The iPhone 16: A Year Ahead of Its Time?

As I held the iPhone 16 in my hands, I couldn't help but think that this was the year where technology would finally catch up with our expectations. The phone's sleek design and impressive specs had me excited, but it wasn't until I started exploring its features that I realized just how far ahead of its time it truly is.

The iPhone 16 boasts a powerful A18 chip, which brings with it the latest generation of photographic styles that are sure to impress even the most discerning photographer. With this chip, you can expect spatial photos and videos that are unlike anything you've seen before on previous iPhones. The camera has also been improved, allowing for more vivid colors and sharper details. But what really sets this phone apart is its battery life – a whopping 2 hours of usage on a single charge, paired with fast MagSafe wireless charging.

Now, I know what you're thinking: "Do I really need the iPhone Pro model?" And my answer is, probably not. Unless money is no object and you're looking for every edge possible, the standard iPhone 16 is more than sufficient. It has all the features you'll use on a daily basis, from cinematic video stabilization to a bigger screen that's perfect for watching videos or browsing the web.

But what about the camera? The wide-angle lens doesn't quite live up to expectations, but the ultra-wide lens is still impressive. And then there's the regular standard focal length – it's like the phone is saying, "Hey, I've got this." But in all seriousness, the camera on this phone is top-notch, and if you're serious about taking high-quality photos or videos, this is definitely the phone for you.

One of my favorite features on this phone is the ability to pause video recordings. It's a small thing, but it's incredibly useful – just think about how many times you've accidentally started recording something in the middle of a conversation. Now, with the iPhone 16, that's a thing of the past. And let me tell you, it's made a huge difference.

Now, I have to say, I was underwhelmed by the color options for this phone. The "Desert Storm" color is more like white in my opinion – it lacks the unique character that I think would make it truly special. But hey, at least there are plenty of other colors to choose from.

As we move into 2024, one thing's for sure: the iPhone will always be a benchmark for smartphones. It's not just about features and specs; it's about how they fit into our lives and how they make us feel. So, if you're in the market for a new phone, I'd say take your time – don't feel like you need to upgrade just because the latest model is out. The iPhone 16 is more than capable of meeting your needs, and it's definitely worth considering.

But, there is one thing that sets the Pro model apart from its standard counterpart: extra features like a higher refresh rate, improved audio, or additional cameras. If those things are essential to you, then yeah, go for the Pro. But if not, the iPhone 16 is still an amazing device that's sure to impress.

In recent years, I've been thinking a lot about how often we should be buying new phones. With smartphones getting more advanced by the minute, it can feel like we're constantly stuck in a cycle of upgrade and disposal. But what if we could slow down just a bit? What if we took a step back and looked at what really matters?

The iPhone 16 represents an opportunity to do just that. It's not about flashy new features or cutting-edge technology; it's about finding a phone that truly meets your needs. And, in my opinion, the iPhone 16 is more than capable of doing just that.

