iPhone 16 Professional vs. iPhone 15 Professional

The 2024 technology of Professional iPhones brings largely minor modifications – refinement and fine-tuning. That features a good wider vary of digital camera capabilities, a brand new button (probably within the digital camera class, but in addition sort of its personal factor), design tweaks, a tiny bit bigger show, a small battery capability improve. However the 16 Professional specifically can virtually declare to have launched a extra principal {hardware} improve – the 5x telephoto digital camera of the Maxes replaces the 3x unit of the 15 Professional.

So for those who had to decide on now, must you be getting the brand new 16 Professional, or perhaps save a buck and observe down the final inventory of the iPhone 15 Professional? Let’s learn the way they stack up.

Desk of Contents:

For starters, you may evaluate the entire specs sheets or straight proceed with our editor’s evaluation within the following textual content.

Measurement comparability

Each sizes of Professionals have gotten just a little bigger this 12 months, and the 16 Professional has grown by about 3mm in peak and a millimeter in width. It is at all times been questionable calling the non-Max ‘compact’, and with this 12 months’s dimension improve, small as it could be, the telephone is not precisely setting the usual for pocketability. The practically 200-gram weight is not serving to both.

The purpose we’re making an attempt to make is that the lineup is deviating from the idea of compactness and if that is what you are after, maybe the 15 Professional stays a more sensible choice. Not that it is ‘small’, strictly talking, it is simply that the 16 Professional is even bigger and heavier. In fact, the entire thing about iPhones’ heft leaving a sense of premium density remains to be arguably true, however emotions are subjective and weight and dimensions are absolute.

The 2 telephones share roughly the identical construct, with titanium changing aluminum for the body final 12 months and the brand new 16 Professional adopting it too.

The brand new mannequin does function a subsequent technology Ceramic Defend show glass, so it simply is perhaps that additional bit extra sturdy in opposition to scratches and shattering.

Both approach, you may be getting Apple’s overachieving tackle the IP68 ranking – as much as half-hour all the way down to as deep as 6m underwater (the usual requires 1.5m).

The 2 fashions share 3 of the 4 colorways and also you is perhaps saddened to not have the ability to get a Blue Titanium 16 Professional – you may need to look again to the 15 Professional for that, the brand new technology having substituted it with ‘Desert’ Titanium.

Show comparability

One of many extra apparent specs modifications on the 16 Professional is the show dimension – 6.3 inches in diagonal vs. the 15 Professional’s 6.1 inches. It is a small 5-ish p.c improve in space (relying on if and the way you account for the rounded corners and the entrance digital camera capsule) so it isn’t a dramatic change, and it is in all probability a bit extra noticeable how the bezels have been slimmed down.

Aside from that, the show expertise stays largely unchanged. Brightness maxes out at round 1,800nits in auto, whereas the 900nits vs. 845nits (16 Professional vs. 15 Professional) we have measured in guide mode just isn’t a distinction you may discover. The Tremendous Retina 460ppi density is maintained, the 120Hz ProMotion feels good and easy, the HDR implementation can also be among the many finest ones.

Battery life

The iPhone 16 Professional is powered by a 3,582mAh battery – the just about 10% improve over the 15 Professional’s capability being the most important 12 months on 12 months improve among the many iPhone 16s. In our testing, it didn’t lead to battery life enhancements throughout the board – video playback and gaming take a look at outcomes have been basically the identical. That mentioned, we did get notable will increase in internet shopping and name occasions – maybe not sufficiently big to make a giant deal out of it, however a welcome improvement nonetheless.

Charging pace

We’re not precisely followers of Apple’s method to charging and if speedy last-minute top-ups are your factor, maybe that is the improper model to be . Each telephones are ‘specced’ to have the ability to get from flat to 50% in half-hour with a 20W charger, which is on the identical time obscure and never anyplace near spectacular.

