I just spent a few minutes with the new iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max, which feature larger displays with thinner bezels, redesigned cameras, and Apple's new camera control button, which is pretty intriguing.
Let's start with the camera controls, a physical button that easily presses into the body and features additional haptic feedback from Apple's Taptic Engine to make it feel like a more forceful click. You can just click it and it'll fire off photos from the 48MP main camera with no shutter lag. In my short demo time, I wasn't able to slow it down, but we'll see how this works in real life.
The button is also extremely sensitive, so a light press brings up the swipe-to-zoom control, and a light double press brings up additional controls you can swipe between, like lens selection, exposure, and the new photo styles available on the Pro. It took me a second to figure out how hard I needed to press, but it wasn't difficult to figure out.
Switching between the different photo styles was pretty smooth, but it was hard to see what they actually did in the perfect lighting conditions in Apple's demo area.
The phones themselves are slightly taller and wider than the 15 Pro models, making room for larger screens: a 6.3-inch panel on the 16 Pro and a massive 6.9-inch display on the 16 Pro Max, with the emphasis on Max. This is partly due to the new, thinner bezels. Without the case, they don't feel much bigger in the hand.
The big news for the smaller phone is that the regular 16 Pro now comes with the 5x telephoto camera that was previously reserved for the Pro Max. Apple has managed to pack it alongside the main and ultra-wide cameras, which is a welcome addition for anyone who wants a proper zoom lens without having to buy the biggest phone.
If you were hoping for some bolder colors on the Pro phones, you'll have to wait a bit longer. The best Apple has released this year is a darker gold called “Desert Titanium.” The other color options are familiar, understated neutrals.