With Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra recently debuted last week, all eyes are on what Apple may have planned for the next-generation iPhone 16 Pro lineup. Even though Apple traditionally launches new iPhones in September, a flood of leaks and analyst predictions have given us a rough idea of what to expect. Speedier and more power-efficient processors are something we should expect, but Apple could bring hardware changes, giving its top-end iPhone Pro series a much-needed boost. Read on for all the details we know about the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max. Twice the storage on iPhone 16 Pro Apple has been offering up to 1 TB of storage on the Pro iPhones for a while now, and starting with the iPhone 16, the company is expected to offer up to 2 TB of storage, at least on the pro models, suggests a report from DigiTimes. On top of that, the report also highlights that Apple could opt for a slightly cheaper QLC (Quad-Level Cell) NAND type storage, which is cheaper than the TLC (Triple-Level Cell) NAND. This would attract content creators, who need an iPhone with large storage capacity, and given iPhones can also shoot 3D Spatial videos, a higher storage variant could also attract power users, who like to store all their data locally on the iPhone. This could also mean, just like the iPhone 15 Pro Max, all variants of the iPhone 16 could finally start at 256 GB of internal storage. Considering QLC NAND is cheaper than TLC NAND, Apple is said to be investing in both technologies at this moment. A single QLC NAND can also store more data than a TLC NAND. However, TLC NAND has issues like lower read/write speeds and lower reliability with a slightly higher risk of failure when compared to QLC-type NAND. A dedicated camera button A new leak by The Information indicates that the iPhone 16 Pro series might come with an extra button, rather than the earlier suggested buttonless iPhone. As per the leak, the new button on the iPhone 16 series could be located on the lower right-hand side of the iPhone, similar to the older Nokia Lumia and Sony Xperia flagships. The positioning of this new capacitive button indicates that it could double as a camera trigger, in fact, similar to how one can use a volume button as a camera trigger, and it could mimic the feeling of pressing a physical button using a haptic engine. It is also said to be pressure pressure-sensitive button, allowing users to use the same button for focusing and clicking pictures or shooting videos. It is reported that all four variants of the iPhone 16 might come with this new button, and Apple is also expected to expand the action button of the iPhone 15 Pro lineup to the entire iPhone 16 with customisation support via the Shortcuts app. Bigger screen sizes The iPhone 16 series is said to feature bigger displays across the lineup. While the iPhone 16 and the iPhone 16 are reported to include a 6.3-inch screen, the bigger iPhone 16 Plus and the iPhone 16 Pro Max are expected to offer a much bigger 6.9-inch screen. However, Apple is likely to limit the 120Hz ProMotion refresh rate to the Pro models. Bigger displays also mean bigger batteries, and we could expect to see some significant upgrades in the battery size, which will lead to better battery life across the lineup. On top of that, Apple could also equip these iPhones with better cooling solutions to improve and sustain peak performance. All four iPhone 16 models, despite packing bigger screens are expected to look similar to the iPhone 15 series with a pill-shaped cutout for the Dynamic Island at the top, and Apple could further shrink the size of the bezels for a slightly higher screen-to-body ratio. AAA gaming across the lineup Apple has been using a previous generation chip on the baseline iPhone models for a while now, and the company is likely to go back to using the same chip across the lineup. A report from MacRumors suggests that the entire iPhone 16 lineup is said to be powered by the A18 chip. However, the Pro models could feature speed-binned chips with higher CPU clock speed and more CPU cores. This would enable console-level AAA-grade gaming on the entire iPhone 16 lineup, and the A18 chip is said to be a 3nm chip, similar to the A17 Pro and the M3 chip, and the iPhone 16 Pro family might include more memory (RAM) to enable more camera features and computing capabilities. Considering the recent industry trends of offering extended software support for up to 7 years, we could see a similar announcement from Apple, and these new chips could also enable some new AI features, powered by on-device generative AI capability. Periscope zoom lens on more iPhones Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggests that Apple will start offering the 5x telephoto zoom lens on the iPhone 16 Pro and the iPhone 16 Pro Max. With a larger display on the iPhone 16 Pro, Apple should be able to implement the new zoom lens, which takes slightly more space on the inside of the phone when compared to a regular camera module. Besides, the iPhone 16 Pro might also get a high-resolution ultra-wide angle lens. Just like the 48 MP primary shooter, and new ultra-wide angle lens is also said to offer 48 MP resolution, allowing users to natively shoot 24 MP images by default, which will have more details and clarity when compared to images shot on a 12 MP Ultra-wide angle lens. The selfie camera, despite staying at 12 MP resolution is also said to get an upgrade with a slightly wider aperture to enhance low-light performance. However, the regular iPhone 16 and the iPhone 16 Plus might continue to offer a 12 MP ultra-wide angle lens.
