Apple today took the wraps off the iPhone 16. (And a whole bunch of other stuff, too.) And by nearly every account it’s going to be one hell of a device. No way it couldn’t be, right?
Well, there’s still one way: The iPhone 16 starts with 128GB of on-board storage. And let’s be perfectly clear: Unless you intend on buying that low-end option for someone who’s barely going to use it — not install many apps, or take many picture or video — it shouldn’t even enter the discussion.
I know, because I made that mistake. I have two teenage daughters. Four years ago I bought them each an iPhone 12. Seeing as how iPhones (and teenage daughters) aren’t inexpensive, I opted for the cheapest options at 128GB of storage.
I should have known better. I did know better, actually. And, yet, I did things on the cheap and broke my own rule — always buy more storage if it’s not something you can upgrade later. That was true then, and it’s just as true today with the iPhone 16 and all its variants.
Somewhere, someone is saying that what Apple should do is drop the 128GB model and lower the starting price for the 256GB option. It might well do that at some point, but not because someone with a keyboard said so. It’ll do it if and when it becomes in Apple’s financial best interest. And right now that interest is to have phones that range from $799 to a whopping $1,599.
Here’s how they all break down:
As for which to get? Well, that’s still up to you. (But note that high-end games won’t need the Pro model this time around!)
It’s basic math, even if we don’t know the answer. Apple knows it needs to sell a certain amount of phones at certain prices. And it knows how much each version costs to make. (And market, and all that other stuff.)
And that’s why there’s still a 128GB option for an iPhone 16 in 2024 — even if it’s an option you almost certainly should ignore.
Two new highly requested iCloud plugins just got added to ChatGPT, giving people who rely on Apple’s Mail and Calendar services a way to search emails, check appointments, and manage their schedules directly through the chatbot.
The integration is rolling out to all ChatGPT plans, including the free tier. You can access it on the web, desktop, and iOS.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.
Samsung’s scandal over its Game Optimizing Service, or GOS, has returned with a bill attached. South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission has tentatively fined the company 20.1 billion won, or about $15.1 million, over gaming claims made for the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S22, and Tab S8.
The regulator says Samsung promoted the devices as gaming powerhouses without disclosing that GOS placed preset CPU and GPU limits on certain demanding games. Samsung disputes that conclusion, calling GOS a legitimate way to manage heat.