iPhone 16 Plus: the latest news, rumors and everything we know so far
The iPhone 16 Plus probably won’t be the most popular phone in the iPhone 16 line. Based on its previous form, it will likely be the least popular, with the iPhone 16 Pro Max likely to take the top spot in sales, but this could still be an exciting device.
Thanks to leaks and rumors, we already have a good idea of what to expect from the iPhone 16 Plus, even though it probably won’t land until September. Below you’ll find everything we’ve heard so far, including the rumored release date, price, design and specs.
However, we’re sure to hear a lot more rumors about this phone before launch, and we’ll round them all up here. Therefore, come back regularly if you want the most complete picture possible of the pre-launch of the iPhone 16 Plus.
Cut to the chase
- What is it? The larger screen alternative to the iPhone 16
- When is it out? Probably September 2024
- How much is it? Probably at least $899 / £899 / AU$1,649
iPhone 16 Plus: expected release date and price
- Probably to be announced in the first half of September
- Should ship before the end of September
- Could cost around $899 / £899 / AU$1,649
Based on previous form, the iPhone 16 Plus will almost certainly be announced in the first or second week of September – probably on a Tuesday or Wednesday.
Pre-orders are likely to open on Friday and the phone will likely ship the following Friday, meaning buyers will get their hands on it before the end of September.
As for price, the iPhone 16 Plus could cost a similar amount to the iPhone 15 Plus, which starts at $899 / £899 / AU$1,649. However, it could also cost a little more, and there’s even a chance it could cost less.
According to a Nikkei Asia report, high production costs could drive up the price of the iPhone 16 series, although the publication did not say by how much.
On the other hand, a rumored change in the manufacturing process of Apple’s smartphone chipsets could lead to a lower price. In either case, however, we wouldn’t expect a drastic difference.
iPhone 16 Plus: Expected design
- Possibly a new ‘Capture button’
- May contain the iPhone 15 Pro action button
- The cameras can be placed vertically
Visually, one of the biggest changes we could see on the iPhone 16 Plus is the camera setup, which this year could see the lenses arranged vertically instead of diagonally. We first heard this back in May 2023, but since then a leak of iPhone 16 components and iPhone 16 molds have backed it up by showing this design.
We’ve also seen this design in leaked iPhone 16 prototype images, which you can see below. These show three designs that were apparently under consideration, with the black one expected to appear, although they all have vertical cameras.
Image 1 by 3
Since then, a set of iPhone 16 series dummy units have been leaked, which you can see below. A similar iPhone 16 series dummy unit photo has also surfaced, and in both cases it shows a vertical camera layout for the iPhone 16 Plus.
Some of these images also show two new buttons: there’s an action button where the mute switch used to be, as already found on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, and more interestingly, there’s a new button underneath the power button, Rumor has it it’s called a ‘Capture button’.
This new button will apparently be for recording videos according to one source, while another adds that the Capture button will let you zoom the camera in and out with a swipe, while a light press will focus it and a hard press will takes a few minutes. photo or start recording a video.
The same source claims that the Capture button will be mechanical, which contradicts previous leaks that claim the Capture button will be capacitive.
As for the colors of the iPhone 16 Plus, leaks suggest that it will arrive in pink, yellow, blue, green, black, white and purple shades. We’ve also heard that the iPhone 16 Plus may use colored glass like its predecessor.
iPhone 16 Plus: Expected display
- It is rumored to have a 6.7-inch display
- There are rumors of a 60Hz refresh rate
- May have a brighter screen than the iPhone 15 Plus
The iPhone 16 Plus may not see any major screen changes as there are rumors of a 6.7-inch screen for this phone, just like the iPhone 15 Plus has.
Unfortunately, the same source also says that the iPhone 16 Plus will once again be stuck with a 60Hz refresh rate.
However, we’ve heard that the iPhone 16 Plus could at least have a brighter screen than its 2,000 nits predecessor, and that the iPhone 16 Plus may also have smaller bezels around the screen.
iPhone 16 Plus: expected cameras
- Reportedly a 12MP ultra-wide camera like last year
- Probably also the same 48 MP main and 12 MP selfie cameras
- It may be possible to record spatial video
So far we haven’t said much about the iPhone 16 Plus’ cameras, but that’s probably because there might not be any real changes in them.
According to analyst Jeff Pu, the iPhone 16 Plus will have a 12 MP ultra-wide camera, just like the iPhone 15 Plus. They don’t mention the main snapper, but since it was upgraded to 48MP last year, we wouldn’t expect any further upgrades this year.
And we don’t expect any additional lenses either, as leaks don’t mention a third lens, and leaked images only show two – so if you want a telephoto camera, you’ll probably have to choose one of the Pro models.
There’s also no news about the front-facing camera on the iPhone 16 Plus, but chances are it will be 12MP like last year, especially since even the iPhone 15 Pro Max only has a 12MP selfie camera.
However, there may be some upgrades to the camera software and functionality, including the ability to record spatial video for use with an Apple Vision Pro. There is speculation that the rumored vertical lens setup could make this possible.
iPhone 16 Plus: expected specifications and features
- It is rumored to have an A18 chipset
- Could have 8GB RAM
- The battery may be smaller this year
There is some uncertainty about which chipset the iPhone 16 Plus will have. The iPhone 15 Plus has the A16 Bionic, carried over from last year’s Pro models. So if Apple continues that pattern, it would make sense for the iPhone 16 Plus to have an A17 Pro, which is currently found in the iPhone 15 Pro line.
We’ve heard the A17 Pro specifically mentioned in an iPhone 16 Plus leak, but a slightly more recent leak suggests that all four expected iPhone 16 models will get an A18 chipset.
In that case, the iPhone 16 Plus could get a serious power upgrade over its predecessor – although it’s possible there will be multiple versions of the A18. For example, the iPhone 16 Plus may get the standard A18, while the iPhone 16 Pro will get an A18 Pro. Either way, this should be more powerful than the A17 Pro.
That said, it might not be drastically more powerful, with one leak suggesting the rumored A18 Pro will be 10% faster than the A17 Pro, and another saying it might be less powerful than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, which will likely power Android. rivals.
The A18 Pro also reportedly won’t support fast LPDDR6 RAM, while the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 could.
Speaking of RAM, the iPhone 16 Plus might have 8GB of the stuff, compared to 6GB in the iPhone 15 Plus. We’ve heard talk several times now about 8GB of RAM for the iPhone 16 Plus, and we’ve also heard that the iPhone 16 – and therefore likely the iPhone 16 Plus too – could start with 256GB of storage, which is double its predecessor .
This increase in RAM, storage and power could partly help with AI, which Apple is expected to play a big role in this year, with key AI features likely to be announced as part of iOS 18 at WWDC 2024 on June 10. .
One of those features could be an AI overhaul for Siri, and we’ve also heard that the iPhone 16 Plus may have improved microphones so that this upgraded Siri can better hear and understand your requests.
There could be bad news for the phone’s battery, however, as according to one leak, the iPhone 16 Plus will have a roughly 9% smaller battery than its predecessor.
The exact battery capacity of the iPhone 16 Plus will apparently be 4,006 mAh (up from 4,383 mAh), something we’ve now heard from multiple sources, so it’s probably true.
That said, the same sources say that the other iPhone 16 models will have larger batteries than their predecessors; it would be strange if Apple only reduced the Plus models.
Still, the iPhone 16 Plus could at least benefit from a graphene heatsink, which would keep it cool.
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