So, what do you think? Are you ready to make the switch to the iPhone 16? Or are you waiting for next year's model to see what changes are in store? Whatever you decide, one thing's for sure: this phone is going to be a game-changer.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enso we got a chance to unbox the pro and pro Max iPhone 16 but what about the standard iPhone 16s which in some ways seem more interesting this generation because they have most of what the pro and pro Max have but at a more affordable price and arguably in colors that people are more excited for MO is definitely more excited for these colors right here this one they're calling teal maybe this one's my favorite I don't know San Jose Sharks this is Mo's favorite which is called ultramarine and I think he likes it because it's called ultramarine at least has to be part of it obviously we have the plus and the standard size they've rearranged the camera layout on the back these devices do have quite a bit of wobble because of that camera layout I'm going to compare the wobble to the previous generation with the diagonal camera layout we'll do a wobble comparison very soon I was surprised that Apple gave the camera control functionality to the standard model not just the pro cuz it kind of seems like a pro feature and a way for them to differentiate but they know more than I do they got all kinds of data and market research that is a beautiful color ultramarine yeah they have all kinds of data to suggest where they need to be at from a price point perspective and which ones are going to be their hot models and which features they should have in there so we have camera control on the standard iPhone this is a little bit lighter there's no titanium here we've got the aluminum frame finish on the back I think it's pretty nice I mean definitely an iPhone I'm pretty sure that's an iPhone USBC we also got the physical SIM tray Canadian version we have eim buil in as well big power switch volume rocker action button pretty nice package starting at a lot less than the pro model the unboxing experience is identical as we carry on braided USBC cable packed up in the origami style and the good old SIM tool unchanged for Generations now when it comes to comparing the 15 to the 16 good Lord they are very very similar very very similar in form factor let's do that wobble test that I am so curious about in the very Corner we're okay on the 15 as we move up the device we increase our wobble we do get wobble in the very oh we got a double wobble it's it's more wobbly we get wobble here wobble here wobble here whatever I mean a lot of smartphones are wobbling at this point it's a plague it's a wobble plague of course Google cares about these things shots fired that's up to you to decide all right let's move on to the teal see how it compares to the ultramarine and this is the plus siiz iPhone 16 standard oh I love it is it enough to persuade Mo to change his mind oh ultramarine versus teal teal is very nice teal is very nice he says teal is very nice do we have previous gen plus we do and once again we are extremely comparable wobble test oh wobble test gets even worse that one wobbles if you touch it if you try to make it wobble but when you place it down it's no wobble this one you place it down and it just wobbles see what I mean it just wobbles when you just place it on the table 15 sits there unless you aim to make it wobble okay I'm going nuts here with this wobble thing but if we go instead and compare to the new Pro Models we can see the scale difference there Pro Max versus iPhone 16 and pro 16 versus standard 16 you can also tell here that the non-pro variant is slightly thinner which is cool I mean it's slight but it is there this episode has been sponsored by ESR and their brand new iPhone 16 cases so let's start with the tough case exceed 7x military grade protection foldable stash stand built in designed to work with mag save this is going to be your super rugged option you can see the mag safe on the back and we have a multi-layer setup we have coverage on the power port and of course we've also got access for camera control now so this is what's called the foldable stash stand and this obviously allows you to have a better viewing experience hybrid case with stash stand clear color Halo lock magnetic case stash stand still get that functionality like that slightly less of a tank than the tough case but arguably more stylish I also notice that the stand changes color from a darker metallic to a silver so next up we have the soft case satisfying texture very soft still got our mag safe built in still have access to our camera control a microfiber soft touch interior they're actually stating that this one is 3x military grade protection as well so similar protection level to the hybrid the other thing about the stand is you can pick uh between a number of angles depending on what what's ideal and then last up we have their new Ultra tempered glass screen protectors with their included applicator you simply drop it into this jig pull the tab and the screen protector is installed perfectly so let me know down in the comments if you're going to pick up one of these new cases for your new iPhone 16 Pro or Pro Max which go for the tough the hybrid or the soft okay so I got them both booted up now I have to admit that just handling the devices the regular iPhone 16 is the most comfortable to hold one hand two-handed it's the thinnest lightest so I'm not too surprised by that now let's talk a little bit about the differences between the 16 and the 15 the display it's identical we now have the action button where the switch used to be so we get to feel like we bought the pro model even though we didn't that's good apple Intelligence coming soon don't call it AI unless you're going to say the whole thing Apple intelligence they invented it you didn't know it was never artificial it was always Apple intelligence the most intelligent oh we got the camera control functionality now that wasn't on the previous generation it's now capable of macro on that same camera spatial photos and videos and you're getting the latest generation photographic styles that come with that a18 chip how about I give you a little improved battery life to the tune of 2 hours mag safe wireless charging has improved it's faster now this is looking a lot like the pro spec sheet except you don't have to pay as much I think a lot of people are just going to go with this one maybe not this color because Mo and I both agree that in person I think he used the term radioactive which is maybe a little extreme there something off about this color in person I don't know to each their own but the more I look at it the more I'm like teal and I say it in that exact voice I go like this I go teal 128 GB teal they're like sir what is the matter with you ay one nit minimum brightness it is like I'm reading the pro spec sheet here cinematic video stabilization