That mentioned, the small Professionals do are usually among the many faster-charging iPhones and we did get cheap outcomes from each for the primary half hour of being plugged in. It nonetheless takes too lengthy to get to 100%, however that is simply Apple’s methods.

The iPhone 16 Professional and 15 Professional each help wi-fi charging, maxing out at 15W with generic Qi2 pads. When you’re utilizing a MagSafe charger, you’ll rise up to 25W on the 16 Professional (if the MagSafe thingie is plugged right into a 30W+ adapter) and solely 15W on the 15 Professional in order that’s one thing of a distinction.

Speaker take a look at

The speaker setups of the 2 telephones are the identical – Apple’s typical hybrid stereo association has the earpiece doubling as a speaker, and the opposite speaker is on the backside of the telephone.

In our testing, each telephones earned the identical ‘Good’ mark for loudness and so they additionally sound equivalent – each are fairly nice.

Efficiency

The iPhone 16 Professional employs essentially the most highly effective Apple chipset in a telephone to at the present time – the A18 Professional. It has a six-core CPU, and a six-core GPU – the identical configuration, in precept, because the A17 Professional within the iPhone 15 Professional, although the clock speeds are increased on the brand new chip. Each telephones have 8GB of RAM in all variations, and storage tiers begin at 128GB and max out at 1TB.

Benchmark efficiency

In benchmarks, the 16 Professional does ship a significant enchancment in scores – 15-ish p.c increased CPU outcomes, 20% increased GPU numbers. So in essence, the 15 Professional might be simply fast sufficient for years to come back, however the 16 Professional is quicker now, and might be quick for just a little longer.

Digital camera comparability

As generational developments go on this comparability, maybe it is the digital camera part that sees essentially the most modifications. The 16 Professional will get a 5x zoom instead of the 3x unit of the earlier mannequin and the ultrawide substitutes the standard 12MP sensor for a Quad Bayer-type 48MP (of the identical general dimension, although). Then there’s additionally the brand new Digital camera Management key for tweaking settings although its most vital benefit, we reckon, is relieving the Motion key from digital camera shortcut obligation and liberating it for different stuff.

Then there are some much less seen enhancements, however for those who’ve been ready for them, you may know and respect they’re there. These embrace the 4K120 video recording mode (and 4K100 for those who abide by the PAL guidelines), the quad-mic spatial audio recording, and the JPEG XL choice for nonetheless (for people who prefer to be on the forefront of file codecs). Some people can also respect the added ‘Tone’ setting for tweaking the HDR habits that the outdated mannequin would not appear to get.

Picture high quality

The variations between photographs taken on the principle cameras are someplace between non-existent and minimal. After which for those who do occur to see some, they might simply as nicely come all the way down to shot-to-shot variation, somewhat than true modifications in processing. The 2x outcomes are equally unchanged.

iPhone 16 Professional daylight picture samples, 1x

iPhone 15 Professional daylight picture samples, 1x

iPhone 16 Professional daylight picture samples, 2x

iPhone 15 Professional daylight picture samples, 2x

When you occur to love the 70-ish millimeter equal focal size, then the iPhone 15 Professional will serve you numerous higher due to having a digital camera that sits optically at that 3x mark – a somewhat apparent remark that is nonetheless price mentioning, we expect.

iPhone 16 Professional daylight picture samples, 3x digital

iPhone 15 Professional daylight picture samples, 3x optical

Then again, on the 5x zoom degree, the place the 16 Professional ought to in all probability fare lots higher, the distinction is not anyplace as pronounced. In actual fact, we might be completely proud of the 15 Professional’s 5x photographs, and would not essentially name the 16 Professional’s outcomes universally higher. The one minor downside is the truth that you do not get a 5x shortcut within the viewfinder – the same tap-to-change choice just like the one on the principle digital camera for biking between 24-28-35mm can be good, however we in some way do not see that taking place.

iPhone 16 Professional daylight picture samples, 5x optical

iPhone 15 Professional daylight picture samples, 5x digital

Shifting on to the ultrawide cameras, you would be forgiven to doubt there’s been a change in {hardware} – the photographs are roughly equivalent between the 2 telephones.

iPhone 16 Professional daylight picture samples, 0.5x

iPhone 15 Professional daylight picture samples, 0.5x

The selfie digital camera {hardware} hasn’t modified, however there do seem like small variations in rendition between the 2 telephones.

