As the expected launch of the next iPhones, the iPhone 16 series, approaches, there have already been numerous leaks, from different displays on some models to wider implementation of the exclusive tetraprism camera, more efficient OLED displays and an improved main camera sensor. Now there’s a report of a change that comes as a complete surprise: a change to MagSafe. This can mean not only a better appearance, but also a significant increase in performance.
The MagSafe system is located on the back of the iPhone 15 Pro. Is there a change coming?
May 6 update below. This post was first published on May 4, 2024.
As you know, Apple introduced MagSafe to the iPhone in 2020 along with the launch of the iPhone 12 series. Wireless charging came to Apple phones three years ago and it was great, but there was that nasty possibility that if you didn’t place the phone on the charging pad right, to wake up in the morning to find that the phone is not not charged.
A ring of magnets on the back of the iPhone and corresponding magnets in the charger solved this problem perfectly. MagSafe has been a big success, so much so that the magnetic ring is now part of Qi2 chargers that also work with Android phones.
Now, ShopSystem, a French website, has published images of case molds that are said to be for the iPhone 16 series and which show the cutouts where the MagSafe magnets will sit. They are laid out similarly to the current models, but are noticeably much thinner, albeit in the familiar circle plus a separate band, looking like a magnifying glass as always.
What does this mean? Well, Apple regularly looks to improve design elements, and apparently found a way to achieve the same effect with a thinner, more discreet magnetic setup.
Your next question will be what about earlier iPhones and earlier MagSafe chargers? Well, it sure was mine.
They will certainly work. Apple will consider backwards compatibility: just think how the Apple Watch can still use straps designed for the first Apple Watch released almost 10 years ago.
I’d be amazed if Apple hasn’t fully considered this.
At the very least, this change should mean that the design of clear iPhone cases might look a bit more subtle, but there could also be a bigger change that goes beyond the way it looks and relates to performance. .
A previous claim picked up by MacRumors suggests that Apple has previously tested faster charging, up to 20W charging via MagSafe, up from the current maximum of 15W. This rumor surfaced last year, but it was said to be about the iPhone 16 series.
This would lead to much faster wireless charging and, if the previous report is true, faster wired charging as well, from the current 29W to 40W.
If this is true, then – as is often the case with Apple – design and performance improvements will go hand in hand.
May 5th update. How big are your hands? Same size as yesterday, right? Some of the latest leaks about the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro series have revealed that there could be a noticeable increase in size. According to the reliable Sonny Dixon on X a few days ago, the iPhone 16 Pro Max will be the best grab thanks to its largest screen size, 6.9 inches, a noticeable increase from the 6.7 inches of the current iPhone 15 Pro Max.
Like Axel Metz at Tech Radar states, “the increased screen size on both models will reportedly allow for an ultra-wide camera upgrade on the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max and an increase in optical zoom range for the iPhone 16 Pro Max.”
Metz says, “iPhone 16 Pro Max looks absolutely huge.” So should your fingers be worried? Well, even though your little pup might have trouble reaching through the display, Apple will definitely do extensive testing to ensure that most gloves can handle it.
The thing is, a bigger screen is usually achieved by using thinner bezels, but the edges of the iPhone screen are already very narrow, so there’s limited room for expansion there. We’ll learn more in time, but I’m quietly confident that Apple will have found a way to make this new design work, perhaps by changing the aspect ratio of the screen so that the new phone is taller and thinner, though Dixon’s mockups look quite similar in proportions. Even more so as we have it.
May 6 update. There’s still a lot to discover about the iPhone 16 series, but in terms of performance upgrades, another clue has just surfaced. According to Mark Gurman of Bloomberg in his latest Power On newsletterA notable topic in Apple’s earnings call a few days ago was artificial intelligence.
The first clue came when CEO Tim Cook touched on the topic, which Gurman reported as follows: “He did say that Apple believes it will gain an advantage in this area thanks to privacy features, better integration and its powerful internal chips.’
At first glance, this is not surprising. When I interviewed Tim Cook last fall on AI, he told me that chips are key and that “Apple’s silicon roadmap is really in a camp by itself, in our view.” But when I asked if that meant Apple would focus on sending data to the cloud for more performance, even if it meant sacrificing privacy to get more power, Cook was clear: “No,” he said. For us, privacy is a basic human right and the atmosphere is such that people’s privacy is put to the test every day and we believe that privacy is more important today than it was 10 years ago. This is one of the most profound questions of the century. We will not back down.”
But a few weeks ago, there were reports that the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus will be powered by a processor called the A18, while the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will have the A18 Pro.
Rumor has it that even the faster of the two won’t be able to match Qualcomm’s next flagship Snapdragon chip, which is expected soon after the iPhone’s launch. This is important because this chip will be in the Samsung Galaxy S25 series, which is due in early 2025, and it could make Apple catch up.
I’m not convinced that will be the case, and benchmark tests aren’t always the best way to judge these things before a processor is released. And if others are reporting that the A18 Pro will have more cores in the Neural Engine specifically designed for AI tasks, then it will be even harder to compare.
What’s clear, though, is that Apple has big plans for AI, so it’s no doubt engineering chips designed to deliver.
