Technologies

Should You Buy an iPhone 16 or iPhone 17? Here’s How They Compare

Apple debuted its latest baseline phone with some changes across the battery, display and cameras. Is it worth the upgrade?

Now that Apple has debuted the iPhone 17, you may be wondering whether to get that flashy new device or buy last year’s iPhone 16 at a discount. To help with that decision, here’s a breakdown of how the two handsets compare.

The iPhone 17 starts at $829 (or $799 if you activate with a carrier), the same as the iPhone 16 when it came out — with the caveat that the iPhone 17 starts with a higher 256GB storage option, as opposed to 128GB.

The iPhone 16 is now available at a $100 discount, though its baseline configuration has 128GB of storage. So, is it worth saving some money, or should you go all out with the latest phone?

Here’s what to know about each phone, from the cameras to the displays to the batteries.

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Screen differences

Some of the biggest changes between the iPhone 16 and 17 have to do with the display.

Apple says it shrunk the borders around the screen on the iPhone 17, expanding the display from 6.1 inches on the iPhone 16 to 6.3 inches on the iPhone 17 without expanding its dimensions. The new Ceramic Shield 2 cover on the iPhone 17 offers 3x better scratch resistance, according to the company.

The baseline iPhone 17 gets a display with a 120Hz refresh rate, as opposed to the 60Hz display on the iPhone 16. That means the iPhone 17 finally supports an always-on display, so you can glance at the time, your notifications and Live Activities without waking the screen.

The iPhone 17 also gains an anti-reflective coating and a 3,000-nit peak brightness, compared to 2,000 nits on the iPhone 16. That should make it easier to see your phone in bright sunlight.

Camera differences

Both the iPhone 16 and 17 have a 48-megapixel wide-angle camera. But the iPhone 17 upgrades the ultrawide camera from 12 megapixels on last year’s phone to 48 megapixels.

The front-facing camera also gets an upgrade, going from 12 megapixels on the iPhone 16 to 18 megapixels on the iPhone 17. There’s a new Center Stage feature for the selfie camera that can automatically adjust from a portrait orientation to landscape to make sure everyone is in the shot. That means you don’t have to manually rotate your phone to its side anymore when there are more people to fit in the frame.

Both the iPhone 16 and 17 have a Camera Control button on the side to quickly launch the camera, snap some shots and use Apple’s Visual Intelligence tool to learn more about what’s around you.

Processor and RAM

The iPhone 17 packs an A19 chip, an upgrade from the A18 chip in the iPhone 16. One key difference is that the iPhone 17 starts at 256GB, while the iPhone 16 started at 128GB for the same $829 price when it debuted.

Both phones also support the Apple Intelligence suite of AI capabilities, which includes writing tools, image generators and notification summaries.

Battery life

Apple doesn’t share specific battery specs, but it does measure longevity via video playback hours. The iPhone 16 supports up to 22 hours of video playback, according to Apple, while the iPhone 17 bumps that up to 30 hours. Stay tuned to CNET’s review of the iPhone 17 to see how that translates in the real world and how the phone holds up to our battery tests.

A new AI-powered Adaptive Power feature arriving with iOS 26 can help conserve the battery by making «small performance adjustments,» like «allowing some activities to take a little longer,» according to Apple.

The iPhone 17 arrives with the upcoming operating system onboard, but you’ll also be able to download iOS 26 on the iPhone 16, as well as some older iPhones, once it becomes available publicly. That should help to stretch your battery life on either device.

Color options and design

What’s on the inside may be most important, but people also care what their phone looks like. Like the iPhone 16, the iPhone 17 comes in a range of fun colors: black, white, mist blue, sage (a light green) and lavender.

For comparison, the iPhone 16 is available in black, white, pink, teal and ultramarine.

Both phones have an aluminum frame.

If you’re leaning toward the iPhone 17, preorders start Friday, and the phone hits store shelves on Friday, Sept. 19.

Apple iPhone 17 vs. iPhone 16

	Apple iPhone 17	Apple iPhone 16
Display size, tech, resolution, refresh rate	6.3-inch OLED; 2,622 x 1,206 pixel resolution; 1-120Hz variable refresh rate	6.1-inch OLED; 2,556 x 1,179 pixel resolution; 60Hz refresh rate
Pixel density	460ppi	460 ppi
Dimensions (inches)	5.89 x 2.81 x 0.31 in	5.81 x 2.82 x 0.31 in
Dimensions (millimeters)	149.6 x 71.5 x 7.95 mm	147.6 x 71.6 x 7.8 mm
Weight (grams, ounces)	177 g (6.24 oz)	170 g (6 oz.)
Mobile software	iOS 26	iOS 18
Camera	48-megapixel (wide) 48-megapixel (ultrawide)	48-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel (ultrawide)
Front-facing camera	18-megapixel	12-megapixel
Video capture	4K	4K
Processor	Apple A19	Apple A18
RAM + storage	RAM N/A + 256GB, 512GB	RAM N/A + 128GB, 256GB, 512GB
Expandable storage	None	None (Face ID)
Battery	Up to 30 hours video playback; up to 27 hours video playback (streamed).Fast charge up to 50% in 20 minutes using 40W adapter or higher via charging cable. Fast charge up to 50% in 30 minutes using 30W adapter or higher via MagSafe Charger.	Up to 22 hours video playback; up to 18 hours video playback (streamed). 20W wired charging. MagSafe wireless charging up to 25W with 30W adapter or higher; Qi2 up to 15W
Fingerprint sensor	None (Face ID)	None (Face ID)
Connector	USB-C	USB-C
Headphone jack	None	None
Special features	Apple N1 wireless networking chip (Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) with 2×2 MIMO), Bluetooth 6, Thread. Action button. Camera Control button. Dynamic Island. Apple Intelligence. Visual Intelligence. Dual eSIM. 1 to 3000 nits brightness display range.IP68 resistance. Colors: black, white, mist blue, sage, lavender.	Apple Intelligence, Action button, Camera Control button, Dynamic Island, 1 to 2,000 nits display brightness range, IP68 resistance. Colors: black, white, pink, teal, ultramarine.
US price starts at	$829 (256GB)	$829 (128GB)

