Don’t sleep on iPhone 16 Plus — 5 reasons it’s got the best bang for your buck

The iPhone 16 Plus delivers the best bang for your buck.

Don’t get me wrong, though.

After testing all four iPhone 16 devices, it’s no surprise that the iPhone 16 Pro Max stood out as the best of the entire lineup. After all, it lasted more than 25 hours on a single charge, according to our in-house battery life test. Its runtime, alone, makes it a top pick among the new iPhone 16 devices.

iPhone 16 Plus in “Pink”
Credit: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable

However, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is almost as expensive as your monthly rent, setting you back at least $1,200.

So the question is, what’s the next best phone in the iPhone 16 family? The iPhone 16 Plus.

iPhone 16 Plus is the next best thing

Unlike the iPhone 16 Pro Max, the iPhone 16 Plus didn’t smash our battery life record — but it’s still pretty power efficient. The iPhone 16 Plus’ runtime revealed that it has the second-best battery life of the entire iPhone 16 lineup. Plus, it has the third-best battery life of any phone Mashable has ever tested.

Here are the current rankings:

1. iPhone 16 Pro Max – 25 hours and 17 minutes

2. Google Pixel 9 – 19 hours and 20 minutes

3. iPhone 16 Plus – 18 hours and 53 minutes

4. Google Pixel 9 Pro XL – 18 hours and 50 minutes

5. iPhone 16 Pro – 18 hours and 17 minutes

The iPhone 16 Plus has a starting price of $899. While the $799 entry-level iPhone 16 is the cheapest model you can get, you’ll lose out on more than two hours of battery life. It lasts a little more than 16 hours on a charge. This isn’t half bad, but its competitor, Pixel 9, lasts almost three hours longer.

Aside from battery life, let me give you four more reasons to consider the iPhone 16 Plus.

1. The iPhone 16 Plus also comes with the new Camera Control button, which is set to become the new Visual Intelligence key later this year. (Visual Intelligence will let you point at any object with your camera, and AI will kick in to give you information about the subject.)

2. It has a tougher screen with a second-generation Ceramic Shield display.

3. It has upgraded cameras, particularly improved zoom quality.

4. Finally, the iPhone 16 supports Apple Intelligence, the company’s new suite of AI.

To conclude, the iPhone 16 Pro Max would be the best buy, but the best value purchase is the iPhone 16 Plus. (Take it from me as someone who reviewed them all.)