There are only a few hours left until “It’s Glowtime”so let’s recap what you can expect in case you missed it we already talked about the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus rumors and leaks, here we discuss everything we (think we) know about the two Pro models.
The event starts at 17:00 UTC and we will be reporting on all the new launches. Until then, here is a recap of everything that has happened over the past few months.
The launch
Pre-orders for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will start tomorrow if not later today. We are probably looking at two weeks of pre-orders so first shipments and in-store availability should be on September 20 (Apple always chooses a Friday).
Apple Intelligence, the major upgrade for iOS 18, has missed its deadline and will arrive later as part of iOS 18.1. That’s why Apple two beta branches tested simultaneously. Apple apparently didn’t want to delay the iPhone launch until Intelligence was ready, but we expect it to be a major part of the presentation.
The design
This section will be short – we’ve seen pictures of iPhone 16 Pro Max Dummies and if it wasn’t for the new color (Gold, not Brown), then we might have been fooled into thinking they were just iPhone 15 Pro Maxes. Speaking of colors, there’s of course Titanium Black and Titanium White, and Titanium Silver and Titanium Gold. There was a rumor about a Rose optionbut there is no photographic evidence of such a tint. If you want colors, you better get an iPhone 16 or 16 Plus.
iPhone 16 Pro Max Dummies in White, Black, Silver and Gold
The gold-colored model also appeared in a short unboxing video where it’s labeled “Desert Titanium” (the color is apparently inspired by the sands of the Sahara desert). This video offers a brief glimpse of the front of the phone – well, the front of the box, which features an image of the front of the phone – which shows that not much has changed. The Dynamic Island is in place, apparently no smaller than last year.
Size comparison between the four iPhone 16 models
Apple has changed the design slightly, but that is not immediately clear. The iPhone 16 Pro Max is said to be the the world’s thinnest bezelsbut still the phone will be a bit bigger. The reason for this will become clear when we get to the display part.
| Dimensions | iPhone 15 Pro | iPhone 16 Pro | iPhone 15 Pro Max | iPhone 16 Pro Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Height | 146.6 mm | 149.6 mm | 159.9 mm | 163.0 mm |
| Width | 70.6 mm | 71.5 mm | 76.7 mm | 77.6 mm |
| Thickness | 8.25mm | 8.25mm | 8.25mm | 8.26mm |
| Weight | 187 grams | 194 grams | 221 grams | 225 grams |
Larger displays
Both iPhone Pros retain exclusivity on the ProMotion panels, meaning if you want 120Hz LTPO, you’ll get a Pro model. The two vanilla phones will continue to use the aging 60Hz tech for another year. But this year, the two pairs will diverge even further, as they no longer offer the same screen sizes.
iPhone 16 Pro Max Sales Package
The iPhone 16 Pro will get a 6.3-inch display, while the vanilla 16 sticks at 6.1 inches. The iPhone 16 Pro Max will be the largest iPhone yet, with a 6.9-inch display – up from the 6.7-inch display of the previous Pro Max and upcoming Plus. Resolutions will likely be increased slightly in order to keep the pixel density the same as before.
In the previous section, we mentioned that the bezels are getting thinner to offset some of the growth of larger displays – not enough to completely compensate, but still. The iPhone Pro’s bezels shrink from 1.71mm to 1.2mm compared to last year’s model, while the Pro Max’s bezels go from 1.55mm to 1.15mm.
Here is a mock-up that Ice Universe made to show the difference:
iPhone 16 Pro Max (left) vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max (right) edges
We’re not sure why there have been so few leaked photos (or videos) showing the front of the iPhone Pros, but it’s clear that any major changes to the Dynamic Island will have to wait until next year (it’ll reportedly be narrower by then).
Action and capture buttons
Side views of dummies show the tentatively named Action and Capture buttons, which trigger custom actions and function as a camera shutter button respectively. This does mean that the Alert Slider is being removed, however.
All four iPhone 16 models get an Action button
And a capture button
Apparently, the Capture button will be more of a capacitive trackpad than a physical button, allowing you to make swipe gestures. This could be used to control zoom, for example.
Apple A18 chipset and AI for everyone
Last year, the two Pro phones were powered by Apple’s A17 Pro chipset, while the two vanilla models had to reuse the A16 from the year before. This, coupled with a smaller RAM allocation, means the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus don’t get Apple Intelligence.
We suspect this will be a key part of the presentation later today and a key part of the marketing for the new 16-series, so all four models should be equipped with it.
