Should You Upgrade to iPhone 16, and Best Credit Cards to Use

Find out all you need to know about Apple’s latest iPhone 16, including variants, tech specs and which credit card to use when paying for your upgrade. 

The iPhone 16 was announced on 9 September (10 September, Singapore), much to the delight of fans everywhere. iPhone launches are always accompanied by lots of buzz, even though the hype isn’t always deserved (remember when Siri was announced way back then?) The question is, will the iPhone 16 come with any groundbreaking innovations this time?

It’s… complicated. How excited you should be for Apple’s newest iPhone would depend on how much you believe in the impact of generative AI. Let’s take a deeper look at the new iPhone to see what it has to offer. 

Table of contents 

• iPhone 16 cheat sheet: key features 
• iPhone 16 overview: what's new?
• iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max
• iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus
• Should you upgrade to iPhone 16?
• Best credit cards for iPhone 16 
  • Should you use an instalment payment plan?
• Frequently Asked Questions 

iPhone 16 cheat sheet: key features

iPhone 16 overview: what’s new?

The most significant improvement in the new iPhone 16 is the A18 chip, a new generation processing chip that is geared towards powering generative AI capabilities in iOS 18. There is also higher RAM of 8GB (6GB previously) for enhanced computing capacity.

Apple’s push towards generative AI is known as Apple Intelligence, and promises to “understand and create language and images, take action across apps, and draw from personal context to simplify and accelerate everyday tasks,” according to the company’s official press release. 

In other words, look forward to new ways of using your iPhone for everyday tasks from writing emails to enhancing photos and videos, to horrifying your contacts with more dead-eyed self-emojis. 

To be sure, it’s all very conceptual, and it remains to be seen how well iPhone users will take to using these new capabilities. Heck, maybe Siri will finally be useful?

Apart from Apple Intelligence, iPhone 16 doesn’t really offer anything much to get dizzy over. The model sticks with the same form factor of between 6.1 inch to 6.7 inch, as well as storage capacity, ranging from 128GB to 1TB. 

iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max: upgraded camera, more battery life 

Being the high-end models in series, the iPhone 16 Pro (6.3 inch) and iPhone Pro Max (6.9 inch) receive the A18 Pro chip with 6 cores, which is Apple’s most advanced and powerful chip to date. Both also feature an OLED ProMotion display, for higher visual fidelity and screen smoothness. 

Camera capabilities have also been enhanced with the dual-camera system now offering 48 MP fusion, 48 MP ultrawide and telephoto modes, with up to 10x optical zoom. Battery life tops out at 33 hours of video playback, according to Apple. 

The iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max comes clad in titanium for a premium feeling, but disappointingly, doesn’t offer any new colours. Besides the mainstays dark grey, silver and white, there’s also a rose gold variant.

iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus: smaller, but just as capable

Traditionally, Apple distinguishes its Pro iPhone models from its regular iPhone series, but the gap narrows with the latest release. 

Just like its Pro siblings, the iPhone 16 (6.1 inch) and iPhone 16 Plus (6.7 inch) also come with Apple’s latest A18 chip, albeit it’s a slightly less powerful version with 5 cores. Still, this is laudable, considering that Apple could have reused the older A17 chip (seen in the iPhone 15 Pro), which was the company’s first chip designed for generative AI. 

The iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus offer upgraded dual-camera capabilities featuring 48 MP fusion and 12 MP ultrawide photos modes, with up to 6x optical zoom. Notably, this is almost on-par with last year’s iPhone 15 Pro, with telephoto mode being the missing feature.

Besides its smaller form factor, the iPhone 16 holds its own in terms of battery life. Apple’s spec sheet indicates up to 22 hours of video playback, and up to 27 hours for the iPhone 16 Plus.

As for finishes, the iPhone 16 is clad in aluminium with coloured-glass backing. Choose from five colours of back, white, pink, teal and ultramarine. 

Should you upgrade to iPhone 16?

Frankly, the most compelling reason to upgrade to the latest iPhone is the new A18 chip, but that’s only if you really care about generative AI’s purported potential to help you do everyday tasks more efficiently. 

