iPhone 16 Pro vs. 15 Pro: Drop Test Durability Comparison

The iPhone 16 Pro showed mixed durability results, failing early while the iPhone 15 Pro held up better despite more cracks.

### iPhone 16 Pro vs. iPhone 15 Pro: Durability Drop Test Results
* ✈ The test began with a drop of the iPhone 16 Pro, showcasing its **new desert titanium color** and a **notable camera control button**, while the iPhone 15 Pro was presented in **natural titanium**, both devices powered on without noticeable weight differences.
* 📊 Apple claims the iPhone 16 Pro features a **50% stronger ceramic shield** compared to its predecessor, which raised expectations for its performance during the drop tests.
* 📉 Initial drops from pocket height resulted in **visible damage to the titanium finish** on both devices, with the 16 Pro showing **more wear** despite both screens remaining **intact**.
* 📉 As the tests escalated to chest height, the 16 Pro sustained a **crack on the screen** after multiple drops, while the 15 Pro remained functional, highlighting **potential issues with the thinner bezels** of the newer model.
* 🔍 ESR sponsored the video, introducing protective cases for the iPhone 16, including options that offer **up to 23 ft of drop protection**, which may be necessary given the performance observed in the tests.
* 🛠 Upon further examination, the 16 Pro's **thinner bezels**, reduced by **30%**, seemed to lead to **more significant damage from corner impacts**, despite the overall durability of the glass being improved.
* 💔 Ultimately, the 15 Pro exhibited **more resilience in successive drops**, while the 16 Pro's screen failure illustrated a **mixed bag of results**, suggesting that a **protective case is advisable for both models**.
* 📸 The video concluded with a call to action for viewers to **support the channel**, indicating ongoing content and the importance of **durability in smartphone design**.

all right. I flew across the world again to Sydney, Australia, to do an early drop test of the iPhone 16 Pro versus last year's iPhone 15 Pro to see which one is more durable. So, let's find out. First up, let's jump into the iPhone 16 Pro. This is the desert titanium color. All right, let's see it inside. That is a super light gold color this year. But you immediately notice the brand new camera control button on the side. And if we rip off the screen protector, turning on the phones for the very first time honestly does not feel any heavier than last year and looks decent in this finish actually, of course. So, this is a fair game. We have a new inbox iPhone 15 Pro as well, never been used, never been opened. Taking this one out of the box, of course, the exact same story as last year. We got this one in the natural titanium. Turning the iPhone 15 Pro on for the first time as well. There we go. Now, the whole reason I'm doing this is for one

thing that Apple said they made the claim that on the iPhone 16 Pro with the larger displays, they actually improved the durability of the ceramic shield on top. They claim about a 50% improvement over what's on the 15 Pro and before. So, it sounds like during these drops, especially on the front, the 16 Pro should perform much better in some way. And I'm very curious to see if that is actually going to be the case. So, let's get started. Let's start off first with a casual drop out of your pocket on the side of the phone in three, two, one. Don't think there's going to be any damage whatsoever. Well, except for actually quite a bit of damage across the titanium on both. That wasn't that big of a drop, and it seems like a huge chunk out of the more painted titanium on the 16 Pro. But of course, the screens, the phones are actually fine. Now, stepping it up a little bit from chest height in 3, 2, 1. Totally good on the screens. You would

expect that from these drops, but even more damage, especially on that 16 Pro. It seems to show it a bit more with the slightly different color titanium. Now, here's where you're going to start to expect to see some different results as you go a bit higher, but still on the sides. I would expect these to be fine. 3, 2, 1. Looks like we're starting to see even more damage on the bottom just 'cause I am really bullying this edge, but still holding up remarkably well. Like, no impact or scratches on the display. These actually look really good so far for even an unrealistic drop from that high. All right, last edge drop all the way up here. 3, 2, 1. And again, these phones sound like they are performing remarkably well. Oh, except on the bottom of the 16 Pro. It's shut off, and there's actually a crack on the screen already. The 16 Pro is not turning on after four drops, which is, uh, not great. As you can see, the last year 15 Pro is still totally fine. Uh, the 16

