Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO, and Vivo are eyeing the market greedily.

The release date of the iPhone 16 series (September 10, local time) is approaching, and there are increasing leaks about it in the market. Recently, leakster Sonny Dickson successively revealed the mockups of various models in the iPhone 16 series on platform X, including the standard iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max. The most noteworthy is the new bronze color added to the Pro Max model.

Although they are just mockups, referring to the previous leaks from this blogger and 3D renderings from other channels, the credibility of the leaks is quite high, basically spot on.

Image source: X / Sonny Dickson

At the recently held WWDC 2024, Apple publicly unveiled its AI trump card - Apple Intelligent AI operating system for the first time. Last month, the iOS 18.1 developer preview was finally available for the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, although with related AI features, the overall performance was disappointing. Nowadays, Apple fans are more concerned about the fully AI-integrated iPhone 16 series, especially domestic users who are currently excluded from Apple Intelligent.

In 2024, iPhone's decline is evident, with declining sales and market share, and its technological leadership is gradually being replaced. So besides Apple Intelligent, can hardware upgrades such as screens, chips, cameras, and battery life make the iPhone 16 series a choice for consumers again?

The biggest upgrade in history? Apple is up to its old tricks again

Currently, the screens, processors, designs, and camera systems of the iPhone 16 series have all been exposed. The Pro version of the iPhone 16 series may be the most significantly upgraded generation among all previous iPhones.

Let's start with the screens, which have always been an important criterion for Apple to distinguish between the standard and Pro versions of the iPhone. Since the iPhone 13 Pro supported a 120Hz refresh rate, the standard versions of the iPhone have not had high refresh rates for three consecutive generations. Compared to Android models with standard high refresh rates, the iPhone, starting at 5999 yuan, only has a 60Hz screen refresh rate, which seems quite meager.

However, this situation is about to change with the iPhone 16 series. It is rumored that all models of the iPhone 16 series will come standard with high refresh rates, but it is uncertain whether the standard version supports LTPO smart refresh rate adjustment. The screen differences between the standard and Pro versions will shift to screen size and brightness.

Image source: Mac Rumors

The size of the iPhone 16 standard version remains unchanged, but the screen size of the iPhone 16 Pro will increase from 6.1 inches to 6.3 inches, with a 20% increase in brightness. The Pro Max model will come with a 6.9-inch screen. If the rumors are true, the display sizes of the iPhone 16 series will be the largest in iPhone history.

Apple also plans to introduce the 5x quadriprism telephoto lens, previously exclusive to the Pro Max, across the iPhone 16 Pro series. The maximum focal length will also be upgraded to 120mm. The Pro Max will be equipped with a 1/1.14-inch Sony IMX-903 primary camera sensor, 12% larger than the previous generation, along with a "super" telephoto camera with a focal length exceeding 300mm.

With improved camera capabilities, better control methods are necessary. Following the replacement of the mute switch with an action button on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, the iPhone 16 series will come standard with an action button and a new dedicated camera button, allowing one-click access to the camera interface and supporting single-click photography and long-press video recording.

Image source: Lei Technology

I speculate that this feature is designed to speed up shooting and provide a reliable photography experience. Whether it's a physical or solid-state button will have to wait until the new product is released. I believe this is an important step for Apple to embrace the trend of "camera-phone integration," as many consumers today are essentially buying a camera that can smoothly use WeChat and browse the internet.

In terms of processors, Apple's "scalpel" remains consistently precise: the iPhone 16/Plus is equipped with the A18 processor, while the iPhone 16 Pro/Max comes with the A18 Pro processor. The main differences between the two processors lie in AI computing power, ray tracing, and other advanced features, with little difference in other aspects. Data suggests that compared to the previous-generation A17 series processors, the A18 series processors offer less than 10% improvement in multi-core and single-core performance, with only a notable 30% increase in GPU performance.

Moreover, to accommodate Apple Intelligent, the iPhone 16 series finally includes 8GB of RAM across the board. This is undoubtedly a milestone upgrade for Apple, but in the broader mobile industry, 8GB is not remarkable. Additionally, the iPhone 16 series adopts stacked battery technology, which is claimed to increase energy density and extend battery life, but the battery capacity only sees a modest increase, supporting up to 40W wired charging and 20W MagSafe charging.

Regarding color options, the iPhone 16 standard version comes in five colors: black, white, blue, green, and pink. The iPhone 16 Pro series features a titanium metal frame and comes in white, black, silver, and a new bronze color. The bronze color reminds me of the champagne gold of the iPhone 5s/6 series but with a deeper hue. It's undeniable that Apple remains adept at playing with colors.

Image source: X / Sonny Dickson

Overall, the upgrades to the iPhone 16 series can be considered Apple's most sincere effort in recent years. However, it's still difficult to impress consumers accustomed to Android flagships, as hardware aspects such as battery capacity, charging speed, memory, and cameras, which are heavily competitive, do not meet the current standards of Android flagships in the mobile phone market.

Hardware upgrades fall short of expectations. If Apple wants the iPhone 16 series to compete with Android flagships, it must demonstrate more sincerity in software.

Falling behind Google by two to three years in AI, will the iPhone 16 series struggle?

In fact, Apple's fluency in mobile operating systems has been caught up by other phone manufacturers, and its once-proud software ecosystem advantage is no longer as significant as it once was. In terms of innovative features like AI, Apple lags behind.

