There are only a few hours left until “It’s Glowtime,” so let’s summarize what to expect. In case you missed it, we’ve already reported on the rumors and leaks about the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus. Here we go over everything we (think) we know about the two Pro models.

The event starts at 17:00 UTC and we’ll be covering all the new product launches. Until then, here’s a recap of everything that’s happened over the last few months.

The start

Pre-orders for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max start tomorrow, if not today. We’re probably expecting pre-orders in two weeks, so first deliveries and in-store availability should be on September 20 (Apple always chooses a Friday).

Apple Intelligence, the big upgrade for iOS 18, was not completed in time and will only be released later as part of iOS 18.1. Because of this, Apple is testing two beta versions at the same time. Apple apparently did not want to delay the iPhone launch until Intelligence is ready, but we expect it will be a key part of the presentation.

The design

This section will be short – we’ve seen photos of iPhone 16 Pro Max dummies and if it weren’t for the new color (gold, not brown) we might have believed they were just iPhone 15 Pro Maxes. Speaking of colors, there’s Titanium Black and Titanium White, of course, as well as Titanium Silver and Titanium Gold. There was a rumor of a Rose option, but there’s no photographic evidence of such a shade. If you want colors, you might want to get an iPhone 16 or 16 Plus instead.

iPhone 16 Pro Max dummies in white, black, silver and gold

The gold-colored model also appeared in a short unboxing video, where it is referred to as “Desert Titanium” (the shade was apparently inspired by the sands of the Sahara). This video offers a quick look at the front of the phone – that is, the front of the retail box, which shows a picture of the front of the phone – which shows that not much has changed. Dynamic Island is present, apparently no smaller than last year.

Size comparison of the four iPhone 16 models

Apple has tweaked the design slightly, but it’s not immediately obvious. The iPhone 16 Pro Max will reportedly have the world’s thinnest bezels, but even so, the phone will be a bit larger. The reason for this becomes clear when we get to the display section.

Larger displays

Both iPhone Pros retain the exclusivity of the ProMotion panels, meaning if you want 120Hz LTPO, you’ll get a Pro model. The two standard phones will continue to use the outdated 60Hz technology for another year, but this year the two pairs will diverge even further, as they will no longer offer the same screen sizes.

iPhone 16 Pro Max Retail Package

The iPhone 16 Pro will have a 6.3-inch display, while the standard 16 model will remain at 6.1 inches. The iPhone 16 Pro Max will be the largest iPhone yet, with a 6.9-inch display – compared to the 6.7 inches of the previous Pro Max and the upcoming Plus. The resolution will likely be increased slightly to keep the pixel density the same.

In the previous section, we mentioned that the bezels will be thinner to compensate for some of the growth from the larger displays—not enough to completely offset it, but still. The iPhone Pro’s bezels will shrink from 1.71mm to 1.2mm compared to last year’s model, while the Pro Max’s bezels will shrink from 1.55mm to 1.15mm.

Here is a model that Ice Universe made to show the difference:

iPhone 16 Pro Max (left) vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max (right) bezels

We’re not sure why so few photos (or videos) have leaked showing the front of the iPhone Pro, but it’s clear that any major changes surrounding Dynamic Island will have to wait until next year (it’s reportedly getting narrower).

Action and recording buttons

Side views of dummies show the tentatively named Action and Record buttons, which trigger custom actions and act as a camera trigger, respectively. However, this means the alarm slider is removed.

All four iPhone 16 models have an action button

And a record button

The record button is apparently more of a capacitive trackpad than a physical button that allows swiping movements – this could be used to control the zoom, for example.

Apple A18 chipset and AI for all

Last year, the two Pro phones were powered by the Apple A17 Pro chipset, while the two standard models had to reuse the A16 from the previous year. This and the lower amount of RAM means the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus will not get Apple Intelligence.

Again, we expect this to be a key part of the presentation and marketing for the new 16 Series later in the day, so all four models will need to be equipped with it.

