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iPhone 13 Pro vs. iPhone 16 Pro Buyer's Guide

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The iPhone 16 Pro succeeds 2023's iPhone 15 Pro, introducing over 45 new features and improvements to Apple's high-end smartphones. With many users adopting three-year upgrade cycles, plenty of iPhone 13 Pro owners will be looking to upgrade to the iPhone 16 Pro, so this guide outlines some of the major differences you should be aware of between the two generations.

iPhone-13-Pro-vs-16-Pro-Feature.jpg

The ‌iPhone 13‌ Pro debuted in 2021, introducing a brighter display with ProMotion technology for refresh rates up to 120Hz, the A15 Bionic chip, a telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom, macro photography and photographic styles, Cinematic mode for recording videos with shallow depth of field, ProRes video recording, a 1TB storage option, and up to five hours of additional battery life. Three years later, the iPhone 16 Pro offers a noticeable upgrade, with the accumulative improvements of three generations stacking up. To get a sense of the entirety of the changes, see our other three buyer's guides that set out every difference offered when making the jump from the iPhone 13 Pro to the iPhone 14 Pro, the iPhone 14 Pro to the iPhone 15 Pro, and the iPhone 15 Pro to the iPhone 16 Pro:


Overall, the ‌iPhone 16 Pro is a significant upgrade over the ‌iPhone 13‌ Pro, introducing meaningful quality-of-life features like the always-on display, Dynamic Island, USB-C port, Action button, and Camera Control that change the methods of interaction with the device. The new lightweight titanium design with contoured edges, Dynamic Island, and larger screens with slimmer borders result in a noticeably different aesthetic and feel in the hand.

The ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro also brings advancements to photography and videography, adding support for 24-megapixel high-resolution photos, Smart HDR 5, revamped Photographic Styles, Action Mode, and next-generation portraits – practical features that most users can take advantage of. There are substantial hardware improvements to all three rear cameras with the addition of a 48-megapixel Fusion main camera, 48-megapixel ultra wide camera, and a tetraprism telephoto camera, offering up to 5x optical zoom. Even the flash is upgraded with Apple's Adaptive True Tone technology. Features like 48-megapixel HEIF capture, external and log recording, Academy Color Encoding System, and fast data transfer via USB 3 are also major upgrades for professionals.

The iPhone 13 Pro does not support Apple Intelligence, Apple's upcoming suite of AI tools. With the A18 Pro chip, the iPhone 16 Pro has full support for Apple Intelligence, including Apple's new Visual Lookup feature, which is exclusive to the iPhone 16 lineup. It is also worth noting that the iPhone 16 Pro offers considerably longer battery life, a brighter display, Roadside Assistance via satellite, faster charging, new color options, Wi-Fi 7 support, the second-generation ultra wideband chip, and more.

Due to the scale and breadth of these improvements, many ‌iPhone 13‌ Pro users can justify upgrading to the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro, especially if they value the new design, USB-C port, Action button, and camera improvements. Some users may still be able to stick with their current device for one more year to hold off for an even more substantial upgrade in the future, but it is probably time to start thinking about an upgrade.

Article Link: iPhone 13 Pro vs. iPhone 16 Pro Buyer's Guide
 
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https://www.macrumors.com/guide/iphone-13-pro-vs-16-pro/
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winxmac

winxmac

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As a former owner of iPhone 14 Pro Max who now owns an iPhone 13 Pro, unless you use the photography and videography capabilities of the iPhone to the fullest, and want USB Type C, you should still be fine with your current phone... After weighing the pros and cons, I decided to switch since I am not maxing out the hardware capabilities of iPhone 14 Pro Max, and I prefer shooting in ProRAW, but shooting in 48MP takes a considerable amount of time... Also, low light photo and video may be improved by Photonic Engine, but a wider aperture and shorter focusing distance to me is better...

Yes, I traded the longer battery life for easier handling... After looking at many things, just like some reviewers said, iPhone 13 Pro is still one of the best, if not the current best, and can still go head to head with the upcoming iPhones...

I still believe the switch to USB Type C should have been done in 2020, the year of iPhone 12... Transferring big files quicker is a nice to have and a must have for some, as well as record directly to an external SSD storage, but AirDrop to me is still sufficient and I find it fast enough as well as convenient... Maybe, many years later, once there are more and more features that I can't live without, that may be the time I'll go for the latest and greatest...

