iPhone 17 vs. iPhone 16: New Features You Should Actually Care About

Ever noticed that phones are getting a little bit, well, samey these days? Of course, the tech companies want you to upgrade every year, but when a flagship phone costs north of $1,000 for a Pro model, it's only natural to wonder if it's worth it.

In this article, we're going to take a look at the differences between the iPhone 17 and the iPhone 16. We’ll examine the new features that are worth caring about. By the time we’re done, you'll know for sure whether this is an upgrade you should skip or one you should grab with both hands. 

Camera Upgrades That Make the iPhone 17 a Clear Winner

The camera is often where phone manufacturers make improvements year after year. These days, though, we all have more megapixels than we know what to do with. Now, manufacturers need to compete on more than just size.

The iPhone 17 uses the same basic camera system as its predecessor. That means a 48 megapixel fusion camera with an f/1.6 aperture.

The difference is in the wide-angle cameras. The iPhone 17 has a new 48 megapixel ultra-wide sensor that boasts a 120° field of view and an aperture of f/1.2. While the field of view and aperture are the same as you'll find on the iPhone 16, the resolution on this camera is far better: 48MP instead of the 16's 12MP.

There are more upgrades on the front-facing camera, too. The iPhone 17 has an 18 megapixel Center Stage camera that can track and keep the subject of your photo centered in the frame. This is technology that some iPads already have, but very few phones do, including the iPhone 16. 

The front camera on the iPhone 17 also has stabilization when recording video, and a dual capture mode so that you can shoot video with both cameras at the same time. Plus, the square sensor of the front camera means you can shoot either vertically or horizontally without having to change how you hold your phone. 

These are significant improvements on the 16's camera hardware and software, making this a great choice for photographers.

Display Enhancements: ProMotion, 120Hz, and Higher Brightness

Let's get the similarities out of the way. Both the iPhone 17 and 16 have a Super Retina XDR OLED screen with a density of 460 pixels per inch. But these two screens are not the same. 

The screen on the iPhone 17 measures 6.3 inches, with a variable refresh rate of 1 Hz to 120 Hz. This variable refresh rate is what Apple calls ProMotion. It makes activities like gaming, scrolling, and watching videos much smoother, but it also allows Apple to bring the always-on display feature of the Pro Series to the standard lineup. In other words, the iPhone 17 has the same exact screen as the iPhone 17 Pro. 

The screen also has a brightness of 3000 nits, which makes it much easier to see outside. Combined with an antireflective coating, the screen is usable in a much wider range of environments. 

For comparison, the iPhone 16 has a smaller 6.1-inch screen with a static 60 Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 2000 nits. To put it simply, the screen on the 17 looks sharper, performs better, and is a substantial upgrade on the old model.

Battery Life & Adaptive Power: A Significant Real-World Upgrade

Once your battery runs out, even the most high-tech phone is useless, so it's good that manufacturers have been making significant strides in this area over recent years.

Comparing the two phones side by side, we see that Apple's official numbers show the iPhone 16 lasting up to 22 hours while playing video from its own memory. That drops to 18 hours when streaming online videos.

The 17, by contrast, can play locally stored video for up to 30 hours. It can also give you 27 hours of streamed video.

That makes the 17 an easy choice for anyone who suffers from battery anxiety. 

If you're often on the road or travel a lot, a more powerful battery can make a big difference in your everyday experience. In real-world usage, you can expect the iPhone 17 to last for days without a charge, and that's a great incentive to upgrade your device.

Storage, Pricing & Value: Is the Upgrade Worth It?

The iPhone 17 $799 model comes with 256GB of storage. The $999 version offers 512GB.

The price of the iPhone 16 has dropped to $699, but it only comes with 128 GB of storage. That means the iPhone 17 offers double the storage for only $100 more. That's a real bargain, and it might be enough to justify a purchase by itself, especially if you were trying to choose between the two phones and don't already have an iPhone 16.

Of course, if you want a phone that can meet all your storage needs, it's well worth contemplating the $999 version. Offering four times the storage of the iPhone 16 for only $300 more, it represents great value for money – even before you factor in all its other upgraded features.

Design, Durability & Color Options

The iPhone 17 looks and feels a lot like the 16 when it comes to size. It's only .08 inches longer, the same width, and 0.01 inches wider. Additionally, the iPhone 17 weighs only 0.24 ounces more than the 16. 

In other words, unless you put each model side by side, it's unlikely you'll even notice any size difference.

What you will notice, however, is the color. The 16 came in five color options: black, white, pink, teal, and ultramarine. The 17 also comes in five colors, but they are different from the old model: Black, White, Mist Blue, Sage, and Lavender. These new colors help to make the phone stand out and show the world you have the latest model.

In terms of durability, the 16 uses Apple's Ceramic Shield, while the 17 uses the next-gen Ceramic Shield 2. According to Apple, this makes the screen three times more resistant to scratches.

