Apple’s Latest Decisions Highlight iPhone 16 Problems

Updated September 5 with details on iPhone 16 resale pricing.

While Tim Cook’s team prepares for next week’s Glowtime event and the launch of the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro handsets, Apple’s community is ready for some iOS-powered razzle-dazzle. Yet, thanks to a raft of leaks in the last week, questions are being asked if the smaller iPhone 16 can live up to September’s hype?

The specifications may not be enough, the software is not ready, and there may be better value for money in the near future.

Much of Glowime will focus on Apple’s approach to generative AI. The backronymed Apple Intelligence suite will be a crucial part of promoting iOS 18 and the new iPhones. Those looking to get into Apple’s AI game on the ground floor will be looking at the iPhone 16. For now, it will be the cheapest iPhone capable of running the software—of the existing models, only the highly specced iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max will support Apple Intelligence.

Yet the iPhone 16 risks being underpowered for Apple Intelligence over the next few years. Apple is ensuring that the first iPhones released alongside Apple Intelligence will have both the latest A18 processor and an uplift in RAM to run the software.

The current indications show that the iPhone 16 will run the software but with very little margin for expansion in the processor and memory. While the first interaction of Apple Intelligence will be mostly server-based, as Apple releases more software and shifts more processing of personal data to the handset, the iPhone 16 could be left short of resources to support that move. In years to come, the iPhone 16 could quickly fall away from local and private generative AI routines.

You also have to consider the timescales involved around iOS 18 and AI. The Apple Intelligence software will not be available at launch. The first public release of a basic toolset is scheduled for mid-October, a month after the launch of the iPhone 16. ChatGPT functionality is expected in December, and the full suite will have to wait until March 2025.

Anyone buying the new iPhone 16 models will be buying with the promise of software that will be ready in the future, not ready at launch. This is not an unusual move for a smartphone launch, but it is one that naturally comes with some risk if the software is plays a major part in your decision-making process.

The next iPhone SE is also expected to arrive in March. With Apple Intelligence appearing in every iPhone 16 model and becoming a key part of the marketing strategy, the iPhone SE should also support this use of AI, meaning it will have to come with the same specifications as the iPhone 16 at the very least. And one of the few disadvantages of the SE range—the use of an older and duller LCD screen—is being removed, with the next iPhone SE expected to use OLED technology. Not only will it use the newer OLED technology, but come March, you’ll also have the full suite of Apple Intelligence available to help you make your purchasing decision.

Apple still has to confirm pricing on the iPhone 16 family, but the current indications are that a price rise across the board will occur. Apple will likely cite the upgraded hardware and the introduction of Apple Intelligence as justification for the higher price.

Update: Thursday September 5: While the iPhone 16 purchase price is is expected to rise, the resale price will drop faster than any other iPhone in the last few years.

The latest report from Compare and Recycle highlights the increased depreciation of the vanilla iPhone handsets over the last three years. In the first twelve months following their launch, the iPhone 13 lost 40.1 percent of its value, the iPhone 14 lost 47.8 percent, and the iPhone 15 was the first to pass the halfway mark at 55.6 percent.

That suggests the iPhone 16 is going to see a depreciation of 62 percent over the first twelve months. This reflects the historical trend, yet adding on the limited flexibility around Apple Intelligence and the arrival of the iPhone SE in six months, it’s a struggle to see where the iPhone 16’s value for money will come from.

If generative AI will drive your purchasing decision, then Apple may talk about it in September, but it will take six months to see how it works in practice. If you have no interest in generative AI, then the iPhone 16 will be a machine with a higher price for a feature you won’t want.

The Apple community will surely praise the Glowtime event and the launch of Apple Intelligence. However, the software won’t arrive until March, the specifications limit the potential of future updates, and the more cost-effective iPhone SE with the same capabilities as the iPhone 16 will go on sale in March.

Glowtime will have the fireworks, but the true AI revolution of the iPhone will have to wait until 2025.

Now read how Apple can change the debate around AI with one simple decision.