Even so, you may still not have to upgrade if you’re currently holding the iPhone 15 Pro, which has the A17 chip that is also AI-ready. Also, Apple Intelligence will be included in iOS 18, which will be made available to a range of older iPhone models as well, further making it less urgent to upgrade to the iPhone 16. 

But then again, if you’ve missed more than a few iPhone upgrade cycles, the promise of new capabilities and ways of accomplishing tasks heralded by the iPhone 16 might just make the leap forward worth your while.

Best credit cards for iPhone 16

With prices for the iPhone 16 starting from S$1,299, this is definitely a great opportunity to earn some credit card rewards. Here are some of our recommended credit cards to use for a juicy stack of reward points, air miles or cashback on your iPhone 16 upgrade. 

Best credit cards for iPhone 16

Citi Rewards Card

10x points (bonus points capped at 9,000 per month)

DBS Altitude Credit Card

1.3 miles per dollar local spend

HSBC Advance Credit Card

2.5% cashback with min. S$2,000 spend

UOB Absolute Cashback Card

1.7% unlimited cashback, no min, spend

UOB PRVI Miles World Mastercard

1.4 miles per dollar local spend

 

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Citi Rewards Card open_in_new

Rewards Points Local Spending: Up to 10 points per dollar

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DBS Altitude Visa Signature Card open_in_new

Airmiles Retail: 1.30 miles per dollar

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HSBC Advance Credit Card open_in_new

Cashback Retail: 2.50 %

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UOB Absolute Cashback Card open_in_new

Cashback Retail: 1.70 %

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UOB PRVI Miles World MasterCard open_in_new

Airmiles Retail: 1.40 miles per dollar

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Ongoing Promotions With SingSaver to Win iPhone 16

Citi Rewards Card

The Citi Rewards gives you 10x points (4 miles per dollar) on your iPhone 16 purchase, netting you a good chunk of points. While there is no minimum spend required, bonus points are capped at 9,000 per statement month. This means you’ll only earn 10x points on up to S$1,000 spend, and the regular 1x points for the remainder of your purchase.

For this reason, you may want to consider using another card on the list if you’re going for the more costly variants. 

HSBC Advance Credit Card

Spending at least S$2,000 a month with the HSBC Advance Credit Card will entitle you to 2.5% cashback, making this card a good match for large ticket items – such as a brand new iPhone 16. Hence, consider using this card for your iPhone upgrade if you have it. 

The drawback here is that your cashback is capped to S$70 per month, but still, savings are savings.

Standard Chartered Simply Cash Card

The SCB Simply Cash Card offers unlimited 1.5% cashback on all purchases with no spending limits or category restrictions. Enjoy exclusive discounts and deals on dining, shopping, and travel, along with flexible payment plans and no annual fees for the first year!

Should you use an instalment payment plan?

Apple offers an instalment payment plan for credit cards, which can be a good way to finance your iPhone 16 upgrade if you don’t have the funds available. You can pay off your purchase over regular instalments, instead of all at once and burning a hole in your pocket. 

But note that you cannot earn credit card rewards on instalment payments, so you’ll need to weigh if the sacrifice is worth it. 

Also, when you start an instalment payment plan, the entire amount of the purchase will be deducted from your credit card limit. This is gradually restored as you make each instalment payment. This means you’ll have to manage with a smaller credit limit initially.

Ideally, you’ll want to be able to purchase your new iPhone 16 with your credit card, and pay off your credit card bill in full, without carrying a balance. This will give you the full entitlement of credit card rewards. 

However, if you’re not quite able to, you’ll need to save up until you do. Or, if you can’t wait, then use the instalment payment plan. That way, you won’t have to pay additional interest charges. 

Frequently Asked Questions

The iPhone 16 was announced on 9 September 2024. In Singapore, the phone will be released for sale in stores from 20 September onwards.

Yes, the iPhone 16 is available for pre-order from 13 September 2024. Customers may submit their pre-orders at Apple’s official website or at selected telco providers.