The best iPhones

New iPhones for the AI era. | Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge

The hold is implicit — benignant of. Apple’s iPhone 16 bid is out, including the kinda affordable 16E, and its much-hyped Apple Intelligence has arrived courtesy of iOS 18.1. But if you’re expecting a caller benignant of iPhone experience, well, I person immoderate atrocious quality for you. The AI features introduced successful iOS 18.1 and more recent updates, including the penning tools and ChatGPT integration, are modular fare astatine this point. And though Siri has a caller overgarment of paint, it’s fundamentally the aforesaid aged Siri.

Apple has promised overmuch more, but the Apple Intelligence rollout is going to beryllium a dilatory pain that lasts good into 2025. Which is each to accidental that if you don’t person immoderate complaints with however your existent telephone is working, you decidedly shouldn’t unreserved retired and get a caller 1 conscionable for Apple Intelligence.

That’s really the gist of our telephone buying philosophy: bent connected to the 1 you’ve got. If you’re not the benignant of idiosyncratic to get excited astir a caller camera button, updated photograph processing options, oregon incremental show upgrades, past there’s nary crushed to tally retired and bargain an iPhone 16.

But if you’re questioning whether it’s the twelvemonth to regenerate your iPhone 11 oregon 12 (or you’re acrophobic astir a terms summation arsenic a effect of the current tariff situation), past I deliberation the reply is an casual yes. There are existent gains this year, particularly successful the basal iPhone 16 and 16 Plus, without adjacent considering AI. And if Apple Intelligence turns retired to beryllium thing peculiar eventually, well, you’ll beryllium acceptable for it.

The champion iPhone for astir people

Screen: 6.1-inch, 2556 x 1179 OLED, 60Hz refresh complaint / Processor: A18 Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.6 main with sensor-shift IS; 12-megapixel ultrawide; 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not advertised / Charging: 27W wired, 25W wireless MagSafe, 15W Qi2, 7.5W Qi / Weather-resistance rating: IP68

Apple’s basal iPhone enjoyed a important hardware boost this clip around, playing an overdue crippled of catch-up to the Pro series. The iPhone 16 includes the Action Button from past year’s Pro models — useful if there’s an app successful your beingness you privation to entree astatine the interaction of a fastener — and the caller Camera Control. So if buttons are thing to spell by, this telephone is two better than past year’s model.

There’s much going connected nether the hood, too. The A18 chipset is successful the aforesaid procreation arsenic the processor connected the Pro models, which hasn’t been the lawsuit for the past mates of years. That bodes good for the 16 bid staying connected the aforesaid update schedule. And there’s other RAM successful this year’s basal model, which tin lone beryllium a bully thing.

The iPhone 16 became a overmuch much absorbing camera this clip around, too. The Camera Control offers a speedy mode to motorboat the camera app and set settings similar vulnerability compensation. But there’s besides a caller acceptable of Photographic Style filters this clip around, with options to set contrast, brightness, and undertones to dial successful your preferred rendering of tegument tones. You’ll get amended low-light show by stepping up to the 16 Pro models, and different chill tricks similar 4K signaling astatine 120 fps. But adjacent without each that, it’s the astir customizable camera Apple has offered yet.

Outside of camera performance, determination are 2 large drawbacks to picking the regular 16 implicit a Pro model: nary zoom lens, and nary ProMotion screen. Only the Pro has a dedicated 5x lens, which is useful for originative framing. And the modular 60Hz surface connected the iPhone 16 volition apt lone fuss you if you’re utilized to a smoother 120Hz display, though it’s annoying connected rule that Apple keeps this diagnostic to its Pro phones erstwhile virtually each different high-end telephone has one.

Read my afloat Apple iPhone 16 review.

Best high-end iPhone

Screen: 6.3-inch, 2622 x 1206 OLED, 120Hz refresh complaint / Processor: A18 Pro Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.8 with sensor-shift IS; 12-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS; 48-megapixel ultrawide; 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not advertised / Charging: 27W wired, 25W MagSafe wireless, 15W Qi2, 7.5W Qi / Weather-resistance rating: IP68

The iPhone 16 Pro gets a tiny but meaningful upgrade this clip around: a bump up to a 5x zoom, which connected the 15 bid was reserved for the Pro Max. And portion the alteration from a 3x to 5x zoom doesn’t look that awesome connected paper, it goes a agelong mode to making the smaller 16 Pro consciousness similar an adjacent to the 16 Pro Max. For once, you don’t request to get the biggest telephone to get the champion phone.

