iPhone 16 Pro 8 to 16 Pro: Honest review and heartbreaking reality

[Adora]

I feel this bc I have an 8 and love how compact it is. i always use my iPad more than any device so I never felt I needed a mini mini iPad lol. That being said, I take a lot of photos and I suspect the 16 will be better than a new SE. I can wait a while. Not sure I’ll get a pro, tho.

For me it's the other way round. I rather use a big as possible phone than my iPad.

But I do 95% on Mac anyway and got away with a 4" SE 2016 the last few years. Could change a bit soon more to iDevice, but they never will be a main thing for me.

I think I'll try a used 12 or 13 Pro Max soon to see if I still might need an iPad. I used only iPads in the 9.7/10.2/10.5" range and a 12.9", but that thing is very heavy and hard to hold for me.

 

[ndouglas]

Several folks said it already but adding on, I recommend the 13 mini. If that’s not convenient to acquire the latest SE would be fine too and VERY similar to your 8 model.

Others also mentioned “give it time” which yeah I agree with too but only 1-2 days, just my opinion but the 14-day window is too small to be messing around with (worrying about will I remember in time to go back to the store, etc.) especially reading your initial reaction to the size. Perhaps the pop socket is worth trying, many speak highly of it, but for me I can’t deal with extra bulk when the phone has to be comfortably in my pocket much of the time.

I tried for maybe 1 week with the 14 model and it just falls out and sticks out of pockets way too easily.

And yes the new sizes are “normal” and “everyone is using them” but the size is absurd, the triple camera monstrosity is outrageous (again just re: having in pockets), and seeing it protrude from people’s various places they keep them on their bodies all over town, consistently reinforces my confidence that I don’t want to endure that until absolutely necessary, if/when the 13 mini or SE size is truly unavailable or un-updated in a few years.

PS: just curious but what is “big red”? 🤔

 

[Shirasaki]

FID working well so far but my goodness imagine if Elon owned Apple. Luckily Tim is not a bad actor.

The data Apple owns on the world is extraordinary.

It’s why Elon bought Twitter.

It’s why Microsoft bought LinkedIN.

Data is a weapon.

I digress.

I cannot believe control center has no action button and is placed on the upper right.

Simply terrible design.

And Apple does everything in its power and outside of its power to fiercely protect their own privacy: their customer data’s privacy. They want their Users data to be private so competitors can’t take advantage of it.

Data is indeed powerful, scarily so.

As for control center location, whelp, that’s what Apple does when no one inside Apple is left handed. Doesn’t even have a flip feature. Only moment when Apple pretend to care about left handed people is when designing Apple Watch and watchOS.

 

[tonmischa]

Apple, bring back the Mini.

 

[Bryan Bowler]

I’ve been putting off upgrading forever. I was always seduced by the mini but my 8 has been so incredibly flawless. Hats off to Apple. You did well. Such incredibly reliable hardware and software.

This post is not meant as a flame throwing attack. I’m just stating my experience and sadness that this device just doesn’t replace my 8 with ease and sufficiency.

While many (but not all) appreciate bigger display sizes, I deeply respect your point of view and am glad you shared it with us. It also saddens me that your experience is not going well, especially with the excitement of upgrading.

Perhaps you should consider using your new iPhone until a day before the return period ends and make a decision then. You might grow to like it and if not, then you can still easily return it.

 

[User #07242024]

Repair the 8 while you still can and use it while the apps you use daily are still supported.

 

[ninecows]

Use two hands. It’s much easier that way.

I’m in the same situation as the OP although I have not bought one yet. My 12 mini is still working. Having to use two hands is really a step down. There are so many situations in daily life where I only have one hand to use the phone. Coming home with groceries and have to turn off the alarm… just to give one example to avoid funny suggestions 😅

In all seriousness: A phone where you can’t reach from top to bottom using your thumb is just too big.

 

[uacd]

Woah, what a big and great post about your experiences. I think everyone should be that patient upgrader as you are. People tend to switch phones like socks for “latest greatest” incremental upgrades.

What you experience is more like having all the new features all at once.

But let me stop you right there. I am not sure you should return 16 Pro. Let me explain.

For people with small hands there are a number of workarounds like a zoomed interface in display settings. It is there since iPhone 6 at least but it is very useful on new larger iPhones.

This year they increased physical phone size a bit which may be the reason you experience some discomfort. Maybe regular iPhone 16 is more of your cup of tea but again, you are losing access to telephoto camera here so thats a hard pill to take: size or camera.

And let me stop you right there with SE4: please, DON’T. While seemingly it is a good bang for the buck, I am sorta disappointed with my SE3. Battery was nuts from the factory, it holds only 5 hours of charge, my ancient iPad Air 2 still holds 3.5 hours, it is fun that my new phone is so close to device from year 2014.

Also display on SE is not too bright, barely usable outside in summer. And even then it overheats, so you shall not try using it with case on.

SE4 will be literally same size or even larger than iPhone 16.