Pro is uh give us one second so it's really hard to see but it actually shot up the entire display off of that single crack. Seems like whatever that dent was, it sort of impacted the whole display. Maybe it's because the bezels are so much thinner now with this crack happening so early. That's why I parted up with ESR, who sponsored today's video, to show you their brand new suite of cases designed specifically for iPhone 16. ESR has released three great new cases this year, starting off with my favorite, the classic hybrid. I really like this clear case vibe because it allows you to enjoy the color of your phone while also offering 11 ft of drop protection. As you can see, not only is the case sleek and protective, it's also tested to exceed military-grade standards. On the back, there's the stash stand, which allows you to unfold it to prop up your phone however you like, as well as also protecting the camera at the same time. Plus, the slim design also houses super

fast MagSafe charging, so your phone will charge faster in this than with other cases, but it's so slim that it even works with all your same MagSafe accessories. There's also the Cloud Soft Case that has a different material that feels a bit nicer in your hand too, with also 11 ft of drop protection, which is super impressive. Or for the most protection, there is the Cyber Tough Case. Not only does this have an even greater 23 ft of drop protection, but there's also Air Guard Corners, a 1.2 mm raised screen edge for front drops, and a 0.7 mm camera guard on the back. So use my links down below in the description to grab one of these ESR cases for yourself. A huge thank you to them for sponsoring. Now let's get back to it. So upon further inspection, I'm really thinking that the thinner bezels on the 16 Pro, which Apple reduced by about 30%, are making it so that these corner impacts, which are usually fine, shoot it straight into

the OLED controller and display because the phone is done like the screen broken not turning on. It's still vibrates when you press it, but uh regardless the actual screen itself is still mostly fine. So I want to see how far we can push these phones starting off with some backdrop tests from around the waist height again in three to one. All right once again got some damage on the exterior here but the front is basically in identical position as before going a bit higher from chest height here in three two 1 picking these up. Oh all right we've got our first back glass damage on both phones and it seems like basically exactly where they hit they have the exact same spiderweb shred damage but again that was pretty high and we are directly on concrete which is basically worst case scenario. I think as we go even higher this is probably going to be terminal velocity for the backs on these phones in 3 2 one. That one looked bad didn't it. All right so actually impressively while the 15 Pro completely shattered on the back.

the 16 Pro is looking a little bit chunky there, but the rest of the glass is perfect. That being said, usually the toughest drops for phones to get the complete shattering on the front, like we have on the back, it's going to be the front screen. Although, again, Apple says it's supposed to be stronger, even though that hasn't been the case so far. Let's start off with a direct front test from waist height in three, two, one. Taking a look at these phones here, looks like we've got another huge scratch on the 16 Pro, becoming more apparent. But the 15 Pro display, once again, we do have a shatter up at the very top where it hit that corner, and it does spread a bit to the side. But I would say the 15 Pro is still fully usable and intact. Still no power, though, on the 16 Pro, which means we got to take the 15 Pro even higher this year to about chest height. Three, two, one. 15 Pro is still completely that's

actually a crazy drop for this phone to survive. The 16 Pro, on the other hand, we're seeing worsening cracks from the same area, but now, I mean, the 15 Pro is handling this test remarkably this year. If we go even higher, all the way up here, dropping from the front in three, two, one. That was direct on both. It was a pretty clean drop. The back continues to just absolutely go through it, and the 15 Pro, even the 16 Pro, is looking roughly the same. It's just more damage from that initial drop that got it in the corner. It really seems like the corner could be the Achilles heel for the pros this year. Since the 15 Pro is still doing so well, I think we have to step it up to some stairs because I want to see how far we can drop this phone before the front cracks. It is doing remarkably well for the old generation ceramic shields. We're going to start off here in three, two, one. Okay, now this is really interesting. So the 15 Pro on that drop, which is I

don't know what 12 13 ft probably in the US. It completely cooked the ceramic shield. Like, it is. This screen is done. The 15 Pro is out of the game. Back destroyed, front destroyed, sides have seen better days. What's really, really interesting to me is even though the display isn't working, even though we cooked it on that early drop, it's not nearly as cracked for the exact same drop. Here's why this one's fascinating. You can see on the 15 Pro that's exactly where it came into contact, and that crack went through the entire display, just all the way up, immediately ruining the entire thing essentially. But on the 16 Pro, it's different. While the 16 Pro broke really early on from that corner, on these successive drops, you can see all of this different damage that has happened in different areas, but it's way less severe overall. You can see it starts and spreads, but the display panel itself is way less cracked and sharp overall, and I think that's due to the

new ceramic Shield apple is using kind of leading to mixed results. It seems like because of the bezels on the 16 Pro, depending on where you drop it, it may crack easier in some areas. Yet in other cases, it actually holds up better. So I want to keep going to see if we can get this level of destruction on the actual glass component of the 16 Pro. So this is a super unrealistic drop just to test if this glass can act in the same way 'cause it's definitely starting to act different. In three, two, one. I mean, this is actually pretty remarkable. As we're going through here, look at how just perpetually destructed the 15 Pro screen is. The 16 Pro, again, while the display itself broke, the glass is not sharp at all. That's actually mad impressive that the glass itself is just not breaking. I guess we got to go even higher. Here we go. Three, two, one. Okay, so finally we got the display, but again, it's acting different. You see how it's stopping? It doesn't go through.