Last week, Google held an early product launch event, showcasing the new Gemini AI feature on the Pixel 9 series before the release of Apple's iPhone 16 series. In contrast, although Apple announced Apple Intelligence at WWDC, its practical application is still immature, and some features may not be ready by the time the iPhone 16 series is released.

Image source: Google

Mark Gurman of Bloomberg stated that after watching Google's latest AI announcement, it's hard not to conclude that Apple is at least two to three years behind in this field. While Apple Intelligence can summarize information and recordings, the latest Pixel phones can also change photo backgrounds, extract information from images, and sync it to calendars.

In terms of functionality, stronger natural language understanding, and task execution capabilities, Gemini AI surpasses Apple Intelligence. The fundamental reason is that Google possesses "full AI capabilities" with technology that does not rely on third parties, while Apple needs to rely on giants like OpenAI.

Moreover, Apple's strategy for Apple Intelligent in mainland China remains unclear. Since Apple itself does not possess strong AI technology, partnering with Chinese AI giants could be a viable path. However, judging from Samsung's previous collaboration with local AI players like Baidu, "stitched AI" phones are essentially AI-powered at the application level, offering a vastly different experience from deeply integrated AI at the system and hardware/software levels. If Apple pursues the "stitched AI" path in China, the experience will not have an advantage.

The weakness in AI will directly impact the sales performance of the iPhone 16 series. If Apple continues to exclude the domestic market, as it did with NFC technology, the iPhone 16 series may face sluggish sales.

Regardless of how Apple implements AI in the Chinese region for the iPhone 16 series, it presents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for domestic phone makers. AI is a weak point for the iPhone in China, and if domestic manufacturers can seize this opportunity to strengthen their AI advantages, they may truly crush Apple.

Domestic phone makers aggressively "poach," Apple should feel the Sense of Crisis

It's unclear when new iPhones began to frequently receive criticism from users, as their incremental progress has lagged far behind Android brands. Even though the iPhone 16 series has upgrades in screens, cameras, memory, charging, and battery life, it still lags behind.

This can be seen from market data, especially in the Chinese market, where Apple has had a difficult start. Sales plunged significantly in the first two months of the year, stabilizing only in March and April. The latest survey report released by Techinsights shows that the top five domestic smartphone shipments in the second quarter of 2024 were dominated by domestic brands: vivo, OPPO, Huawei, Honor, and Xiaomi, while Apple fell into the "Others" category.

For Apple, these figures are alarming. While the overall decline in global mobile phone sales is a factor, the decline in market share cannot solely be attributed to the broader environment. The decrease in iPhone's competitiveness and the lack of motivation for users to upgrade their devices remain major issues.

For example, the iPhone 16 series will focus on upgrading the camera department, with the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max increasing their body sizes to accommodate larger primary camera sensors, but they still don't reach 1 inch. On the Android side, the vivo X100 Ultra not only features a 1-inch primary camera sensor but also a two-billion-pixel telephoto lens from Samsung's HP9. The OPPO Find X7 Ultra and Xiaomi 14 Ultra both adopt dual telephoto lens solutions.

Image source: vivo

Coming standard with high refresh rate screens catches up with flagship phones' mainstream configuration, but the controversial sweet spot of memory has only been increased to 8GB, while mid-range Android phones like the Redmi K70E and OnePlus Ace 3V already offer 12GB of RAM.

Worse still are the iPhone's battery life and charging efficiency. As Android manufacturers continue to develop high-density batteries, flagship phones on the market generally come equipped with large-capacity batteries and 100W fast charging combinations, such as Honor's Qinghai Lake battery and vivo's Blue Ocean battery, which are both thin, light, and have large capacities.

Apple has considered adopting high-density battery technology for the iPhone 16 series, but the capacity may still hover around 3000-4000mAh. Is it that Apple lacks the ability to increase battery capacity? While industrial design challenges (larger batteries require more space) play a role, Apple's priority on profit margins is likely the primary reason.

The competition in the mobile phone market will intensify further in October and November, with the concentrated release of flagship new models like the vivo X200 series, Mate 70 series, Xiaomi 16 series, and OPPO Find X8 series. Each of these new models offers a comparative advantage over the iPhone 16: compact models with hardware configurations surpassing the Pro level; new flagships equipped with the latest Qualcomm and MediaTek flagship chips; super flagships with years of expertise in photography; and key flagship models from players like OPPO and Huawei with significant advantages in AI phones. More importantly, more powerful Android flagship phones often offer stronger price competitiveness. In this regard, the competition faced by Apple's iPhone 16 series is intense.

If you plan to purchase the iPhone 16 series, I recommend waiting for clearer information before making a decision. Based on current leaks, the iPhone 16 series lacks almost any hardware advantages aside from the iOS software ecosystem. Even loyal Apple fans who want to enjoy the complete experience of a new phone and operating system may want to consider the Hong Kong or overseas versions first.

Many Apple fans hesitate to switch to Android phones not because they think Android phones are insufficient but because they are "tied down" by the Apple ecosystem, such as using Apple's PCs and tablets or having family members who still use Apple products, making cross-platform data migration and device synchronization inconvenient. In fact, Android manufacturers have recognized these issues, and some are continually optimizing cross-platform data migration and cross-device collaboration features, clearly targeting iPhone users.

Rome wasn't built in a day, and time may be running out for the iPhone. How will Android manufacturers compete for Apple users, and how will the iPhone 16 perform? Lei Technology will continue to closely follow these developments and bring you the latest updates. Stay tuned.