Although the iPhone Pro and Pro Max are supposed to be the pinnacle of Apple’s portfolio, I have always thought of them as complete opposites. Similar to personal style, it frequently leans toward one of two directions. One is extreme: people adore and show off the bigger Pro Max, which is like a Gucci bag with the GG emblem blatantly shown. Apple has also chosen to symbolize “quiet luxury” by blending in and disappearing with the smaller iPhone Pro. Consider Loro Piana.
In my opinion, the iPhone 16 Pro is comparable to a cashmere sweater. It could seem “boring” and be easily missed. It still has a subtle luxury feel to it and appeals to a different demographic that is either a pro- or casual consumer, or a combination of the two. The thrill of the iPhone 16 Pro is in its delicacy and in its potential to be inconspicuous, even though it lacks the “look-at-me” smartphone vibe.
Apple iPhone 16 Pro price in India (as reviewed): Rs 1,69,900
Bigger display, but it’s still compact
After nearly a year of owning the iPhone 15 Pro, I decided to upgrade to the iPhone 16 Pro instead of the iPhone 16 Pro Max. More important to me than anything else are comfort and a smooth transition between gadgets that seem familiar.
Although the iPhone 16 Pro Max has a larger screen, which allows you to accomplish more with the device, I don’t find the larger form factor useful for daily use. I’m not a social media manager or YouTuber who relies on the form factor and the ease of a big screen to accomplish the actual work on the device. That is one of the main ways that I differ from a professional creator. In actuality, my Mac and iPad enable me to do my work more efficiently, despite the fact that I use my iPhone extensively.
To be honest, I think the form factor of the iPhone 16 Pro is ideal. Even though the screen size has increased from 6.1 to 6.3 inches, it still feels sturdy in the hand and is still portable, so I don’t really have any issues. The 16 Pro looks a lot like the previous iPhone Pro models, and there isn’t much of a change in terms of appearance or design.The frosted glass back, textured titanium frame, and two tiny cutouts on the screen encircled by the Dynamic Island interface feature are all still present.
The color scheme is, to put it mildly, drab, just like it was last year. I’m curious as to why Apple isn’t using more creative color schemes for the Pro models. I wouldn’t say it’s negative because Apple is being cautious and keeping with what worked the prior time, which may work this time. Apple doesn’t need to abandon simplicity, but it would benefit from a little more intimacy in the design, if not drama and imagination.
A new ‘old’ way to take photographs
To recapture the glory of the old school of photography, I recently pulled out my Canon DSLR. I felt nostalgic using the camera’s shutter button because it has such an easy-to-use user interface that it soon became second nature. In addition to the Action Button, which is a customizable shortcut, Apple has included a new physical button on the iPhone 16 Pro dubbed Camera Control. Be advised, however, that it is not quite a camera shutter button. Although it seems like a camera shutter button, Apple has used it in a different way. The new button has the ability to record a movie, capture a picture, and access the camera. It opens a tiny menu with camera tools like depth, exposure, and zoom when you softly double-press it.Once chosen, you can zoom in and out by moving your finger across the button.
After utilizing the Camera Control button on both the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro, it took me nearly three weeks to become acclimated to its operation. But I have to admit that the iPod’s click-wheel interface is more user-friendly than the Camera Control button. Unlike the click wheel on an iPod or the shutter button on a conventional camera, the Camera Control button is an optional function, so I might never get used to it completely. The Camera Control button isn’t bad, but I still think that using the onscreen controls of the camera app is much quicker and easier.
The Camera Control might have been much better, in my opinion, in a few areas. For instance, whether you hold the phone horizontally or vertically, the button’s placement doesn’t feel perfect. Another important distinction from a genuine camera shutter button is the inability to half-press the button to lock focus and exposure.
Unlike others, I don’t have a controversial opinion regarding the Camera Control button. The reason for this is that Apple’s new hardware button was created with the future Visual Intelligence feature in mind. This function will, like Google Lens, provide context to whatever your iPhone’s cameras are focused on. The Camera Control button on the iPhone is still a work in progress, in my opinion, and it is unclear how Apple will make it better in the future.
Ideal for everyday use
Every time a new iPhone generation is released, I don’t get very enthusiastic about a new processor. In terms of daily use, I think the iPhone 15 Pro is equally as good as the iPhone 16 Pro. I don’t play a lot of video games or do a lot of CPU-intensive tasks on my iPhone. The iPhone has always felt too powerful for my needs. I can tell with certainty, though, that the iPhone 16 Pro’s A18 Pro processor does extend battery life.