Anyone who owns an iPhone 12 series should upgrade for the primary reason that they have lower battery capacity than the previous and the series after it...
 
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WarmWinterHat

WarmWinterHat

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The only thing I see interesting in the 16 Pro over my 13 Pro is satellite connectivity, as I'm off-grid a lot and carry an inReach. I guess usb-c is nice, too, but not worth spending money on. I don't care about AI.

Blah.
 
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kc9hzn

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winxmac said:
As a former owner of iPhone 14 Pro Max who now owns an iPhone 13 Pro, unless you use the photography and videography capabilities of the iPhone to the fullest, and want USB Type C, you should still be fine with your current phone... After weighing the pros and cons, I decided to switch since I am not maxing out the hardware capabilities of iPhone 14 Pro Max, and I prefer shooting in ProRAW, but shooting in 48MP takes a considerable amount of time... Also, low light photo and video may be improved by Photonic Engine, but a wider aperture and shorter focusing distance to me is better...

Yes, I traded the longer battery life for easier handling... After looking at many things, just like some reviewers said, iPhone 13 Pro is still one of the best, if not the current best, and can still go head to head with the upcoming iPhones...

I still believe the switch to USB Type C should have been done in 2020, the year of iPhone 12... Transferring big files quicker is a nice to have and a must have for some, as well as record directly to an external SSD storage, but AirDrop to me is still sufficient and I find it fast enough as well as convenient... Maybe, many years later, once there are more and more features that I can't live without, that may be the time I'll go for the latest and greatest...

Anyone who owns an iPhone 12 series should upgrade for the primary reason that they have lower battery capacity than the previous and the series after it...
Click to expand...
Actually, I’ve found myself using USB-C for file transfer much more frequently than I expected to. It turns out that it’s super useful for exchanging files between my PC and my Android devices with my phone. No need to juggle multiple Dropbox log-ins or anything like that, just use a USB A thumb drive or USB A SD card reader and a USB A to USB C adapter.
 
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jmpage2

jmpage2

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Even at the three year point it's hard to say why anyone would update to the 16 with such minimal improvements. I went to a 14 pro after three years and the most substantial improvement was the dynamic island.

Not even considering a 16 pro.

Samsung phones have very noticeable improvements generation after generation but iPhones mostly get camera upgrades and mm screen size increases.

The current iPhone Pro and new one are almost identical to the iPhone X that came out almost seven years ago.

The only reason I still have an iPhone is because of the Apple ecosystem and how well my various Apple devices work together.... the fire under Steve Jobs and Jony Ive that used to drive Apple to relentless improvement seems to have nearly gone out.
 
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wonderings

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I will bet that the next iPhone will be the best one Apple has made... ever! And about time, I hate when they keep bringing out product that is slower and over all worse specs then the previous years model. I believe in Apple to turn this around and make the best iPhone to date. I will bet the farm on it.
 
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Princejb134

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Jul 22, 2012
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jmpage2 said:
Even at the three year point it's hard to say why anyone would update to the 16 with such minimal improvements. I went to a 14 pro after three years and the most substantial improvement was the dynamic island.

Not even considering a 16 pro.

Samsung phones have very noticeable improvements generation after generation but iPhones mostly get camera upgrades and mm screen size increases.

The current iPhone Pro and new one are almost identical to the iPhone X that came out almost seven years ago.

The only reason I still have an iPhone is because of the Apple ecosystem and how well my various Apple devices work together.... the fire under Steve Jobs and Jony Ive that used to drive Apple to relentless improvement seems to have nearly gone out.
Click to expand...
That's because phones have completely matured the same as desktop computers. All that's left is upgrades to the software. I don't see anything amazing that Samsung is doing either. That is probably the reason apple is going all in on VR. The day they are able to make VR small enough to the point they look like cool sunglasses or just regular glasses is the day everyone is going to want one.
 
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oldwatery

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Sep 16, 2003
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Princejb134 said:
That's because phones have completely matured the same as desktop computers. All that's left is upgrades to the software. I don't see anything amazing that Samsung is doing either. That is probably the reason apple is going all in on VR. The day they are able to make VR small enough to the point they look like cool sunglasses or just regular glasses is the day everyone is going to want one.
Click to expand...
Not this everyone 😉
 
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