why do you have to buy the pro model why you got to buy huh to get an extra camera I guess and to get your titanium bro your phone's not even titanium so bro your phone's not even titanium so what are we doing what are we doing your phone's not even titanium so what do we do so everybody knows that guy everybody knows that guy you've met that guy before listen this is the phone you should get just get the iPhone 16 that's my verdict this year if you have to get an iPhone this year Lam yeah why you need the pro model mo why you yelling about the pro model pro model this PR model that okay the wide doesn't look the ultra wide maybe doesn't look quite as good these ones look good though look at those look at the regular standard focal length 1X that's kind of what you're lacking there your Ultra y doesn't look quite as good it's tough on these screens like it just look at the roof the sharp like it's it's just obvious there's just too much resolution on the other one I presume that on video we're going to be 4K 60 we got the same chip right 4K 60 and no 4K 120 cuz otherwise what is pro that's okay here is a video sample 4K 60 and mo changed his Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey oh there we go modeling Mo the model this one is here he goes oh here we go yeah damn dude sound good e jeez you didn't have to do them like that titanium bro we quickly get in the camera bam we're in you can pause videos now I don't know if you knew about that you can like pause a video recording it's a new feature it's very useful I use that feature I'm happy about it continue the recording sounds see what kind of sounds fine sounds loud the I'll pinch for you this looks a lot different than right in there for you way lighter it has want yeah I think this year maybe more than ever or more than I can remember in recent I'm sure other people probably said this and you probably watch those videos too this year I mean you probably don't really need the pro model unless money is no problemo and you're just give me the Desert Storm I know it's desert Titan sounds funnier if I say Desert Storm you understand and it should have been more Desert Storm color in my opinion when I had the mockup Desert Storm man look at that this is what I wanted instead we got that like another like white phone basically nah anyway this is the entry point and it has the vast majority of what you're going to end up using and liking on the other devices yeah if you can't see yourself needing those Studio audio features the extra extra camera 4K 120 bigger battery obviously bigger screen like if those things are not absolutely major to you you can save your money this year and you can get the iPhone 16 or you can save even more money and wait until the next Generation it's completely up to you you know what I mean it's 2024 like you know if you need a new phone or not I think we're past just buying these things every single generation because we have to and the iPhone always represents an opportunity to speak to the audience on that topic of like how often should we be buying and upgrading things it's just this phone is like the marker it's like the test it's like the economic test of like hey where are we at where's the disposable income but then also it's like hey where are we at from a technology perspective like have things in this segment kind of slowed down a little bit like are we seeing as many massive improvements are people feeling as compelled these are the conversations I have in public in public like in the world and I suppose now in public here on the internet which is also somewhere in the world good nightso we got a chance to unbox the pro and pro Max iPhone 16 but what about the standard iPhone 16s which in some ways seem more interesting this generation because they have most of what the pro and pro Max have but at a more affordable price and arguably in colors that people are more excited for MO is definitely more excited for these colors right here this one they're calling teal maybe this one's my favorite I don't know San Jose Sharks this is Mo's favorite which is called ultramarine and I think he likes it because it's called ultramarine at least has to be part of it obviously we have the plus and the standard size they've rearranged the camera layout on the back these devices do have quite a bit of wobble because of that camera layout I'm going to compare the wobble to the previous generation with the diagonal camera layout we'll do a wobble comparison very soon I was surprised that Apple gave the camera control functionality to the standard model not just the pro cuz it kind of seems like a pro feature and a way for them to differentiate but they know more than I do they got all kinds of data and market research that is a beautiful color ultramarine yeah they have all kinds of data to suggest where they need to be at from a price point perspective and which ones are going to be their hot models and which features they should have in there so we have camera control on the standard iPhone this is a little bit lighter there's no titanium here we've got the aluminum frame finish on the back I think it's pretty nice I mean definitely an iPhone I'm pretty sure that's an iPhone USBC we also got the physical SIM tray Canadian version we have eim buil in as well big power switch volume rocker action button pretty nice package starting at a lot less than the pro model the unboxing experience is identical as we carry on braided USBC cable packed up in the origami style and the good old SIM tool unchanged for Generations now when it comes to comparing the 15 to the 16 good Lord they are very very similar very very similar in form factor let's do that wobble test that I am so curious about in the very Corner we're okay on the 15 as we move up the device we increase our wobble we do get wobble in the very oh we got a double wobble it's it's more wobbly we get wobble here wobble here wobble here whatever I mean a lot of smartphones are wobbling at this point it's a plague it's a wobble plague of course Google cares about these things shots fired that's up to you to decide all right let's move on to the teal see how it compares to the ultramarine and this is the plus siiz iPhone 16 standard oh I love it is it enough to persuade Mo to change his mind oh ultramarine versus teal teal is very nice teal is very nice he says teal is very nice do we have previous gen plus we do and once again we are extremely comparable wobble test oh wobble test gets even worse that one wobbles if you touch it if you try to make it wobble but when you place it down it's no wobble this one you place it down and it just wobbles see what I mean it just wobbles when you just place it on the table 15 sits there unless you aim to make it wobble okay I'm going nuts here with this wobble thing but if we go instead and compare to the new Pro Models we can see the scale difference there Pro Max versus iPhone 16 and pro 16 versus standard 16 you