Both phones have aluminum frames and are rated IP68 for resistance to water and dust. 

Of course, the best way to protect your phone is with a sturdy case and screen protector. These offer greatly enhanced durability and can make your phone last a lot longer, while also bringing some personal style to your device. 

OS & AI Features

Let's talk about the real guts of your phone: the processor and operating system. While you may not think about these during daily use, they have a huge effect on your experience of using a phone. 

The iPhone 16 features an A18 chip with a six-core CPU, a five-core GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine. The iPhone 17's new A19 processor has the same number of cores in the CPU and GPU, but the GPU also features Neural Accelerators designed to handle AI tasks. 

Does this make a difference? Absolutely. In a Geekbench 6 CPU test, the A19 scored 3608 in single-core tests and 8810 in multicore tests. That makes it around 11% faster than the 18 in single-core performance, and 9% in multicore. 

The A19 also runs at a slightly higher frequency than the A18: 4.26GHz versus 4.05 GHz. That allows it to squeeze a little more performance out of the same architecture.

The A19's Neural Accelerators offer a 20% faster graphics performance than the previous chip. There’s also a new N1 chip that integrates Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0, and Thread networking technology to help make the phone compatible with future developments in connectivity. 

If you're not a tech geek, your eyes may be glazing over at this point, but let's break it down: The iPhone 17 is faster than the iPhone 16, despite using the same number of cores. Is it a dramatic difference? Not necessarily. Casual users may not notice much change. But if you ask a lot of your phone, you'll probably notice the significant boost in performance Apple has achieved with the latest model. 

AI

For such a historically innovative company, Apple has been surprisingly slow to get on the AI train. However, the company has been talking about a major upgrade to its Siri voice assistant. The goal is to make Siri a stronger competitor to industry leaders like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini.

This new upgraded Siri didn’t make it into the iPhone 17. But that doesn't mean this model doesn't use AI. 

Apple Intelligence is the built-in AI suite designed to improve how you interact with your device on a daily basis. Here are some of the features it offers:

• Live Translation. The iPhone 17 uses AI to translate conversations between different languages in real time. It works on messages, FaceTime, and phone calls, and is an amazing feature for anyone who travels frequently or works with people who speak different languages.

• Image Playground lets you create original images in a dedicated app, but also inside other apps. You can turn a rough sketch into a complete image or craft a custom memory in the Photos app.

• The Clean Up tool inside the Photos app allows you to remove unwanted aspects of images with a single tap. You can edit your photos in seconds.

• Apple Intelligence also allows for new augmented reality features. For example, taking a picture of a poster can turn it into a Calendar event. The AI can summarize what you're looking at, or give you recipe ideas based on what's inside your fridge.

• For now, Siri can integrate with ChatGPT, but expect this feature to rely more heavily on Apple's own AI as they roll it out in 2026. 

iPhone 17 vs. iPhone 16: Which Should You Choose in 2025?

Upgrading your phone every year can be an expensive hobby. But sometimes, the upgrade is worth the price. 

That's definitely the case when it comes to the iPhone 17. It offers major upgrades across a variety of metrics when compared with the iPhone 16, including: 

• Better wide-angle and front-facing cameras 

• A faster processor 

• A brighter screen with a variable refresh rate 

• Advanced AI features 

• Expanded memory at an affordable price

Ultimately, how you use your phone will determine whether these upgrades are worth it for you. However, given how many different features of the phone are affected by these upgrades, it's easy to imagine that most users will get a lot out of making the switch to the latest model.

Think about the way you use your phone, and what matters most to you. Then take a look at the features of the iPhone 17 compared to those of the 16. That way, you can decide whether it's worth the extra money for what is, ultimately, a greatly improved iPhone.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the iPhone 17 Better Than the 16?

Yes. The iPhone 17 offers substantial improvements over the iPhone 16. These include a more advanced front-facing camera, a variable refresh rate, a brighter screen, an upgraded processor, improved battery life, and more storage. While the phones look similar to each other, what’s under the hood makes all the difference here.

What Is the Difference Between the iPhone 16 and 17?

The iPhone 17 introduces a ProMotion display with variable refresh rate and higher brightness, a 48MP wide-angle camera, Center Stage front camera, A19 processor, improved battery life, expanded storage, and advanced AI features like Live Translation and photo Clean Up.

Is the iPhone 17 Screen the Same as the 16 Pro?

Both phones have a screen with a density of 460 ppi. But only the iPhone 17 offers a variable refresh rate, enhanced brightness, and an antireflective coating. This means smoother scrolling, animation, and gaming, and a better user experience in brightly-lit environments.

Shop Protective & Trendy iPhone 17 and iPhone 16 Cases at Casely

The better your phone is, the more you'll want to take care of it. Whether you choose to upgrade to the iPhone 17 or stick with the 16, Casely has stylish cases and rugged screen protectors that can help your phone last longer. Make your device ready for everything the world can throw at it by shopping our selection of iPhone cases.