Apple iPhone 16 series launched with more power and camera control button

It’s that time of the year again when all eyes are on Apple as it unveils its brand-new phones. Almost on cue, the brand has taken the wraps off its iPhone 16 series. In line with all the leaks, the latest iPhone series includes the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max.

iPhone 16 series: What’s new?

The iPhone 16 design is largely similar to last year’s iPhone 15 series with that square off frame and rear glass back. The front is dominated by the screen – 6.1-inch on iPhone 16 and 6.7-inch on iPhone 16 Plus – along with a Dynamic Island at top. While the sizes remain the same, the brightness levels have received a boost. Both iPhone displays can reach up to 2,000 nits of peak brightness.

Similar to what we saw last year, the mute button has been replaced by an Action button. This button is fully customisable with specific tasks or easy access to Shortcuts.

An interesting design choice is reverting to the vertically stacked dual cameras. Speaking of which, the setup includes a 48MP main camera, and a secondary ultrawide camera with autofocus. There’s also a new Camera Control button on the side of the phone.

A quick press will fire up the phone’s camera, and when in the app, a further click will shoot photos. A light press on this new button will also open up various camera controls, which can be easily used without changing your grip.

Some more big changes are under the hood. The new iPhones are powered by Apple’s latest A18 chipset with six cores – two performance and four efficiency – which Apple says is up to 30 per cent faster than the CPU on the iPhone 15.

iPhone 16 Pro series: What’s new?

Apple’s Pro iPhone models again look the same as last year’s iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max with their signature titanium bodies – albeit with one change. Bigger displays.

The iPhone 16 Pro comes with a 6.3-inch screen, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max comes with a 6.9-inch screen. To put that into context, last year’s iPhone 15 Pro series came with 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch screens respectively.

Diving inside, the iPhone 16 Pro series is powered by Apple’s A18 Pro chip. This new chip is said to offer up to 15 per cent faster performance and up to 20 per cent better graphics performance than the iPhone 15 Pro.

A 16-core Neural Engine also promises ‘amazing performance’ for the new Apple Intelligence features, which were first showcased at WWDC earlier this year. Speaking of which, there’s a bunch of new AI features are coming to the new iPhones, some of which are set to be available in beta in October.

Apple’s iPhones, especially the Pro models, are known for their amazing cameras. With the new iPhone 16 Pro series, Apple is offering a 48MP “fusion camera”, a new 48MP ultrawide camera, and a 12MP 5x telephoto camera. Among the highlights are the phones’ video shooting capabilities, including the ability to capture 4K video at 120fps.

Just like the iPhone 16 series, the Pro models also get the Camera Control button for quick access to the camera, and its various features. Later this year, the Camera Control button will be updated with support for a two-stage shutter.

iPhone 16 series pricing and availability

Prices for the iPhone 16 start from $799, while prices for the iPhone 16 Plus start from $899. Prices for the Pro models, on the other hand, start from $999 for the iPhone 16 Pro, and $1,199 for the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Apple’s iPhone 16 series are set to go on sale from September 20 in select markets.