This means that all four iPhone 16 models will run on an Apple A18 chipset. They may not be identical, the Pro models could have more GPU cores, for example. The NPUs will likely be identical, so AI tasks will feel equally fast on the device.

They could also have the same amount of RAM, which is 8GB. We’ve seen leaks claiming this capacity for the two standard models, but no credible rumors of the Pros getting 12GB. 12GB may have to wait until the 17 series and even then it could be reserved for the iPhone 17 Pro Max. AI models need a lot of RAM to run and Google even reserved some of the extra RAM on the Pixel 9 phones to keep the model loaded at all times. We’ll see how Apple addresses this issue.

5x telephoto camera for the iPhone 16 Pro, minor upgrades

Similar to ProMotion, telephoto lenses are exclusive to the iPhone Pro. This will be the case with this generation as well, but at least the two Pros are being brought closer together. Until now, only the Pro Max had the long 5x telephoto lens.

Now, both the Pro and Pro Max will have a 5x telephoto camera – apparently the same as last year, with a 12MP sensor and an f/2.8 aperture. The main camera also remains unchanged, a 48MP sensor with 0.7µm pixels (and binning down to 1.4µm). It will offer a 48MP ProRaw mode, there is talk of JPEG-XL (as an alternative to HEIF) and a new video mode – 3K at 120fps with Dolby Vision.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro

The ultra-wide-angle camera has the same 12MP sensor as the standard models, but gets a new lens – it has a larger aperture of f/2.2 (previously f/2.4) and, like the Pro models, autofocus.

We already mentioned the capture button above. Since it’s a capacitive button, it supports swipe gestures (e.g. to zoom in and out) and is also pressure sensitive, so a virtual half-press is enough to focus.

Batteries and charging

Apple, like Samsung and Google, just isn’t a fan of fast charging phones. Both the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max charged at a leisurely 27W over USB-C and 15W over MagSafe. This year’s models will noticeably increase the power limits, but nothing too crazy.

The iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max phones will reportedly support 40W wired charging and 20W MagSafe charging. Okay, that doesn’t sound like much, but that’s a 48% and 33% increase, respectively. That’s more than the Pixel 9 Pro XL upgrade (23% wired, no upgrade for Qi charging). Samsung hasn’t changed charging rates for its flagships at all (and hasn’t for a while).

Since the two Pro phones are bigger, we expect bigger batteries too, right? Well, but only just – the table below compares them to the previous models and shows only minor improvements.

Increased production, professionals from India

This may or may not interest you, but it is worth mentioning. Apple is expected to continue to expand its manufacturing base in India and this year will be the first year that Pro models will be built in the country. Until now, Indian factories have only produced standard iPhones. As early as next year, India is expected to account for up to 25% of total iPhone production.

This move will help boost sales in the country, but also overall production volumes – Apple is reportedly planning to produce more iPhones this year, with a focus primarily on the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max. The target is around 90.1 million in total, up from 86.2 million last year. The non-Pro duo will apparently make up around 33% of production, with the rest going to the Pros.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max alone is expected to account for 37% of the total (33.2 million units, up from 24.2 million for the previous Pro Max), while the 16 Pro is expected to account for 30% of the mix with 26.6 million units (up from 21.8 million for the 15 Pro).

What’s next

Since we know most of you don’t upgrade your phone every year, it’s important to mention what’s coming next – of course, this is pure speculation, but some might decide to wait another year.

The iPhone 17 Pro Max could get a 48MP periscope camera for superior zooming. However, this leak is from late 2023, so plans may have changed since then – it also mentions that the iPhone 16 Pro phones will have 48MP ultra-wide cameras, and that’s not going to happen. All four iPhone 17 models are expected to have 24MP selfie cameras, up from the current 12MP.

As mentioned above, the iPhone 17 Pro Max could get 12GB of RAM (but not the smaller 17 Pro). The Pro models could also get an exclusive chipset, the very first chip from TSMC’s 2nm foundry.