Apple iPhone 16 Pro models have been exposed to a new leak

Updated April 6: article originally published April 4.

As we get more details about the iPhone 16, the latest leaked images confirm the biggest design changes coming to Apple’s upcoming smartphone.

Apple’s long-running leak Sonny Dixon is behind the latest scoop, with exclusive images highlighting the design of the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. Apple is expected to announce the series in early September 2024, but we can see many of the new features today.

Update: Friday, April 5: While the metal blanks can’t tell us anything about the materials Apple plans to use in the upcoming iPhones, a new leak via ShrimpApplePro offers a tantalizing look at the back of the latest iPhone 16 models.

Like last year’s iPhone 15 series, Apple will imbue the back glass with a specific color, with black, gray, white and pink spaces being the four colors. It is worth noting that the resulting glass is not as strong as the textured matte glass used in the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max models. However, the hardware may have strengthened over the past 12 months.

The switch to injection glass will be one of the visible differences between the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 16 Pro. Tim Cook and his team will be hoping, like many, that fashion and materials can be the right lure to create upgrades in their community.

Update: Saturday, April 6: While the leaks don’t hint at the iPhone 16’s display design, new details from The Elec let us visualize Apple’s new design for the front of this year’s iOS-powered smartphone.

Apple plans to offer thinner bezels using border reduction structures. These structures allow the display circuits to be arranged in a more compact layout, reducing the space required by the physical frames. The phone case should still hold the screen in place and create a safe and secure structure. the need to occupy less internal volume will help the design process.

Since using BRS will likely increase the bill of materials on any handset that uses it, this design may be limited to the more expensive iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max rather than being available on all four handsets. Apple has spent the last few years doing its best to create differences between the iPhone Pro and Vanilla, using BRS for a slimmer and more modern design fits that ethos.

Dickson’s images show the processed “blanks” supplied to peripheral manufacturers before a phone is released. These allow cases, cases and other accessories to be designed around the exact dimensions of the device and individual buttons. Of course, we can’t see how these new features will work in software, but the hardware on display clearly shows Apple’s updated approach to the iPhone.

Action button on all models

After its introduction on the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, the Action Button will now be available on all four iPhone models. Replaced the mute switch found on previous models. Many continued to use the action button to toggle their iPhone’s mute/vibrate modes. However, this soft button can be configured to open a user-defined application or perform a specific action when pressed.

By appearing across the entire range, Apple’s marketing team can build on it as a unique feature of the iPhone, and developers can build their apps knowing that more users will be able to use features designed around the action button .

Capacitive download button introduced

The addition of a second button to the iPhone’s design has been leaked several times over the past six months. However, the exact design of the button and the iPhone models it would appear on were in flux — no doubt, as Apple created several prototypes to test the various options.

Apple has now come up with the design and scope. For the latter, every iPhone 16 model will come with the new Capture button, facilitating marketing and developer adoption. For the former, Apple has decided on a capacitive button on all models. This means there are no moving parts in the actual button, instead you rely on the haptic-based “Taptic Engine” to simulate the feel of a physical button.

It’s a minor part of the UI, but if it’s successful, I can see capacitive buttons replacing the physical volume, power, and action buttons in future iPhones as Apple’s vision of a “no-portable, no-button” smartphone gets ever closer and more.

Stereoscopic camera capability

The gaps also confirm the position of the camera lenses on the rear camera. The diagonal arrangement seen on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus has been replaced by a vertical arrangement of the two lenses. It shouldn’t affect the photos taken, but it will allow for stereoscopic video recording. This won’t make a difference on the iPhone or desktop, but it does mean that videos played on the Apple Vision Pro mixed reality headset will be viewed in 3D.

The iPhone will far outsell the Vision Pro headset. However, anyone who buys a Vision Pro headset in the future could find that videos backed up to Apple’s iCloud service are available on their new headset and can be played back in 3D.

Alongside the new hardware, Apple plans to introduce AI production tools in iOS 18. We should learn more about Tim Cook’s AI plans at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June. The new iPhone 16 family will likely launch in its traditional slot in early September.

Now read more about Apple’s plans to increase the battery capacity of your next iPhone…