Technologies

This New AI Feature for Cars Promises to Keep You From Missing Your Exit

Polestar is integrating Google Maps’ live lane guidance into the head-up display.

Technologies

Android Users Downloaded OpenAI’s Sora AI App Nearly Half a Million Times in One Day

How much AI slop does 470,000 Sora app installs equate to?

It’s only been two days since OpenAI dropped the Android-compatible version of its Sora app, but the AI social media app’s popularity seems to know no bounds. A new report from Appfigures found that the Android app was downloaded 470,000 times on the first day it was available. That’s four times as many downloads as compared to Sora’s initial iOS app launch in September, according to TechCrunch, which originally reported the news.

Keep in mind that the iOS app was downloaded over a million times in under five days. It was also restricted to North America and required an invite code. Since Sora has dropped its invite code requirement and opened up the app to more countries, it makes sense that Android downloads would be higher than the iOS ones. But it’s still an eye-popping statistic, even for an app that has quickly become one of the most powerful and controversial AI developments so far.

The Android app is just one of many updates OpenAI has dropped in recent weeks. In a new post, OpenAI’s head of Sora, Bill Peebles, outlined what’s coming soon for the AI-video app, including new creation tools, improved social features and much-anticipated Android support. OpenAI also said it would be working with unions like SAG-AFTRA and other celebrities and public figures to help manage the creation of potentially inappropriate or illegal videos, including deepfakes.

You can download Sora now on the Google Play Store and start scrolling right away. Here’s everything that’s inside the Sora app. For more, check out our guide for how to spot AI-generated videos.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Cameos and editing tools

Sora recently gained new creation tools in the form of character cameos, which are now expanding beyond people. Cameo is Sora’s primary feature that allows you to use other people’s likenesses to create nearly any kind of AI video. Soon, you’ll be able to cameo your dog, guinea pig, favorite stuffed toy or generated characters from existing Sora videos. Several Halloween-themed characters have been added recently.

The app’s generation interface will also highlight trending cameos in real-time, likely building on popular existing social media features, such as the For You page or Explore page on Instagram.

OpenAI is also introducing basic video editing tools, beginning with the ability to stitch clips together directly within the app. Peebles says more advanced editing features are on the way, hinting at a broader creative suite that aims to move Sora beyond short, one-off generations to an app that can be used by professional creators.

On the social side, the team is experimenting with new ways to utilize Sora with friends and communities, rather than just a global feed. That could mean channels for your university, workplace, hobbies or sports teams, bringing a more localized vibe to what has so far been a mostly chaotic public stream of AI videos.

These changes follow the first major Sora update earlier this month, which introduced longer video limits and a storyboarding feature. The company announced that free Sora users can make videos up to 15 seconds long on the iPhone app and the web (which is the only way Android users can use Sora at the moment). Pro users also receive an additional 10 seconds when creating on the web, for a total of 35 seconds. The announcement came one day after Google upgraded its popular AI video model, Veo 3, to handle longer video generations.

New payment options for videos

As OpenAI added new features and opened up its app to anyone (no invite code needed), it also introduced payment plans. Previously, free users could generate up to 30 videos per day, while Pro users had a limit of 100 videos per day. Now, if anyone hits their generation limit, they can pay $4 for an additional 10 video generations.

Since your Sora account is linked to your ChatGPT account, if you pay for ChatGPT Pro, you’re a paying Sora user. For more information, see all the payment plans.

Storyboarding

Storyboarding, available only to Pro users on the web, lets creators plan out videos on the web before generating them. Storyboarding has long been a part of the professional filmmaking process and is occasionally included in more professional software programs. Google’s AI filmmaking program Flow, for example, allows for storyboarding. But this is an interesting and somewhat unexpected addition to Sora.

Sora has only been around a short time, but the vibe on the app is focused on shorter, funny videos, echoing OpenAI’s claim that the app is designed to help people connect with their friends. Professional-grade videos that are longer and better planned aren’t very common, but these upcoming updates will likely change that.

This could be a sign that OpenAI is attempting to attract the professional creators it has previously alienated. Professional creators would need storyboarding, video editing, longer run times, and higher resolutions, and OpenAI seems to be addressing these needs quickly.

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Nov. 7, #410

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle No. 410 for Friday, Nov. 7.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a fun one. I thought the blue category was the easiest group of the four, but maybe that’s because I’m a movie buff. If you’re struggling but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: You need strength for this.

Green group hint: Lone Star State.

Blue group hint: Gonna fly now.

Purple group hint: Apparel hidden in the words.