iPhone 15 Pro vs iPhone 16 Pro: which one to choose? Here is the list of all the differences

Apple presented the iPhone 16 Pro on Monday September 9, 2024. This new high-end smartphone is intended to be the benchmark for the Apple brand until September 2025. It follows on from the already excellent iPhone 15 Pro. While the two devices share a large number of features, they are obviously different in many ways. We've listed all the differences between the iPhone 16 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro right here.

• Discover all our other comparisons here

Design: minor changes?

Finishes

• iPhone 16 Pro :Sand Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium and Black Titanium
• iPhone 15 Pro :Blue Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium and Black Titanium

Apple is making us forget last year's blue Titanium finish for a brand new "sand" color reminiscent of the "rose gold" shades of a few years ago.

Dimensions and weight

In photo: what are the differences?

Rear camera

• iPhone 16 Pro :48 Mpx Fusion camera/Ultra grand‑angle 48 Mpx/12 MP telephoto lens with 5x optical zoom
• iPhone 15 Pro :main camera 48 Mpx/Ultra grand‑angle 12 Mpx/12 MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom

Mode macro

• iPhone 16 Pro:mode macro 48 Mpx
• iPhone 15 Pro :mode macro

The iPhone 16 Pro also has the right to a lens with anti-reflective coating, a first on an iPhone.

Video recording

• iPhone 16 Pro :Dolby Vision 4K recording up to 120 fps
• iPhone 15 Pro :4K recording up to 60 fps

ProRes 4k recording progresses to 120 fps, compared to 60 fps on last year's iPhone 15 Pro.

Slow motion video

• iPhone 16 Pro :slow motion in 1080p up to 240 fps and in Dolby Vision 4K up to 120 fps (Fusion camera)
• iPhone 15 Pro :slow motion in 1080p at 120 or 240 fps

Audio recording

• iPhone 16 Pro :Spatial audio and stereo recording, 4 studio-quality microphones, wind noise reduction and audio mixing
• iPhone 15 Pro :stereo recording

Front camera

• iPhone 16 Pro :Dolby Vision 4K video recording at 24 fps, 25 fps, 30 fps or 60 fps
• iPhone 15 Pro :4K video recording at 24, 25, 30 or 60 fps

Camera Control

• iPhone 16 Pro :with
• iPhone 15 Pro :sans

Internal components: what are the differences?

Processor

• iPhone 16 Pro :A18 Pro chip (6-core CPU, 6-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine)
• iPhone 15 Pro :A17 Pro chip (6-core CPU, 6-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine)

Screen

• iPhone 16 Pro :2622 x 1206 pixel resolution at 460 ppi
• iPhone 15 Pro :2556 x 1179 pixel resolution at 460 ppi

We also note the addition of minimum brightness which now goes down to 1 nit on the iPhone 16 Pro. This option did not exist on the iPhone 15 Pro.

Wifi

• iPhone 16 Pro :Wifi 7
• iPhone 15 Pro :Wifi 6E

Battery

• iPhone 16 Pro :22 hours video streaming, 27 hours video playback, 85 hours audio playback
• iPhone 15 Pro :video streaming 20 hours, video playback 23 hours, audio playback 75 hours

In addition to the Pro models, Apple also released a new version of its iPhone Pro Max this year. Let's see the differences between this iPhone 16 Pro Max and its big brother, the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Dimensions and weight

• iPhone 16 Pro Max :163 mm in height, 77.6 mm in width, 8.25 mm in thickness for 227 g
• iPhone 15 Pro Max :160.9 mm in height, 77.8 mm in width, 7.8 mm in thickness for 199 g

Screen size

• iPhone 16 Pro Max :6.9 inches
• iPhone 15 Pro Max :6.7 inches

Price: which one costs more than the other?

The iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max cost the same as the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max when released. Here is the detail:

• iPhone 16 Pro :
  • 128 Go : 1 229 €
  • 256 Go : 1 359 €
  • 512 Go : 1 609 €
  • 1 To : 1 859 €
• iPhone 16 Pro Max :
  • 256 Go : 1 479 €
  • 512 Go : 1 729 €
  • 1 To : 1 979 €
• iPhone 15 Pro :
  • 128 Go : 1 230,95 €
  • 256 Go : 1 360,95 €
  • 512 Go : 1 610,95 €
  • 1 To : 1 860,95 €
• iPhone 15 Pro Max :
  • 256 Go : 1 480,95 €
  • 512 Go : 1 730,95 €
  • 1 To : 1 980,95 €

The differences, you see, are of the order of 1 to 2 euros. At these prices, it's pretty negligible.

iPhone 15 Pro and 16 Pro: on these points, they are similar

Here are the notable features that the iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max and 16 Pro/Pro Max share:

• Super Retina XDR OLED display (with True Tone display, 2 million:1 contrast, 1,600 nits peak brightness in HDR)
• Screen always on
• Flash True Tone
• Night mode portraits
• Support for iOS 18 and Apple Intelligence
• 5G support
• Bouton Action
• Emergency SOS
• Accident detection
• Scanner LiDAR
• Double SIM
• USB-C 3 (10 Gbit/s)
• IP68 waterproof (up to 6 meters deep for up to 30 minutes)
• MagSafe Qi2 et Qi
• Support d’Apple Intelligence

Conclusion: iPhone 15 Pro or 16 Pro, which one to choose?

You won't be surprised to learn that we advise all iPhone 15 Pro owners to wait andnot to rush for the iPhone 16 Pro. The iPhone 15 Pro doesn't have much to envy of its successor, apart from a few more hours of battery life, a little more power especially in photography, but in the endnothing very sensitive for ordinary mortals. And then, the biggest news of the moment, Apple Intelligence, is indeed compatible with the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max.

If you have an older model and are hesitating between the 15 Pro and 16 Pro, everything will depend on the price. Don't fall for a 15 Pro found at the price of the 16 Pro or very close. If, on the other hand, an offer gives you a 15 Pro or 15 Pro Max for at least €200 less than a 16 Pro or 16 Pro Max, it could become very interesting.