Apple iPhone 16 Pro vs. the competition: Bigger, with more buttons

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Apple unveiled a quartet of iPhones on Monday, including the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. As expected, the updates are largely iterative. The standard models now have the programmable Action button from last year’s Pro series, slightly improved battery life and an updated camera module that’s stacked vertically instead of diagonally.

The Pro phones, meanwhile, feature bigger displays with slimmer bezels, improved battery life and a handful of camera upgrades, including a 5x optical zoom for the smaller Pro and a sharper ultrawide camera. The standard models run on Apple’s new A18 silicon, while the Pro models, fittingly, use a faster and more efficient chip called the A18 Pro.

The most notable hardware change across the board might be a new touch-sensitive “Camera Control” button that makes capturing photos and video a little more DSLR-like. Mostly, though, these phones don’t look to be massive departures from the iPhone 15s before them. Much of Apple’s sales pitch will come down to how helpful its “Apple Intelligence” AI tools are out in the wild.

We already have a hands-on preview for the iPhone 16 Pro up on the site, and we’ll have full reviews for the entire iPhone 16 lineup in the near future. But if you’re thinking about pre-ordering right away, we’ve broken down how the new iPhone 16 Pro compares to two of its most prominent rivals in the $1,000 price bracket, the Google Pixel 9 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S24+, on the spec sheet. Per usual, raw specs won’t tell the full story — you’d probably buy an iPhone because you want iOS and an Android phone because you prefer Android — but if you’re wondering what a $1,000 smartphone gets you in 2024, here’s how Apple’s latest handset stacks up.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro

Google Pixel 9 Pro

Samsung Galaxy S24+

Pricing (MSRP)

$999 (128GB), $1,099 (256GB), $1,299 (512GB), $1,499 (1TB)

$999 (128GB), $1,099 (256GB), $1,219 (512GB), $1,449 (1TB)

$1,000 (256GB), $1,120 (512GB)

Dimensions

5.9 x 2.8 x 0.3 inches

6 x 2.8 x 0.3 inches

6.2 x 3 x 0.3 inches

Weight

7.03 ounces

7 ounces

6.9 ounces

Screen size

6.3 inches

6.3 inches

6.7 inches

Screen resolution

1,206 x 2,622 (460 ppi)

1,280 x 2,856 (495 ppi)

1,440 x 3,120 (512 ppi)

Screen type

OLED

Up to 120Hz (1-120Hz)

Up to 2,000 nits (peak brightness)

Ceramic Shield

LTPO OLED

Up to 120Hz (1-120Hz)

Up to 3,000 nits (peak brightness)

Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2

Dynamic AMOLED 2X

Up to 120Hz (1-120Hz)

Up to 2,600 nits (peak brightness)

Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2

SoC

Apple A18 Pro (6-core)

Google Tensor G4 (8-core)

NA/China: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (8-core)

Int’l: Samsung Exynos 2400 (10-core)

RAM

Not specified

16GB RAM

12GB RAM

Battery

“Up to 27” hours video playback

4,700 mAh

“24+ hours” with mixed usage

4,900mAh

“Up to 29” hours video playback

Charging

Wired: not specified

25W wireless (with MagSafe charger; up to 15W with Qi2 chargers)

27W wired

21W wireless (with Pixel Stand; up to 12W with other Qi chargers)

45W wired

15W wireless

Storage

128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB (1TB only available with Obsidian model)

256GB, 512GB

Rear camera

Main (“Fusion”): 48 MP, f/1.78

Ultrawide: 48 MP, f/2.2, 120° FOV

Telephoto: 12 MP, f/2.8, 5x optical zoom

Main: 50 MP, f/1.68, 82° FOV

Ultrawide: 48 MP, f/1.7, 123° FOV

Telephoto: 48 MP, f/2.8, 5x optical zoom

Main: 50 MP, f/1.8, 85° FOV

Ultrawide: 12MP, f/2.2, 120° FOV

Telephoto: 10MP, f/2.4, 3x optical zoom

Front camera

12 MP, f/1.9

42 MP, f/2.2, 103° FOV

12 MP, f/2.2, 80° FOV

Video capture

Rear: 4K at 24/25/30/60/100/120 fps, 1080p up to 240 fps

Front: 4K at 24/24/30/60 fps, 1080p up to 120 fps

Rear: 8K at 30 fps, 4K at 24/30/60 fps, 1080p up to 240 fps

Front: 4K at 30/60 fps

Rear: 8K at 24/30 fps, 4K at 30/60 fps, 1080p up to 240 fps

Front: 4K at 30/60 fps

Water and dust resistance rating

IP68

IP68

IP68

Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi 7

Wi-Fi 7

Wi-Fi 6e

Bluetooth

Bluetooth 5.3

Bluetooth 5.3

Bluetooth 5.3

OS

iOS 18

Android 14

Android 14

Colors and finish

Glass front, glass back, titanium frame

Black Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium, Desert Titanium

Glass front, glass back, aluminum frame

Porcelain, Rose Quartz, Hazel, Obsidian

Glass front, glass back, aluminum frame

Cobalt Violet, Amber Yellow, Onyx Black, Marble Gray, Jade Green, Sandstone Orange, Sapphire Blue

Catch up on all the news from Apple’s iPhone 16 event!

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