So just sit and think if your decision to get rid of it is actually worth it. If it works good, has no issues then maybe you just keep it and get used to having it? I don’t see lighter and smaller iPhones coming back anytime sooner, although I myself am a fan of smaller iPhones since the ages of 5. It is what it is, Apple thinking people really into huge slates.

Btw, do you use your 16 Pro with or without case? If you use it “bare” case offers some sort of better grip, there are number of great cases tho I will always suggest Apple Silicone Case.

UPD: wanted to add about Face ID. I disabled it for good, not a fan of passwords either. IR sensor was destroying my eyes, not OLED display as I thought before. In fact I got back my favorite slide to unlock from the olden years! Although I still miss it was horizontal not vertical, but maybe for such large phones vertical one is better

 

[MacCheetah3]

I get the gripe about phablets becoming the norm. I too hoped they wouldn’t but they have. And one of the reasons for choosing the Pro Max when upgrading from an iPhone X was either way I’ll need to become more accustomed to a (much) larger mobile device. so I might as well try err go for the ultimate and see if the benefits outweigh the cumbersome.

For me, it’s fine — yes, two-handed.

While it feels small after handing the 15 PM, my iPhone X is far from unusable display content size wise. Also, I’ve tried Reachability — and agree you should as well — however, I still couldn’t be as efficient as I preferred, even on the 5.8-inch iPhone X.

I have stumpy man fingers. 😆

For some reason, karma police slapped the cuffs on me as I type this as my 8 seems bricked. Not powering on and doesn’t appear to be charging. I’ll take it to the mall and have them reseat the battery.

I stuck the 6 in a draw after upgrading to the 15P. Sat there for about 6 months. It worked perfectly fine when I stopped using it. I pulled it out of the draw to boot up and use as either a connected music player for my car or give to my niece to use.

Like you, it just wont turn on. I tried charging it and then booting up in DFU mode. Nothing. I started to wonder if this is an Apple design since I didnt remove my Apple account from the phone and transferred it directly to my 11. Maybe their idea of theft prevention or something for unused phones.

Oddly enough my iPhone4 still boots up. 🥲

Could just be that the battery sheet the bed?

Probably.

Anyway… Ensure, you’re allowing it enough time to (recover and re)charge.

Store it half-charged when you store it long term.​

If you want to store your device long term, two key factors will affect the overall health of your battery: the environmental temperature and the percentage of charge on the battery when it’s powered down for storage. Therefore, we recommend the following:

• Do not fully charge or fully discharge your device’s battery — charge it to around 50%. If you store a device when its battery is fully discharged, the battery could fall into a deep discharge state, which renders it incapable of holding a charge. Conversely, if you store it fully charged for an extended period of time, the battery may lose some capacity, leading to shorter battery life.
• Power down the device to avoid additional battery use.
• Place your device in a cool, moisture-free environment that’s less than 90° F (32° C).
• If you plan to store your device for longer than six months, charge it to 50% every six months.

Depending on how long you store your device, it may be in a low-battery state when you remove it from long-term storage. After it’s removed from storage, it may require 20 minutes of charging with the original adapter before you can use it.

 

[funinhounslow]

Moving up from my 8 plus soon - its (second) battery is at 80% and not worth replacing as it won’t run iOS 18. It’s lasted well and doesn’t owe me anything.

I’ve had a play with the 16 plus and it seems about the same size as the 8 plus so no worries there.

Nice to see so many people running their older devices into the ground- financially and environmentally it’s the right thing to do. I don’t see the logic of 15/15 pro owners “upgrading”…

 

[Adora]

Moving up from my 8 plus soon - its (second) battery is at 80% and not worth replacing as it won’t run iOS 18. It’s lasted well and doesn’t owe me anything.

I’ve had a play with the 16 plus and it seems about the same size as the 8 plus so no worries there.

Nice to see so many people running their older devices into the ground- financially and environmentally it’s the right thing to do. I don’t see the logic of 15/15 pro owners “upgrading”…

How much did replacing the battery cost?

I bought a refurb 8 Plus 256GB for about €150-160. I didn't choose a new battery for it, what would be a little more then. But looks good. Didn't lose a single % over night. I looked if the price went down after the 16 releases, but it's still similar.

 

[funinhounslow]

Battery replacement was £65 at Apple Store. That’s very fair I think

 

[w_aldo]

Maybe get a 13 mini and hold out for the next small iPhone? I'm sure that would last you years.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I respect your point of view but I fail to relate to it. I used an 8 Plus a few years ago and since then had a 12, 13 Pro Max and now a 16 Pro Max. Every phone since in my personal opinion has been night and day better in all ways. Technology moves on and improves and the 16 Pro is the best iPhone we’ve had to date. If you don’t like it and prefer an 8, well that’s up to you but that ship has long sailed and I’m sure if support hasn’t ended for that device, it will very soon. Enjoy whatever you choose though.

 

[Annv]

2 GB of RAM are still adequate, and iOS 16 is supported with security updates. I'd just repair the 8 and wait for Apple to come to senses with their design.

