Overall Review Summary

Expert Rating: 9.5/10

Expert point of view

The iPhone 16 Plus 5G, released along with its siblings in September 2024, targets that sweetest spot where users want a large screen with good battery backup and are just short of buying into the "Pro" category premium price. It retains the basic treatment that applies to the regular iPhone 16 but acquires a special personality with bigger size and superior endurance. Let's delve into a comprehensive review.

Design and Build

With the iPhone 16 Plus, Apple keeps up its tradition of high aesthetics and durability. Constructed in aluminum, the featured back of the phone is color-infused glass in crazy new hues like Ultramarine, Teal, Pink, Black, and White. The matte finish lends it a luxurious texture and is also quite resistant to smudging.

One of the marked differences as compared to past non-Pro versions lies in the vertical placement of the rear cameras, a nod to earlier iPhones but mostly to allow Spatial Video capture; this slight change also lends the phone a cleaner and more streamlined appearance.

Justifying its name, the Action Button grant rests on the iPhone 16 Plus an inheritance from last year's Pro models; a customizable physical button can be assigned to any function you'd want quick access to, from opening the camera to voice memos or translations. It retains the IP68-rated dust and water resistance, resisting everyday spills and splashes. Weighing in at 199 grams, it is a little bit lighter than its predecessor, thus improving holdability to some extent for a 6.7-inch device.

Display

The iPhone 16 Plus boasts a remarkable 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with a resolution of 2796x1290 pixels, leading to an extremely sharp 460 PPI. This display offers:Vivid colors and deep blacks as all OLED panels always do.Impressive brightness levels: 1,000 nits typical brightness, 1,600 nits peak brightness HDR, and an insane 2,000 nits peak outdoor brightness, allowing for comfortable viewing even under direct plenty of sunlight.

Dynamic Island: This interactive pill-shaped cutout at the top continues its seamless integration for alerts, activities, and Face ID. 
But, for a number of people, the 60Hz refresh rate still remains a point of dispute. While most Android phones, all priced far below, advertise 120Hz and above refresh rates, the iPhone 16 Plus still clings to the 60Hz. Due to this, scrolling gestures and animation effects felt less buttery smooth as compared to pros or even many other competing devices. Also, it lacks an Always-On Display, which is dependent on ProMotion. So in terms of color accuracy and brightness, the iPhone 16 Plus' display is stellar, but this lack of a high refresh rate spells out a stark difference from the Pro line-up and a potential pain point for some.

Performance

At the core of the iPhone 16 Plus lies Apple's new A18 chip. Equipped with a hexa-core CPU, 5-core GPU, and 16-core Neural Engine, this chip offers truly impressive overall performance. 

Sliding through iOS 18, launching apps, and multitasking are incredibly fluid and instantaneous. 

The A18 chip runs AAA games without any drift in frame rate or in its visual fidelity. In benchmark tests, there's a clear jump from the A17 Bionic, with some graphics tests running nearly 33% more frames than the iPhone 15 Plus. The new thermal design with the main logic board updated and chip placement optimized helps in maintaining performance when under load. 

A Neural Engine in A18 is optimized towards large generative AI models and hence plays an important role in enabling the new Apple Intelligence features (discussed below).
The 8GB RAM of the iPhone 16 Plus is enough to provide smooth operation and future-proofing. It packs all the power a user is ever going to need for lag-free, super-responsive interactions.

Camera System

The iPhone 16 Plus enjoys an advanced dual-camera system that sees lot of improvements in the base models:

48MP Fusion Main Camera (f/1.6 with sensor-shift OIS): This is the primary workhorse, capable of capturing stunning super-high-resolution photos (24MP and 48MP) with excellent detail, dynamic range, and low-light performance. The "Fusion" aspect allows for greater flexibility and quality. It also enables a 2x optical-quality Telephoto option (at 52mm focal length), effectively giving you two optical-quality cameras in one.

12MP Ultra Wide Camera (f/2.2 with 120° FOV): Somewhat the Ultra Wide this year is an exceedingly large upgrade with autofocus and a bigger aperture to get incredibly sharp, detailed macro shots and gather 2.6x more light for more quality in adverse lighting.

Spatial Video Recording: The chief new feature capable of recording Spatial Videos at 1080p @ 30fps. This is enabled by the new vertical camera configuration and allows users to relive memories with tremendous depth on Apple Vision Pro and alike.

Front Camera: Featuring a 12MP (f/1.9) TrueDepth front camera with autofocus as well as Retina Flash, it favors crisp selfies perfectly exposed and supports 4K Dolby Vision video recording.

