These iOS 16 features are not available on all iPhone models, they are exclusive to certain more powerful models.
The arrival of iOS 16 brings important new features to the iPhone, such as the significant renovation of the iPhone home screen or the battery percentage in the status bar icon. These are improvements available on all iPhone models compatible with iOS 16, but there are other new iOS 16 features that are exclusive to the latest iPhone models and powerful.
This is not something new, it happens with every iOS update. There are some functions that requires CPU power that not all devices have. And in iOS 16 we have some of those features.
What iOS 16 features are exclusive to new iPhones?
There are many new features, some exclusive to newer models and others compatible with models from later years.
iOS 16 Features Exclusive to iPhone XS and Later
These iOS 16 features will only be available for iPhones with the A12 Bionic chip or later, such as the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone SE (2nd generation), iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone SE (3rd generation). In other words, the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X are not compatible with these new features of iOS 16:
- Live Text. This feature was already exclusive to these iPhone models in iOS 15, so new iOS 16 features such as Live Text in video or new languages are also exclusive.
- Emojis in dictations. In iOS 16, you can insert emojis when sending messages with Siri, but only on these models.
- Explore app capabilities with Siri. If you open an app and say to Siri, “Hey Siri, what can I do here?” or ask for a specific app, it will tell you what that app does.
- A whole new dictation experience. In iOS 16, you can seamlessly switch between voice and touch when dictating text.
- Add medicine with your iPhone’s camera. You can quickly add medications using your iPhone’s camera.
- Search for images in more apps. With iOS 16, Spotlight uses image information in messages, notes, and files to let you search by places, people, scenes, or even items in images, like text, a dog, or a plant.
- Visual search improvements. Separate a subject from an image or isolate the subject by removing the background just by tapping on it. In addition, birds, insects and statues are now recognized.
iOS 16 Features Exclusive to iPhone 11 and Later
The iPhone 11 and its A13 Bionic chip are also a barrier to one of the features of iOS 16, which is currently only available in English.
- live subtitles. In iOS 16, we have real-time, auto-generated transcripts for users who are deaf or hard of hearing to more easily follow conversations, audio, and video. Requires iPhone 11, iPad with A12X Bionic chip, or Mac with Apple Silicon.
iOS 16 Features Exclusive to iPhone 13 and Later
We also have some iOS 16 features exclusive to the latest iPhone models, the iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max.
- Foreground blur in vertical photos. Portrait mode lets you blur objects in the foreground of a photo for a more realistic depth-of-field effect.
- Improved quality when shooting in Cinema mode. When shooting video in Cinema mode on iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro, the depth of field effect is more accurate in outlines and around hair and glasses.
In iOS 16 we have many new and some of them are exclusive to the most powerful iPhone models. The system has already made significant cuts in terms of compatible devices, leaving many models aside and among those that support the system, not all have all the functions.
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