Selfie samples: iPhone 16 Professional • iPhone 15 Professional

At nighttime, each iPhones take glorious images with their predominant cameras. Once more, there’s not lots to separate the 2, although – the photographs can simply as nicely have been taken on the identical telephone. Identical factor at at 2x.

iPhone 16 Professional low-light picture samples, 1x

iPhone 15 Professional low-light picture samples, 1x

iPhone 16 Professional low-light picture samples, 2x

iPhone 15 Professional low-light picture samples, 2x

At 3x zoom at night time, the 15 Professional retains the benefit it had within the day and you would be getting sharper and higher detailed photographs from it. At 5x, the 16 Professional has a little bit of an edge, but it surely’s not a dramatic distinction.

iPhone 16 Professional low-light picture samples, 3x

iPhone 15 Professional low-light picture samples, 3x

iPhone 16 Professional low-light picture samples, 5x

iPhone 15 Professional low-light picture samples, 5x

Evaluating the ultrawides, there’s not a transparent winner both. Maybe the brand new one simply may need a minor benefit in dynamic vary right here or there, and its shade rendition is perhaps a contact extra correct, but it surely’s actually a toss-up between the 2.

iPhone 16 Professional low-light picture samples, 0.5x

iPhone 15 Professional low-light picture samples, 0.5x

Video high quality

In terms of video high quality, we’re noticing a minor change within the shade rendition of the sky, the brand new mannequin being just a little bit extra conservative – as in, a contact extra correct, maybe. The 15 Professional cannot fairly compete at 5x in video the way in which it did in stills, so if zoomed in footage is your factor, that is the place the 2024 iPhone has a bonus. That mentioned, the 15 Professional stays robust at 3x. Selections.

Under, now we have a number of framegrabs from the movies taken by the 2 telephones at every focal size so it is simpler to match to 1 one other.

iPhone 16 Professional daylight video framegrabs: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 3x • 5x

iPhone 15 Professional daylight video framegrabs: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 3x • 5x

In low mild, the ultrawides look about the identical. On the principle cameras, we’re seeing a little bit of a sharpness benefit at 1x for the 15 Professional, whereas at 2x it is the 16 Professional that has a minor edge. Zooming in additional, it is the 16 Professional that has the higher hand.

iPhone 16 Professional low-light video framegrabs: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 3x • 5x

iPhone 15 Professional low-light video framegrabs: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 3x • 5x

Verdict

The iPhone 16 Professional takes the Professional expertise up a notch in 2024. Because it seems, it is not likely due to the 5x zoom digital camera, which solely has a significant benefit in video recording at 5x – in any other case the 3x on the 15 Professional does simply pretty much as good of a job at 5x and, nicely, higher at 3x.

What the 16 Professional does deliver is the Digital camera Management key – whether or not for truly altering digital camera settings, or simply as an additional shortcut button. Additionally a welcome improvement is the addition of 4K120 recording, and another, much less distinguished expansions to the Professional feature-set.

On prime of that, the 16 Professional is considerably higher in a number of features of its battery life, and we additionally do just like the slimmed down bezels.

The 15 Professional, however, stays a robust choice for images, its 3x zoom unit truly making it a bit extra versatile, notably for stills. With the elevated dimension of the 16 Professional, final 12 months’s mannequin will probalby be just a little extra interesting to those that do not wish to carry pointless weight of their pockets on a regular basis. There may also be some financial savings to be made for those who’d go for the 15 Professional.