Apple Intelligence, which is now under beta testing and will be available in a few areas in the upcoming months, did affect battery life when I was using the iPhone 15 Pro. The iPhone 16 Pro, in contrast, has a substantially longer battery life—nearly a full day—but not longer. I typically return home with about 15% of the phone’s battery life left after ten to twelve hours away from home. This occurred after I enabled 5G and Apple Intelligence on my device. Although the larger form factor has advantages and disadvantages, the iPhone 16 Pro Max’s battery life is unquestionably superior to that of the 16 Pro.
Amazing cameras, but videos elevate them to a new level.
Even if other enhancements have been largely subtle or hardly noticeable to the typical user, I have always used the iPhone’s camera as an argument to defend the camera upgrades year after year. The iPhone 16 Pro’s camera keeps getting better, but this time around, the video camera outperforms still images.
The 16 Pro has a 5x tetra-prism zoom, which was formerly exclusive to the Pro Max series, a quicker 48MP primary Fusion sensor with “zero shutter lag,” and a crisper 48MP ultra-wide sensor. Yes, I am aware that iPhone consumers aren’t very concerned with camera specifications, and even though the upgrades aren’t significant, I believe the iPhone 16 Pro’s camera performs admirably.
Pictures are crisp, and the iPhone 16 Pro balances the bright and dark areas of a picture much better than previous premium phones. The iPhone 16 Pro takes a single, clear picture of a Shivling against a deep orange background. You can see how realistic the trees appear in another picture I shot right before dusk; it’s remarkable to see this quality with a phone camera.
However, I also found that the camera on the iPhone 16 Pro had a tendency to overexpose images, particularly when taken in intense sunshine. Nonetheless, the iPhone 16 Pro performs quite well in low light, and I can tell that the camera has significantly improved over the iPhone 15 Pro. The iPhone 16 Pro’s camera excels in both portrait and macro photography. Although the lens can’t bring me that close, the new 5x zoom camera is very amazing; I was able to shoot pictures in ways that no other iPhone camera has ever permitted. Everywhere I go, I really like to take close-up pictures of birds.
Another noteworthy upgrade to the iPhone’s camera capabilities was the ability to record video in 4K at 120 frames per second (up from 60 frames per second). After watching a 4K video, it would be very difficult to shoot another one using any other format.
Apple Intelligence is there (actually not)
Apple Intelligence, a collection of AI-powered capabilities that at first glance seem a lot like Google’s but are intricately woven into Apple devices’ apps, will be showcased on the iPhone 16 Pro. Apple Intelligence isn’t available yet, though. The AI features will be made available to US customers when iOS 18.1 is released, while the India launch could take place early in the following year. Therefore, even if you are paying for Apple Intelligence on the iPhone 16 Pro, the feature has not yet been released.
After using Apple Intelligence for several months, I can only conclude that the new “AI” functions are, to put it mildly, simplistic. I’m assuming you’re already utilizing tools like Gmail’s intelligent responses, sentence tone adjustments, and AI-generated summaries. On the other hand, Apple Intelligence performs the same function but is accessible across the operating system.
The new transcription skills in the Notes, Voice Memos, and Phone applications are maybe the most useful AI improvements for me as a journalist. The apps will transcribe talks in real time when you simply tap record in Voice Memos and Notes. Once both participants are informed, using the record button during a phone call will begin recording the conversation and save the transcription to your Notes app. I’ve been utilizing these capabilities on my iPhone for months, and I think they’re really useful. Furthermore, with the aid of machine intelligence, Siri, Apple’s speech assistant, is developing and becoming more conversational.I can type my question and communicate intelligibly, as though I were speaking to someone one-on-one.
Should you buy the Apple iPhone 16 Pro?
I think Apple purposefully made the iPhone 16 Pro to be rather dull. With the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which appeals to buyers looking for a larger screen, longer battery life, and a larger form factor in addition to wanting to make a luxurious statement, that might not be the case. The iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max are both Pro models with the finest screen, camera, design, and performance. Nevertheless, I think the iPhone 16 Pro has a subtle elegance that appeals to customers who value durability and quality more than those who wish to start a social media trend.
