This Black Friday, I snagged a killer deal on a new iPhone 16 Pro. It’s the first new phone I’ve had in years, and it replaced my old iPhone 12 Pro that was starting to show its age.
After holding out for so long, I’ve got to say that it feels good to have joined the modern era – blazing fast performance, Apple Intelligence goodness, silky smooth animations, you name it. But there are also a few things I’m not so happy about – things I never had to deal with on the iPhone 12 Pro. Because while I absolutely love the iPhone 16 Pro, it’s by no means perfect.
Using it is buttery smooth
Not everyone talks about it, but using the iPhone 16 Pro is smooth. I’m not talking about how fast everything is to load – I mean its animations. My iPhone 12 Pro was limited to a 60Hz display, but the iPhone 16 Pro ups that to 120Hz, and it feels amazing.
Swiping between app screens and scrolling through web pages feels so smooth compared to my old phone. And while the 60Hz screen on my old phone was never a problem, now that I’m using a faster refresh rate every day, there’s no way I’d ever go back (and I know I’m not alone).
It’s not something I can ever adequately explain in text, and you’ve got to just experience it in person to understand how lovely it feels. Once you do, you’ll love it just like I do.
The Dynamic Island
The Dynamic Island has received a lot of stick since it launched for never really living up to its potential. And I agree that it could probably do a little more than it already does. But compared to what I had on the iPhone 12 Pro, it’s an excellent addition.
On my old phone, the notch was a big, bulky bar that really did nothing for me. Sure, I know it’s needed to hide all the cameras and Face ID sensors, but it takes away a large chunk of your screen that can’t be used in any other way.
With the iPhone 16 Pro, the notch (now a cutout) is put to good use, as it can display information from various apps in an easy-to-see way. Even something as simple as checking how long is left on my timer (no matter what app I’m using) is a really useful touch. I also love that I can quickly interact with whatever information is hidden in there without having to open the associated app. It might not be a ground-breaking feature, but it’s a much better use of the notch than the iPhone 12 Pro offered me.
More screen real estate
I never really thought that my old iPhone 12 Pro had thick, chunky bezels, but the iPhone 16 Pro has slimmed them down even further, helping to expand the device’s display as a result. It doesn’t sound like much, but the extra screen space – combined with the smooth 120Hz scrolling – makes consuming content just that much better.
Part of the reason is that, right now at least, I’m using my new phone without a case (more on that later), meaning there’s no extra bulk crowding in on the screen. But I can’t ignore the difference that the slimmer bezels and increased screen size have made to my enjoyment of the new phone, even if it’s a subtle difference.
Macro photography is brilliant
I’m someone who takes a lot of photos on my iPhone, and I mean a lot – my Photos library contains 39,201 items at the time of writing. Yet despite my iPhone long since replacing my DSLR in my day-to-day usage, it’s always bugged me that the iPhone 12 Pro was only average at taking macro shots.
Now, though, that’s all changed. With the addition of macro photography to recent iPhones, you can get closer than ever to your subject. That’s something I’ve really noticed with the iPhone 16 Pro, and it’s helped me capture shots that just weren’t possible on my old device. Combined with the 5x optical zoom, it’s the best phone camera I’ve ever used.
I feel like I’m even less likely to need one of the best DSLR cameras in my life now that I can turn my phone into a proper photography tool. They say the best camera is the one you have with you, and that’s just become even more true in my case.
Genmoji are often exactly what I need
Whatever you think of it, Apple Intelligence is a part of our world now, and it was a big addition to my new iPhone (my iPhone 12 Pro wasn’t powerful enough to run it). And now that I’ve got a taste of it, there’s one element in particular that I’ve grown very fond of.
That aspect is Genmoji, Apple’s AI-powered emoji. In any app that contains a text field, you just type in what you want and Apple Intelligence will whip up a brand-new emoji for you to use. I’ve had some great use out of it so far, and I love that I can create any emoji I want to perfectly fit the moment at hand. It’s especially fun to whip up new emoji based on photos of people I know.
Sure, I wish it worked a little faster, and sometimes it takes a couple of attempts to get exactly the result I want. But overall, it’s a great new feature that’s left me thoroughly impressed with my new phone.
I instantly disabled the always-on display
It’s not all good, though. As soon as I got my new iPhone, the first thing I turned off was the always-on display. I’ve heard the horror stories about it draining iPhone batteries and I didn’t want any of that for myself, particularly not if it risked prematurely ageing my device’s battery and lowering its maximum capacity.
Aside from that, I just plain don’t need the iPhone’s always-on display. I’ve also got an Apple Watch Series 10, and on that device, the always-on display is extremely useful. Because my Watch is almost always within my sightline, I can just glance down to see the time without needing to raise my wrist. That’s a good example of a place where the always-on display is valuable.
But my iPhone is usually in my pocket, where the always-on screen doesn’t help me in any way. Even if my phone is on my desk, it’s still easier to just use my Watch to check the time. It’s an unnecessary feature on my iPhone, and I don’t regret disabling it.
Butterfingers beware
(Image credit: Future | Alex Walker-Todd)
At the moment, I’m not using a case with my iPhone 16 Pro, mainly because I’ve been agonizing over which one to buy (finding the best iPhone case can be surprisingly difficult). During this time, I’ve come to realize that a naked iPhone is dangerously slippery, and there have been several occasions where I’ve come perilously close to sending it hurtling towards the ground (luckily, there have been no disasters yet).
My iPhone 12 Pro was also pretty easy to lose hold of, and I had it in a case from almost day one as a result. But over the ensuing four years, I’d hoped that Apple had done something to make its phones a grippier. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case. The Ceramic Shield will help, but I don’t want to have to rely on it saving my phone when extra grip would stop it dropping in the first place.
The bulbous camera bump
Another thing I’ve noticed from going temporarily caseless is that the iPhone 16 Pro’s camera bump is freaking huge. If I rest the phone on a table, it prominently wobbles from side to side any time I tap. It’s something that was never a problem with my previous phone and its much more slimline camera protrusion.
I worry that all that close contact with surfaces can’t be good for the camera lenses. That’s something that will be alleviated by swaddling my phone in a case, which should add a bit more protection around the camera. But for now, it’s a worrying side effect of increasing the lens sizes on the newer phone.
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