Apple's next-generation iPhone 16 series will launch in September 2024 and compete in a quickly evolving smartphone market, and with some notable upgrades rumored, the new models could well see price changes compared to previous years. Here's what we know so far.
Feature Upgrades
Apple is expected to make some major changes to the iPhone 16 lineup. Below are some of the more significant upgrades that have been rumored so far.
Larger Pro Devices
This year's iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are rumored to be getting bigger display sizes, going from 6.12- and 6.69-inches to 6.27- and 6.86-inches, respectively.
With the increase in display size, the dimensions of the iPhone's body will also increase. Both models are expected to be taller and wider than the iPhone 15 Pro models.
New Video Capture Button
A new Capture button will feature on all four iPhone 16 models, and it will be used for taking photos and videos in landscape orientation.
The Capture button will be located on the same side of the iPhone as the Power button. It will be capable of detecting multiple levels of pressure, allowing the button to emulate a two-step shutter button like the button used on digital cameras.
Action Button for All Models
On standard iPhone 16 models, Apple plans to replace the mute switch with the Action button, adopting the same button that was introduced with the iPhone 15 Pro models.
The Action button can perform multiple functions such as activating the Flashlight, turning on the Camera, launching a Shortcut, enabling or disabling a Focus mode, using Translate, turning on/off Silent Mode, and more.
Faster Chips
The entire iPhone 16 lineup is expected to feature the same A18 chip, according to reports. The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are likely to feature a chip branded as an "A18 Pro," even though the entire lineup of chips features the same chip identifiers.
In this respect, the standard "A18" chip in the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus may have some binned or disabled modules to differentiate it. Additionally, the A18 could feature an upgraded Neural Engine with "significantly" more cores, allowing for improved AI/machine learning performance, although this could be exclusive to the Pro models.
Upgraded Cameras
The iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus are expected to have a vertical camera layout that's similar to the camera layout used in the iPhone 12. Apple has used a diagonal layout for the iPhone 13 and iPhone 14, but the swap is expected to allow for spatial video recording using the Ultrawide and Wide cameras.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro models are rumored to include an improved 48-megapixel Ultra Wide lens, which would allow improved images in lower lighting conditions. It will likely function like the 48-megapixel Wide camera, which uses pixel binning to combine the data from four pixels into one "super pixel" for better image quality.
Faster Wi-Fi
Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes the iPhone 16 Pro models could adopt the net-generation WiFi 7 technology, which is expected to provide speeds of "at least 30" gigabits per second, and could hit up to 40Gb/s.
While Wi-Fi 7 could be limited to the iPhone 16 Pro models, the standard iPhone 16 models could get an upgrade to Wi-Fi 6E, which supports the 6GHz Wi-Fi band. Right now, Wi-Fi 6E is limited to the iPhone 15 Pro models.
Will Apple Increase iPhone 16 Prices?
Successive iPhone models always come with new features and hardware upgrades, but Apple typically does not increase the retail prices as a result. However, that could change this year due to an increasingly competitive smartphone market, potential supply chain disruptions, and other global economic challenges.
Last year saw a record high for the total cost of an iPhone's components, and could be a harbinger of things to come. According to one report, last year's iPhone 15 models cost more to produce than the previous iPhone 14. For example, iPhone 15 Pro Max is believed to cost Apple $558 to produce, a 12% increase over the iPhone 14 Pro Max model released in 2022.
The other models in the iPhone 15 lineup were also subject to cost increases. The standard iPhone 15's components totaled $423, a 16% increase compared to the iPhone 14. The iPhone 15 Plus is calculated at $442, a 10% increase over its predecessor, while the iPhone 15 Pro grew by 8% to $523.
Despite the increased costs, Apple did not increase the retail prices of any of its iPhone 15 models last year. However, Tokyo-based research company Fomalhaut Techno Solutions believes that Apple's bottom line will be impacted if the company continues to absorb the impact of increased production costs. That could see Apple choose to hike the retail prices of this year's iPhone 16 series.
On the other hand, Apple will be wary of hiking prices in the face of the increased cost of living, as well as recent market challenges in Asia that have seen falling sales. For example, iPhone 15 resellers in China have become increasingly dependent on promotional discounts to move stock, indicating Apple's latest iPhone generation is struggling to achieve the same popularity as previous models in China.
We don't know with complete certainty what prices Apple will set for its next-generation iPhone models. But it's worth noting that if the starting price of the standard iPhone 16 model remains unchanged ($799), it will have the same starting price as the iPhone 12, which was released in 2020. That said, Apple could remove certain configuration options so that customers are essentially forced to pay more, as it did with the iPhone 15 Pro Max last year.
Ahead of the launch of the iPhone 15 models, there were rumors that the iPhone 15 Pro Max could start at $1,199, instead of the $1,099 starting price it charged for the iPhone 14 Pro Max. That did turn out to be accurate, but only because Apple eliminated the lower priced 128GB storage tier. The iPhone 15 Pro Max now starts at 256GB, and $1,199 is the same price Apple charged for the 256GB iPhone 14 Pro Max.
Whether or not Apple decides to adopt a similar strategy for any other iPhone 16 models remains to be seen. For all the details of what we can expect from the four new iPhone 16 models, be sure to check out our dedicated iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro roundups.