can also tell here that the non-pro variant is slightly thinner which is cool I mean it's slight but it is there this episode has been sponsored by ESR and their brand new iPhone 16 cases so let's start with the tough case exceed 7x military grade protection foldable stash stand built in designed to work with mag save this is going to be your super rugged option you can see the mag safe on the back and we have a multi-layer setup we have coverage on the power port and of course we've also got access for camera control now so this is what's called the foldable stash stand and this obviously allows you to have a better viewing experience hybrid case with stash stand clear color Halo lock magnetic case stash stand still get that functionality like that slightly less of a tank than the tough case but arguably more stylish I also notice that the stand changes color from a darker metallic to a silver so next up we have the soft case satisfying texture very soft still got our mag safe built in still have access to our camera control a microfiber soft touch interior they're actually stating that this one is 3x military grade protection as well so similar protection level to the hybrid the other thing about the stand is you can pick uh between a number of angles depending on what what's ideal and then last up we have their new Ultra tempered glass screen protectors with their included applicator you simply drop it into this jig pull the tab and the screen protector is installed perfectly so let me know down in the comments if you're going to pick up one of these new cases for your new iPhone 16 Pro or Pro Max which go for the tough the hybrid or the soft okay so I got them both booted up now I have to admit that just handling the devices the regular iPhone 16 is the most comfortable to hold one hand two-handed it's the thinnest lightest so I'm not too surprised by that now let's talk a little bit about the differences between the 16 and the 15 the display it's identical we now have the action button where the switch used to be so we get to feel like we bought the pro model even though we didn't that's good apple Intelligence coming soon don't call it AI unless you're going to say the whole thing Apple intelligence they invented it you didn't know it was never artificial it was always Apple intelligence the most intelligent oh we got the camera control functionality now that wasn't on the previous generation it's now capable of macro on that same camera spatial photos and videos and you're getting the latest generation photographic styles that come with that a18 chip how about I give you a little improved battery life to the tune of 2 hours mag safe wireless charging has improved it's faster now this is looking a lot like the pro spec sheet except you don't have to pay as much I think a lot of people are just going to go with this one maybe not this color because Mo and I both agree that in person I think he used the term radioactive which is maybe a little extreme there something off about this color in person I don't know to each their own but the more I look at it the more I'm like teal and I say it in that exact voice I go like this I go teal 128 GB teal they're like sir what is the matter with you ay one nit minimum brightness it is like I'm reading the pro spec sheet here cinematic video stabilization why do you have to buy the pro model why you got to buy huh to get an extra camera I guess and to get your titanium bro your phone's not even titanium so bro your phone's not even titanium so what are we doing what are we doing your phone's not even titanium so what do we do so everybody knows that guy everybody knows that guy you've met that guy before listen this is the phone you should get just get the iPhone 16 that's my verdict this year if you have to get an iPhone this year Lam yeah why you need the pro model mo why you yelling about the pro model pro model this PR model that okay the wide doesn't look the ultra wide maybe doesn't look quite as good these ones look good though look at those look at the regular standard focal length 1X that's kind of what you're lacking there your Ultra y doesn't look quite as good it's tough on these screens like it just look at the roof the sharp like it's it's just obvious there's just too much resolution on the other one I presume that on video we're going to be 4K 60 we got the same chip right 4K 60 and no 4K 120 cuz otherwise what is pro that's okay here is a video sample 4K 60 and mo changed his Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey oh there we go modeling Mo the model this one is here he goes oh here we go yeah damn dude sound good e jeez you didn't have to do them like that titanium bro we quickly get in the camera bam we're in you can pause videos now I don't know if you knew about that you can like pause a video recording it's a new feature it's very useful I use that feature I'm happy about it continue the recording sounds see what kind of sounds fine sounds loud the I'll pinch for you this looks a lot different than right in there for you way lighter it has want yeah I think this year maybe more than ever or more than I can remember in recent I'm sure other people probably said this and you probably watch those videos too this year I mean you probably don't really need the pro model unless money is no problemo and you're just give me the Desert Storm I know it's desert Titan sounds funnier if I say Desert Storm you understand and it should have been more Desert Storm color in my opinion when I had the mockup Desert Storm man look at that this is what I wanted instead we got that like another like white phone basically nah anyway this is the entry point and it has the vast majority of what you're going to end up using and liking on the other devices yeah if you can't see yourself needing those Studio audio features the extra extra camera 4K 120 bigger battery obviously bigger screen like if those things are not absolutely major to you you can save your money this year and you can get the iPhone 16 or you can save even more money and wait until the next Generation it's completely up to you you know what I mean it's 2024 like you know if you need a new phone or not I think we're past just buying these things every single generation because we have to and the iPhone always represents an opportunity to speak to the audience on that topic of like how often should we be buying and upgrading things it's just this phone is like the marker it's like the test it's like the economic test of like hey where are we at where's the disposable income but then also it's like hey where are we at from a technology perspective like have things in this segment kind of slowed down a little bit like are we seeing as many massive improvements are people feeling as compelled these are the conversations I have in public in public like in the world and I suppose now in public here on the internet which is also somewhere in the world good night\n"