the whole screen. That's actually a very important and impressive upgrade 'cause it means if one part of your display gets cooked, the rest should in theory be fine. I mean, you can just see that side by side there. The spider webbing on the 15 Pro is crazy. Again, both exact same amount of drops and even more structural damage on the 16 Pro, and it did not spread. That being said, on the back of both of these phones, it is not looking good for 16 Pro or 15 Pro. We have tons of carnage up here, including a bit of a separation here on the back of the 16 Pro. Seems like the back glass has not really been improved or changed whatsoever year over year. So this is by far the most interesting drop test I've ever done because while the 16 Pro absolutely underperformed at the beginning, I mean, the display panel stopped working just after some easier side drops. After really focusing on that front display and taking a closer look at the ceramic shield, I mean, you can

just see the difference is night and day. What Apple has done is essentially engineered that when you do have a big crack on your screen, it's not usually catastrophic. However, on the 16 Pro specifically, I think there's a catch because, well, the bezels are just so thin. So, when you're getting something like a corner impact or something that just barely touches that edge of the screen, the display panel of the 16 Pro was extremely fragile and noticeably more so than on the 15 Pro. Just because I think you're basically coming into contact with the screen panel first, a mix of results that I definitely wasn't expecting. And I personally, I'm going to still be rocking a case on my iPhone 16 Pro. Again, links down below in the descript for that. A huge thank you to you guys for watching this and for supporting me to go all the way across the world. More videos coming soon. Drop a like if you enjoyed. Hit subscribe for more. I've been St. Catch you in the next one.

bye-bye. The 15 Pro screen is starting to struggle a little bit here, where the 16 Pro just gave up. It seems like the 15 Pro is trying its best to deliver a good screen experience, but the number of cracks is just not great. One second, let me take a photo just by folding my camera back into place. Good as new.

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The iPhone 16 Pro features a new camera control button and a lighter gold color, while the 15 Pro has a natural titanium finish.

Apple's claim of a 50% improvement in the durability of the ceramic shield on the 16 Pro is put to the test through a series of drops.

Despite initial similar performance, the 16 Pro ultimately shuts off and cracks its screen after four drops, while the 15 Pro remains unharmed.

Impact of Thinner Bezels on iPhone 16 Pro

The iPhone 16 Pro's display was severely impacted by a single crack, likely due to its thinner bezels.

ESR has released a new suite of cases for the iPhone 16, offering up to 23 ft of drop protection and featuring sleek designs with MagSafe charging.

The video's backdrop tests showed that both the iPhone 15 Pro and 16 Pro sustained similar damage, with the 15 Pro completely shattering on the back from a higher drop.

Durability Test of the iPhone 15 Pro and 16 Pro

The iPhone 16 Pro has a chunky design but is struggling with power and showing worsening cracks from drops.

The 15 Pro, however, is surprisingly resilient, surviving multiple drops from increasing heights with minimal damage.

The 15 Pro ultimately fails after a significant drop, while the 16 Pro shows less severe and more spread-out damage, suggesting a different pattern of impact.

Testing the Durability of Apple's 16 Pro with Ceramic Shield

The Ceramic Shield on the 16 Pro is producing mixed results, with some areas cracking easier than others during drops.

The glass on the 16 Pro, despite the display breaking, is not sharp and shows impressive resilience by not spreading the damage.

However, the back glass of both the 16 Pro and 15 Pro shows significant damage, indicating no major improvement year over year.

Comparing the iPhone 15 Pro and 16 Pro Screens

The iPhone 16 Pro has a more fragile display panel compared to the 15 Pro, due to its thinner bezels and corner impacts.

The 15 Pro is struggling with cracks, while the 16 Pro's screen has given up completely.

The speaker is also facing issues, with the 15 Pro's speaker struggling and the 16 Pro's speaker not functioning at all.