Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series, comprising the standard model Galaxy S24 Plus and the mighty Galaxy S24 Ultra make up some of the best phones you can buy right now. And they are true rivals of the iPhone 15 family.
In fact, I’d argue that on pure hardware terms the Galaxy S24, especially the S24 Ultra, has Apple’s phone beat; and I say that as an iPhone 15 Pro Max user.
So the question is what the rumored iPhone 16 range can do to keep Samsung’s Galaxy phones at bay? Well, I have some thoughts.
Faster charging
The Galaxy S24 phones don’t exactly challenge the likes of the OnePlus 12 for speedy charging, but they do outpace the iPhone 15.
While I advocate for well-paced charging to maintain battery longevity, I think the iPhone 16 could bring in more wattage for its charging. At best the iPhone 15 Pro Max can charge at 27 watts with a compatible charger, but a Galaxy S24 Ultra can juice up with a 45W charger. So I think it's time Apple took some inspiration from its South Korean rival and adopted some speedier charging.
Integrated AI
An obvious one here, but with the AI features on the Galaxy S24 phones – and indeed the new clutch of Google Pixel 9 phones – Apple lags behind on having a smart smartphone.
What’s important here is to see truly integrated AI – not nice to have features. Apple’s iOS and its ecosystem are rather seamless to use, so I’d expect any AI features to be the same. While it’s looking unlikely that we’ll see a barrage of Apple intelligence features in the next-generation iPhones, I hope we see some smart tools; say customized automatic replies to calls and texts, or the ability for Siri to come up with a clear agenda of one's week by sucking in email and calendar data and then integrating it with Maps to come up with ideas on where to get lunch on Tuesday in between meetings and so on.
More pro cameras
I tend to think Apple offers the best camera phones around, despite the overall TechRadar preference for the Galaxy S24 Ultra. To me, iPhone cameras offer a consistently high level of performance, in both stills and video, that makes the phones fantastic.
However, I think the options to fine-tune a shot are limited – maybe that’s on me, but I feel Apple could do more here.
And with all the Neural Engine processing touted by the Cupertino crew, I’d like to see Apple’s computational photography take a new leap forward – say better processing of highlights and shadows without compromising contrast. Or smarter shot guidance so people can better capture what they're seeing or expect to see from a photo.
Push gaming more
With the A17 Pro chip in the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, Apple touted the ability to run proper console-quality games like Death Stranding. And the phones could do that, albeit not perfectly.
I still feel there’s untapped potential here, especially with Apple Arcade. So I’d love to see all four predicted iPhone 16 models get powerful chips that can run games typically designed for PS5 or Xbox Series X.
Add in Apple’s developer ecosystem and we could see a new generation of mobile games that are elevated above others and offer experiences that other devices, including even the best Android phones, can't deliver.
Pro potential
Speaking of power, the current Pro iPhones aren’t short of it, yet outside of some limited gaming, I feel it’s hard to tap into all that power. Conversely, the Galaxy S24 phones can offer Samsung DeX, with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip able to power a pseudo-desktop experience; while not perfect it could double up as an acceptable work machine in a pinch.
It’s wishful thinking, knowing Apple, but I’d love to see something similar. We’ve seen how iPads are getting closer to MacBooks, so I see no reason why an iPhone couldn't kick out a semi-desktop take on iOS via a wired or wireless connection to a monitor — heck, Apple could even offer a dedicated hub so it has something to sell on top of this option.
If nothing else, such an option could make editing photos and video captured on a Pro iPhone a lot more finessed than trying to tap away at a screen. I live with the hope that an Apple engineer somewhere will read this…
Of course, iPhones being iPhones, regardless of whether Apple does adopt any of my wishes in the iPhone 16 models, they're sure to be popular.
However, the competition from Android phones has arguably never been stronger. So I do think Apple could do with something a bit special for the next-gen iPhones to keep wandering smartphone eyes firmly on the house Steve Jobs built.