 

[rocketbuc]

Wanted to let you know that I fully share your opinion and sentiment. The current phone lineup is way too big and heavy in my opinion. Using my 13 mini as daily driver and an OGSE to track my mileage on runs (even 13 mini is too bulky and heavy for this).

I find it interesting that people will accept (and some will even justify) whatever those large corporations present them. The old quote that people do not know what they want, but marketing will tell them seems to be very true. I just know that I don’t like large phones, not because of the weight and bulk but also because my use case is different from most people. We should just acknowledge that one size does not fit all.

 

[Nozuka]

15 Pro felt terrible at first, when i switched from the 13 Mini. Especially because it is so slippery, which makes it even harder to hold one handed. Tried it with a bullstrap leather case and it just got even bulkier and heavier.
Then i tried a very slim Pitaka case, which adds enough grip to be able to just let it rest on my fingers, without it slipping away. And you can barely tell the case is even there otherwise. It helps a lot with one handed use and now i wouldn't wanna go back to the smaller screen.

 

[frogleader12]

mini phones will not come back

the se4 will most likely be the same size as a iphone 13/14

 

[funinhounslow]

2 GB of RAM are still adequate, and iOS 16 is supported with security updates. I'd just repair the 8 and wait for Apple to come to senses with their design.

This is worth bearing in mind when some people complain about the prices of iPhones. I’m not sure how many seven year Android phones are out there in daily use but I bet it’s not many.

To be honest I baulked at the price of my 8 plus but I’ve used it daily for seven years and it’s been faultless - so now I view it as a bit of a bargain…

 

[Quackington]

If you have small hands and like a small phone, I suggest you look for a deal on a 13 mini, and hope it lasts for a few more years with software support.

I recommend this too but all I’d say is maybe in about 3-5 years be prepared for not more OS updates and terrible battery life. The other thing is, we’ll probably never get another Mini either, so you’re going to have to switch over to a 6” at some point.

I really miss having the alarm icon show up on the top of my phone. Yes, it doesn’t take a sec to pull the screen down and check, but the convenience was great.

 

[Adora]

This is worth bearing in mind when some people complain about the prices of iPhones. I’m not sure how many seven year Android phones are out there in daily use but I bet it’s not many.

To be honest I baulked at the price of my 8 plus but I’ve used it daily for seven years and it’s been faultless - so now I view it as a bit of a bargain…

My first 8 Plus is also still in daily use and even has its first battery. I gave it to my mum, when her 5s' battery gave up and it was just lying around for too long because I got too sick to use a phone regularly.

That was 2019 or 2020. Since then until April when I bought the "new" 8 Plus, I only had an SE from 2016 in use, what was already there as a substitute before.

I still have my substitute phone from the 6s Plus times, it's a 4s but that was already in 2019 a little bit too outdated to use. Still works fine, even the battery, but slow and also 3G got shutdown in the meantime.

And the fun fact is, I only bought the 8 Plus because my brother smashed his 6 and got my 6s Plus. Maybe I kept even that one until now if nothing happened. Don't know how long he used it, but I think 2 or 3 years ago he replaced the battery. He then got a Xs with only 64GB from someone, maybe his dad's old phone. And a several weeks ago he urgently needed more storage and now also has an 8 Plus, because I bought two.

So three 8 Plus users in the family now.

 

[QCassidy352]

SE3 or find a 13 mini somewhere. Both have A15 and will be supported (sans Apple intelligence of course) for probably several more iOS updates. A12 devices are still supported in iOS 18, so it’s reasonable to think A15s could be supported in iOS 21, which will be (assuming a continued yearly release schedule) released in 2027 and the latest operating system until fall 2028.

 

[mectojic]

@SteveJawbs, your post REALLY resonates with me.
My GOAT phone is the iPhone SE 1st Gen (the last 4 inch iPhone).
I've tried upgrading to newer phones with larger screen sizes many times, but I keep going back...
iPhone X, iPhone 11, iPhone 15... eventually I give up and go back to the iPhone SE.
It's getting very old now, yes, but it still does what I want it to. It's very small, pocket-sized, and has a headphone jack. For me, that's perfection.

The question is, what to do next? I'm stuck on iOS 15, which still gets security updates... after that?

 

[brofkand]

Return it and get the current SE.

 

[brofkand]

@SteveJawbs, your post REALLY resonates with me.
My GOAT phone is the iPhone SE 1st Gen (the last 4 inch iPhone).
I've tried upgrading to newer phones with larger screen sizes many times, but I keep going back...
iPhone X, iPhone 11, iPhone 15... eventually I give up and go back to the iPhone SE.
It's getting very old now, yes, but it still does what I want it to. It's very small, pocket-sized, and has a headphone jack. For me, that's perfection.

The question is, what to do next? I'm stuck on iOS 15, which still gets security updates... after that?

Your phone will still work without security updates. Eventually your apps will stop getting updates, and they'll stop working, and finally your carrier will require you to upgrade because they're shutting down that network. But that is years in the future more than likely.