This means that all four iPhone 16 models will be powered by Apple’s A18 chipset. They may not be identical, with the Pro models possibly having more GPU cores, for example. The NPUs will likely be identical, so that AI tasks on the device will feel equally fast.
They may also have the same amount of RAM, 8GB. We’ve seen leaks claiming this capacity for the two vanilla models and no credible rumors of the Pros getting 12GB. 12GB may have to wait a bit longer for the 17 series and even then it could be reserved for the iPhone 17 Pro Max. AI models require a lot of RAM to run, and Google has even reserved some of the extra RAM on the Pixel 9 phones to keep the model loaded at all times. We’ll see how Apple addresses this issue.
5x telephoto camera for the iPhone 16 Pro, minor upgrades
Like ProMotion, telephoto cameras are exclusive to iPhone Pros. That will be the case for this generation as well, but at least the two Pros are being brought closer together. Previously, only the Pro Max had the long 5x telephoto lens.
Now, both Pro and Pro Max will have a 5x telephoto camera – the same as last year, apparently, with a 12MP sensor and an f/2.8 aperture. The main camera remains unchanged too, a 48MP sensor with 0.7µm pixels (and binning down to 1.4µm). It will offer a 48MP ProRaw mode, rumor has it JPEG-XL (as an alternative to HEIF) and a new video mode – 3K at 120 fps with Dolby Vision.
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max
The ultra-wide camera gets the same 12MP sensor, but gets a new lens on the vanilla models: this gets a wider f/2.2 aperture (up from f/2.4) and autofocus, just like on the Pro models.
We already talked about the Capture button above. Because it’s a capacitive button, it supports swipes (for example, to zoom in and out) and it’s also pressure-sensitive, so there’s a virtual half-press to focus.
Batteries and charging
Apple, like Samsung and Google, simply isn’t a fan of fast charging for phones. Both the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max charged at a leisurely 27W over USB-C and 15W over MagSafe. This year’s models will noticeably bump up the power limits, but not wildly.
The iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max phones will reportedly support 40W wired and 20W MagSafe charging. Okay, that might not sound like much, but that’s an increase of 48% and 33%, respectively. That’s more than the Pixel 9 Pro XL upgrade (23% wired, no upgrade to Qi charging), Samsung hasn’t changed charging rates for its flagships at all (and hasn’t in a while).
Since the two Pro phones are bigger, we’d expect bigger batteries, right? Well, yes, but not quite – the table below compares them with the previous models and shows only minor improvements.
| Capacity | Wired charging | MagSafe Charging | |
|---|---|---|---|
| iPhone 15 Pro | 3,274 mAh | 27W | 15W |
| iPhone 16 Pro | 3,355 mAh | 40W | 20W |
| iPhone 15 Pro Max | 4,441 mAh | 27W | 15W |
| iPhone 16 Pro Max | 4,676 mAh | 40W | 20W |
Increased Production, Benefits from USA
You may or may not care about this, but it’s worth noting. Apple is expected to continue expanding its manufacturing base in USA, and this year, for the first time, Pro models are built in the countryPreviously, Indian factories only made vanilla iPhones. It is expected that USA will account for as much as 25% of total iPhone production by next year.
This move will boost sales in the country, as well as overall production volumes. Apple is reportedly planning to produce more iPhones this yearprimarily focused on the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max. The target is around 90.1 million total, up from 86.2 million last year. The non-Pro duo will reportedly account for around 33% of production, with the rest going to the Pros.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max alone is expected to make up 37% of the mix at 33.2 million units (up from 24.2 million for the previous Pro Max), while the 16 Pro is expected to make up 30% of the mix at 26.6 million units (up from 21.8 million for the 15 Pro).
What comes next?
Since we know most of you don’t upgrade your phone every year, it’s important to mention what’s coming next. This is pure speculation of course, but some will decide to wait another year.
The iPhone 17 Pro Max is said to be a 48MP periscope camera for superior zoom. However, this leak was from late 2023, so plans may have changed since then – it also mentions that the iPhone 16 Pro phones will have 48MP ultra-wide cameras, and that’s not happening. All four iPhone 17 models are expected to have 24MP selfie camerasan increase from the current 12MP.
As mentioned above, the iPhone 17 Pro Max may get 12GB of RAM (but not the smaller 17 Pro). The Pro models may also get an exclusive chipset, the very first chip from TSMC 2nm Foundry.