Apple has always been pretty unapologetic about taking it slow when it comes to introducing new hardware features to the iPhone. It also tends to keep some of the more fancy hardware upgrades exclusive to the bigger iPhone variants.
For instance, Apple finally upgraded the optical zoom capabilities of the iPhone this year by introducing 5x optical zoom with the iPhone 15 lineup, but only the iPhone 15 Pro Max has a 5x zoom camera. The iPhone 15 Pro has the same 3x zoom camera as the iPhone 14 Pro, and the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus lack a telephoto camera altogether like their predecessors.
Apple has also kept high refresh rate displays exclusive to the Pro and Pro Max models, with the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus both featuring 60Hz displays. And it seems the Cupertino-based company intends to leave that unchanged next year.
Apple may not ditch the iPhone's 60Hz display before 2025
Apple will reportedly stick to 60Hz displays for the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus, according to a leak detailing some of the iPhone 16 lineup's display specs. That would make the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus the fourth consecutive base and Plus models to miss out on a high refresh rate display, something Android phone manufacturers have been providing on both flagship and mid-range phones for a few years now.
While this news has raised criticisms from Android users on social media platforms like X, Apple fans are of the opinion that the average consumer doesn't care about refresh rates and other such specs that tech-savvy folks take for granted. Pricing may be the bigger factor for Apple's decision, though, as a high refresh rate display would add to the production cost, increase the price for the consumer, and possibly affect Apple's profit margins.
However, the iPhone 15 has barely been out for two months, so it's impossible to be sure about Apple's plans for the iPhone 16 lineup. Analyst Ross Young has previously said that Apple could ditch the 60Hz displays on the base and Plus iPhone models in 2025, but there's nothing stopping the company from making the switch next year or perhaps even postpone the upgrade all the way to 2026.
