iPhone 16 rumours: Apple may stick to 60Hz displays for yet another year

The iPhone 15 series brought in a host of upgrades. With the base iPhone 15 and the iPhone 15 Plus being bumped up to 48MP cameras, a new HDR algorithm and matte-finish back panels coming to the phones, the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus are by far the best non-Pro iPhones ever released, coming closer to their Pro counterparts than ever before.

However, even Apple fans did not warm up to one aspect of the base iPhones this year – a 60Hz display panel. Something that already feels like technology from a decade ago. Slower 60Hz panels were the only drawback to the new iPhone 15 and 15 Plus which pushed many buyers to the Pro-series. Sadly, it seems these panels will still be a part of the non-Pro iPhones next year.

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The earliest of the iPhone 16 leaks and rumours are just beginning to surface on the web and one of them points at the display panels of the next iPhones. While the next Pro and Pro Max iPhones could pack a larger screen than the typical 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch panels we have gotten used to, it seems the base iPhones will stick to 60Hz panels.

Trusted sources including South Korean tech publication Naver and X (previously Twitter) tipster @Tech_Rave have suggested the lack of improvement on the base iPhone display panels next year. Display Analyst Ross Young even suggests Apple may only upgrade the refresh rate on its non-Pro iPhones in 2025.

What this means for the next iPhone?

With the display panels locked at 60Hz for another year, the next base iPhones will still look choppy during transitions and animations compared to most other phones. Even mid-range Android phones have already started including at least 90Hz if not 120Hz panels, while Apple’s Pro iPhones now support ProMotion, the brand’s own flavour of adaptive 120Hz refresh rate.

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Yes, the drawback may not matter to every user, but remembering that the base iPhones are still meant to be flagship devices aimed at offering the best user experience, you’d think 90Hz or 120Hz panels would have become a part of the package by now. Sadly, this doesn’t seem to be the case for 2024 as well, which even makes us wonder how Apple will differentiate the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus from its successors.

Note that this information is merely speculation at this point, and Apple hasn’t yet officially confirmed any details whatsoever on the upcoming iPhone series. The next iPhone launch is likely at least about 10 months away, enough to make some major changes to the display panels, which we honestly hope does happen, so that more iOS users can finally taste the smoothness of a high refresh rate panel.