Battery Life & Charging

One of the strongest selling points of the iPhone 16 Plus is its battery life. Coming with a huge battery of 4,674 mAh, it promises exceptional longevity as it is 6.6% larger than that of the 15 Plus battery.Extended Usage: Apple claims 27 hours of video playback and up to 100 hours of audio playback. However, the usage of multiple users in the field tells the story differently, where power users have an average of about 1.5 to 2 days of battery life depending on heavy use or media consumption on the go. Weighing it down with heavy use will be a scenario the phone can be ready for all day with some snack time.

Charging: Wired charging remains up to 30W using USB-C good enough to give you a half charge in about 35 minutes with an adapter of choice. MagSafe wirelessly can charge at 25W, and Qi2 wireless charging is supported; thus, charging fast is not a matter here. Still, in terms of speed, Apple's wired charging is below many Android flagship phones that come with much faster charging. However, the USB-C on this phone is limited to USB 2.0 speeds for data transfer. This certainly is a bit of a bummer for a device positioned at this price point.

Gaming performance

The iPhone 16 Plus offers a phenomenal gaming experience, largely thanks to Apple's new A18 chip. This chip, with its 5-core GPU and enhanced Neural Engine, delivers a substantial leap in graphical horsepower and efficiency compared to previous non-Pro iPhones.

Price in india

The iPhone 16 Plus was launched with a starting price around ₹82,900 for the 128GB variant in India.

• 128GB Storage: Around ₹82,900 - ₹84,900
  
• 256GB Storage: Around ₹92,900 - ₹99,900
  
• 512GB Storage: Around ₹1,09,900 - ₹1,19,900

Final Verdict

The Apple iPhone 16 Plus 5G is a high-end beast for users who treasure premium design, battery life for an entire day, and a very smooth iOS experience. Its large 6.7" Super Retina XDR OLED display is pretty spectacular for watching movies and the A16 Bionic chip powers it well in day-to-day usage and photography through its phenomenal dual cameras.

In some aspects, it is still 60Hz and lacks the telephoto or ultrawide cameras, but it doesn't charge as fast as some of its Android competitors. That said, for the loyal iOS users or those drifting from older iPhones, the iPhone 16 Plus 5G does provide a dependable and future-proofed well-rounded experience.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the display size of the iPhone 16 Plus?

It features a 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display.

Does iPhone 16 Plus support 5G in India?

Yes, it fully supports Indian 5G bands including NSA and SA modes.

Which processor powers the iPhone 16 Plus?

It is powered by the Apple A16 Bionic chip with 6-core CPU and 5-core GPU.

What is the battery life of the iPhone 16 Plus?

It offers up to 26 hours of video playback, one of the best in the iPhone lineup.

Does iPhone 16 Plus support fast charging?

Yes, up to 20W fast wired charging and 15W MagSafe wireless charging.

What are the storage options available?

128GB, 256GB, and 512GB variants are available.

Is iPhone 16 Plus waterproof?

Yes, it has IP68 water and dust resistance.

What is the iPhone 16 Plus rear camera setup?

Dual cameras: 12MP main with OIS + 12MP ultra-wide with 120° field of view.

Does iPhone 16 Plus support Night Mode and Cinematic Mode?

Yes, both Night Mode and Cinematic Mode (4K 30fps) are supported.

Is iPhone 16 Plus have a Dynamic Island feature?

Yes, the iPhone 16 Plus includes Dynamic Island at the top of the display.

Does iPhone 16 Plus support Face ID?

Yes, it uses Face ID for biometric authentication.

Is the iPhone 16 Plus refresh rate 120Hz?

No, it still uses a 60Hz refresh rate panel.

What colors are available for the iPhone 16 Plus?

Midnight Black, Starlight, Blue, Pink, and Product(RED) variants are available.

Is a charger included in the iPhone 16 Plus box?

No, only a USB-C to Lightning cable is included—charger sold separately.

Can I use eSIM on iPhone 16 Plus in India?

Yes, it supports both physical SIM + eSIM in India.

How many years of software updates will iPhone 16 Plus receive?

Apple typically offers 5–6 years of iOS updates.

Can iPhone 16 Plus shoot in 4K?

Yes, it supports 4K video recording at 24, 30, and 60fps.

How much does the iPhone 16 Plus weigh?

It weighs approximately 203 grams.

Is it worth upgrading from iPhone 14 or 15 Plus?

Only if you want better performance, longer battery life, and updated design with Dynamic Island.

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