s much going connected nether nan hood, too. The A18 chipset is successful nan aforesaid procreation arsenic nan processor connected nan Pro models, which hasn’t been nan lawsuit for nan past mates of years. That bodes good for nan 16 bid staying connected nan aforesaid update schedule. And there’s other RAM successful this year’s guidelines model, which tin only beryllium a bully thing.

The iPhone 16 became a overmuch much absorbing camera this clip around, too. The Camera Control offers a speedy measurement to motorboat nan camera app and set settings for illustration vulnerability compensation. But there’s besides a caller group of Photographic Style filters this clip around, pinch options to set contrast, brightness, and undertones to dial successful your preferred rendering of tegument tones. You’ll get amended low-light capacity by stepping up to nan 16 Pro models, and different cool tricks for illustration 4K signaling astatine 120 fps. But moreover without each that, it’s nan astir customizable camera Apple has offered yet.

Outside of camera performance, location are 2 awesome drawbacks to picking nan regular 16 complete a Pro model: nary zoom lens, and nary ProMotion screen. Only nan Pro has a dedicated 5x lens, which is useful for imaginative framing. And nan modular 60Hz surface connected nan iPhone 16 will apt only fuss you if you’re utilized to a smoother 120Hz display, though it’s annoying connected rule that Apple keeps this characteristic to its Pro phones erstwhile virtually each different high-end telephone has one.

Read my afloat Apple iPhone 16 review.

The champion high-end iPhone

Screen: 6.3-inch, 2622 x 1206 OLED, 120Hz refresh complaint / Processor: A18 Pro Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.8 pinch sensor-shift IS; 12-megapixel 5x telephoto pinch OIS; 48-megapixel ultrawide; 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not advertised / Charging: 27W wired, 25W MagSafe wireless, 15W Qi2, 7.5W Qi / Weather-resistance rating: IP68

The iPhone 16 Pro gets a mini but meaningful upgrade this clip around: a bump up to a 5x zoom, which connected nan 15 bid was reserved for nan Pro Max. And while nan alteration from a 3x to 5x zoom doesn’t look that awesome connected paper, it goes a agelong measurement to making nan smaller 16 Pro consciousness for illustration an adjacent to nan 16 Pro Max. For once, you don’t request to get nan biggest telephone to get nan champion phone.

The 16 Pro is astir nan aforesaid size arsenic nan 15 Pro, but it has a bigger screen: 6.3 inches, up from 6.1 inches. There’s besides nan caller Camera Control, an upgraded 48-megapixel ultrawide connected board, and naturally, a caller chipset that — people — supports Apple Intelligence.

There’s thing present that makes nan 16 Pro an absolute must-upgrade. Still, plentifulness of group will want nan latest instrumentality pinch each nan bells and whistles, and nan 16 Pro represents an opportunity to get each of those features without having to bargain nan biggest phone.

Read our afloat Apple iPhone 16 Pro review.

The iPhone pinch nan champion artillery life

Screen: 6.7-inch Super Retina OLED / Processor: A18 Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.6 main pinch sensor-shift IS; 12-megapixel ultrawide; 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not advertised / Charging: 27W wired, 25W wireless MagSafe, 15W Qi2, 7.5W Qi / Weather-resistance rating: IP68

The point astir a large telephone is that it has a large battery. And while that’s easy capable to understand, it still feels astonishing really overmuch much capacity you tin eke retired of nan iPhone 16 Plus’ battery. It’ll agelong good into a 2nd time of use, and moreover if you’re conditioned to complaint your telephone each night, you’ll beryllium amazed astatine really overmuch you person near successful nan vessel astatine nan extremity of each day. It’s a coagulated antidote to artillery anxiety.

Naturally, nan 16 Plus’ big-ness comes pinch different bonus: a bigger screen. The benefits are evident here, too. But thing that stands retired to maine erstwhile I usage nan telephone is conscionable really ray it feels for its size, particularly if you’re comparing it to nan 16 Pro Max. If you for illustration a large show but don’t request each of nan weight of nan Max — metaphorically and physically speaking — past nan Plus is nan measurement to go.

Read our afloat Apple iPhone 16 Plus review.

The champion inexpensive-ish iPhone

Screen: 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR / Processor: A18 Cameras: 48MP Fusion pinch 1x and 2x optical zoom, 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not advertised / Charging: 20-watt wired, 7.5W Qi, nary MagSafe/ Weather-resistance rating: IP68

This proposal comes pinch a dense sigh. Yes, nan 16E is nan cheapest caller iPhone Apple sells. Yes, it’s a bully phone. It has a tin camera, reliable performance, afloat h2o resistance, wireless charging, and will beryllium supported pinch package updates for years to come. But its $599 value tag starts to consciousness for illustration excessively overmuch erstwhile you see what it’s missing.

There’s nary MagSafe, which you tin benignant of adhd by measurement of a MagSafe case, but it’s a bummer not to person it built successful erstwhile it has fundamentally go a modular iPhone feature. There’s nary ultrawide camera, nary Dynamic Island lodging timely information, nary camera power (not a immense loss, honestly), and nary Ultra Wideband for precise entity tracking. It does support Apple Intelligence, but that doesn’t consciousness for illustration overmuch of a consolation, fixed that it’s very overmuch still a activity successful progress.

The 16E will astir apt person much years of package support than a previous-gen exemplary for illustration nan iPhone 14 aliases 15. And sure, Apple Intelligence mightiness move into thing useful someday. The 16E is simply a bully prime if you want nan way of slightest guidance to bluish bubbles and FaceTime astatine your fingertips. But if you’d for illustration MagSafe, a much precocious camera, and immoderate of nan different bells and whistles that sewage mislaid connected nan measurement to nan 16E, past it’s not a bad thought to look astatine 1 of nan older iPhones.

Read my afloat Apple iPhone 16E review.

---

What astir nan iPhone 15?

Apple still sells the iPhone 15 new, cutting nan value down to $699 pinch nan preamble of nan 16 series. There’s a beardown statement for buying a 15 alternatively than nan 16E if you don’t attraction astir Apple Intelligence; nan 15 Pro runs Apple Intelligence while nan regular 15 doesn’t. Compared to nan 16E, nan iPhone 15 includes MagSafe, nan Dynamic Island, an ultra wideband spot for precise point tracking, and an ultrawide camera.

Update, July 25th: Updated to bespeak existent pricing / availability, pinch caller links for relevancy.