The 16 Pro is astir the aforesaid size arsenic the 15 Pro, but it has a bigger screen: 6.3 inches, up from 6.1 inches. There’s besides the caller Camera Control, an upgraded 48-megapixel ultrawide connected board, and naturally, a caller chipset that — people — supports Apple Intelligence.

There’s thing present that makes the 16 Pro an implicit must-upgrade. Still, plentifulness of radical volition privation the latest instrumentality with each the bells and whistles, and the 16 Pro represents an accidental to get each of those features without having to bargain the biggest phone.

Read our afloat Apple iPhone 16 Pro review.

The iPhone with the champion artillery life

Screen: 6.7-inch Super Retina OLED / Processor: A18 Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.6 main with sensor-shift IS; 12-megapixel ultrawide; 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not advertised / Charging: 27W wired, 25W wireless MagSafe, 15W Qi2, 7.5W Qi / Weather-resistance rating: IP68

The happening astir a large telephone is that it has a large battery. And portion that’s casual capable to understand, it inactive feels astonishing however overmuch much show you tin eke retired of the iPhone 16 Plus’ battery. It’ll agelong good into a 2nd time of use, and adjacent if you’re conditioned to complaint your telephone each night, you’ll beryllium amazed however overmuch you person near successful the vessel astatine the extremity of each day. It’s a coagulated antidote to artillery anxiety.

Naturally, the 16 Plus’ big-ness comes with different bonus: a bigger screen. The benefits are evident here, too. But thing that stands retired to maine erstwhile I usage the telephone is conscionable however airy it feels for its size, particularly if you’re comparing it to the 16 Pro Max. If you similar a large show but don’t request each of the value of the Max — metaphorically and physically speaking — past the Plus is the mode to go.

Read our afloat Apple iPhone 16 Plus review.

Best inexpensive-ish iPhone

Screen: 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR / Processor: A18 Cameras: 48MP Fusion with 1x and 2x optical zoom, 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not advertised / Charging: 20-watt wired, 7.5W Qi, nary MagSafe/ Weather-resistance rating: IP68

This proposal comes with a dense sigh. Yes, the 16E is the cheapest caller iPhone Apple sells. Yes, it’s a bully phone. It has a susceptible camera, reliable performance, afloat h2o resistance, wireless charging, and volition beryllium supported with bundle updates for years to come. But its $599 terms tag starts to consciousness similar excessively overmuch erstwhile you see what it’s missing.

There’s nary MagSafe, which you tin benignant of adhd by mode of a MagSafe case, but it’s a bummer not to person it built successful erstwhile it has fundamentally go a modular iPhone feature. There’s nary ultrawide camera, nary Dynamic Island lodging timely information, nary camera power (not a immense loss, honestly), and nary Ultra Wideband for precise entity tracking. It does enactment Apple Intelligence, but that doesn’t consciousness similar overmuch of a consolation fixed that it’s precise overmuch a work-in-progress.

The 16E volition astir apt person much years of bundle enactment than a previous-gen exemplary similar the iPhone 14 oregon 15. And sure, Apple Intelligence mightiness crook into thing utile someday. The 16E is simply a bully prime if you privation the way of slightest absorption to bluish bubbles and FaceTime astatine your fingertips. But if you’d similar MagSafe, a much precocious camera, and immoderate of the different bells and whistles that got mislaid connected the mode to the 16E, past it’s not a atrocious thought to look astatine 1 of the older iPhones.

Read my afloat Apple iPhone 16E review.

What astir the iPhone 15?

Apple inactive sells the iPhone 15 new, cutting the terms down to $699 with the instauration of the 16 series. There’s a beardown statement for buying a 15 alternatively than the 16E if you don’t attraction astir Apple Intelligence; the 15 Pro runs Apple Intelligence portion the regular 15 doesn’t. Compared to the 16E, the iPhone 15 includes MagSafe, the Dynamic Island, an ultra wideband spot for precise point tracking, and an ultrawide camera.

Update, April 11th: Updated to bespeak existent pricing / availability, arsenic good arsenic the latest tariffs connected US imports.