Apple took the wraps off the iPhone 16, the first generation of its flagship phones purpose-built for generative AI.
The baseline iPhone 16 model will start at $799 (with a 6.1-inch screen) and the 16 Plus (6.7-inch screen) starts at $899, both with 128 gigabytes of memory. Those are available in five colors: black, white, pink, teal and ultramarine. The iPhone 16 Pro (6.3 inch) starts at $999 and iPhone 16 Pro Max (6.9 inch) starts at $1,199 both with 128 GB, available with up to 1 terabyte of storage. All models will be available starting Sept. 20, 2024.
The phones include the new higher-performance A18 chip — with greater power needed to process AI features — that is up to 30% faster than the chip in iPhone 15, according to Apple. They also incorporate enhanced camera technology, including a 48-megapixel camera and ultrawide camera, and a redesigned Photo app with AI-enabled features. And the iPhone 16s include a new physical button: Camera Control, which lets you launch the camera and take a photo or start video recording; a new camera preview helps you frame the shot and adjust other control options by sliding your finger on the Camera Control switch.
The new iPhone 16 models were announced Monday at Apple’s 2024 fall product event at the tech giant’s Cupertino, Calif., headquarters. The event’s tagline, “It’s Glowtime,” was a reference to the new look for the AI-boosted Siri voice assistant, which now produces an “elegant glowing light” that wraps around the edge of the screen when active, per Apple.
Apple’s iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will be available in four finishes (l. t. r.): black titanium, natural titanium, white titanium and desert titanium.
A centerpiece of the iPhone 16 is Apple Intelligence, a set of features the company unveiled in June that will be part of the upcoming iOS 18 software release — although not with the initial iOS 18 release. For years, iPhones have used AI, dating back to the introduction of Siri in 2011. The new push revolves around generative AI, a more sophisticated flavor of artificial intelligence that creates new content based on a large data set.
In iPhone 16, those include an enhanced Siri integrated with OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Siri includes “richer language-understanding capabilities,” so the assistant can “follow along when users stumble over their words and can maintain context from one request to the next,” according to Apple.
Apple Intelligence includes tools to let you rewrite, proofread and summarize text on iPhone apps (and third-party apps) and the new Image Playground (to be available as a separate app as well as a feature in other apps like Messages) lets users create “playful” generative-AI images. Later this year, iPhone 16 users will be able to click and hold the Camera Control button to activate AI features that provide details of real-world places and things (i.e., to see hours or ratings for a restaurant or identify a dog’s breed).
In addition, Apple Intelligence will let you create custom emoji by typing in text prompts and be able to summarize email messages (instead of simply previewing the first few lines). According to the company, AI-powered iPhones will display only notifications that might need immediate attention.
Beta features of Apple Intelligence will be available in the iOS 18.1 software update in October, the company said, following the release of iOS 18 on Sept. 16. In addition to iPhone 16, Apple Intelligence will be available for users of iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max as well as iPads and Macs with M1 chips and later.
Apple Intelligence will first launch in U.S. English, followed in December to include localized English in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, and the U.K. Additional language support (including Spanish, Chinese, French and Japanese) is slated for 2025.
Meanwhile, according to Apple, the reengineered internal design of iPhone 16 allows for an even larger battery that provide “a big boost in battery life.” That ranges from up to 22 hours of video playback on iPhone 16 and up 33 hours on iPhone 16 Pro Max (the latter representing the best battery life on any iPhone to date).
During the event, Apple showed a behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming music video for The Weeknd’s latest single, “Dancing in the Flames,” shot entirely on iPhone 16 Pro, which can record in 4K in Dolby Vision at up to 120 frames per second for optimal slo-mo video capture, according to the company. The music video, from director Anton Tammi and director of photography Erik Henriksson, will premiere on Friday, Sept. 13.
Also announced at Apple’s event, through videos shot at the company’s campus and around the San Francisco Bay Area:
- Apple Watch Series 10: Touted as the company’s slimmest smartwatch to date, Series 10 features include new depth and water-temperature sensors. Priced starting at $399; available starting Sept. 20.
- AirPods 4: New generation of wireless earbuds features richer bass and “crystal-clear highs,” and personalized spatial audio, according to Apple. The new AirPods also can automatically reduce the audio level when the wearer is speaking with someone in person. Priced at $129, with a model that supports active noise cancelation $179; available starting Sept. 20.
- AirPods Pro 2: High-end line includes new health features: a professional-grade hearing aid mode; hearing protection; and a 5-minute personalized hearing test. Those will be available this fall pending regulatory approval.
