iPhone 16 Thermal Upgrade: Does It Really Work?

iPhone 16 Thermal Upgrade: Does It Really Work?At 1:00 AM on September 10, 2024, Apple held its "High Light" online launch event, officially releasing the iPhone 16 series. In addition to upgrades like camera control buttons and the A18 Pro, one of the biggest highlights of the iPhone 16 series is its thermal upgrade

iPhone 16 Thermal Upgrade: Does It Really Work?

At 1:00 AM on September 10, 2024, Apple held its "High Light" online launch event, officially releasing the iPhone 16 series. In addition to upgrades like camera control buttons and the A18 Pro, one of the biggest highlights of the iPhone 16 series is its thermal upgrade. Apple has finally stopped ignoring the issue of heat dissipation, but how effective is this upgrade? Lei Technology purchased the device immediately and conducted a dedicated thermal evaluation.

From "Fire Dragon Fruit" to Thermal Upgrade: iPhone's Thermal History

In the Android phone market, heat dissipation has been a long-standing issue, with manufacturers using various technologies to promote the thermal capabilities of their phones. However, Apple, as a mobile phone giant, has always been "indifferent" to thermal dissipation.

Apple has long been plagued by the issue of "generational overheating," although they have attempted measures like screen thermal films and heat conductive materials, the effectiveness has been minimal. With the rapid improvement of chip performance, process technology upgrades have been insufficient to address the power consumption issues brought by the performance. Moreover, the dual-layer motherboard design adopted by Apple has exacerbated the accumulation of heat.

The iPhone 15 series was particularly considered a "Fire Dragon Fruit" by users, prone to issues like overheating and throttling. Although subsequent updates addressed some problems, they essentially achieved this by optimizing the throttling curve and reducing performance, without fundamentally addressing the thermal dissipation issue.

Finally, against the backdrop of the A18 series chip performance being further enhanced and the NPU area increasing, Apple has also joined the ranks of thermal upgrade.

How Does Apple Upgrade Thermal Dissipation?

The thermal upgrade of the iPhone 16 series is mainly reflected in the following aspects:

• Relocating CPU Position: The CPU is placed in the middle of the motherboard.

• Improved Thermal Structure: A newly designed metal shield covers the chip, and heat is transferred to the metal frame through thermal pads, ultimately dissipating to the outside world.

Apple officially claims that these upgrades can allow the iPhone 16 to achieve up to 30% sustained performance improvement when gaming, and to run videos previously only playable on the iPhone 15 Pro, such as Ubisoft's upcoming "Assassin's Creed: Mirage."

The iPhone 16 Pro also improves thermal performance through internal layout adjustments. The official claims that thermal efficiency has increased by up to 20%, also bringing improvements in battery life.

Disassembly Reveals: iPhone 16's Thermal Upgrade

Disassembly videos released after the launch reveal that the iPhone 16's thermal upgrade is mainly reflected in the following aspects:

• Metal Shield: Covers the chip, helping to guide heat.

• Thermal Pad: Transmits heat from the shield to the metal frame.

• Metal Frame: Assumes the heat dissipation function.

However, disassembly videos reveal that the area of the metal shield and thermal pad is not large, and the vapor chamber has not added more thermal design, and cannot compare to the thermal design of Android flagship phones.

For example, the Xiaomi 14 Pro's vapor chamber extends to the motherboard, directly connected through thermal structures, and has separate thermal designs for CMOS and other hardware, stuffing more thermal modules into the internal structure.

Actual Thermal Testing: Games Run Hotter, Videos Slightly Better

To verify the effectiveness of the iPhone 16's thermal upgrade, Lei Technology conducted multiple tests, including gaming tests, 4K video recording tests, and heat exchange tests. The test results show:

• Gaming Test: When playing games like "Honkai: Star Rail," the iPhone 16's body temperature was significantly higher than the Xiaomi 14. At an indoor temperature of 26 degrees Celsius, the iPhone 16's highest temperature was 43.2 degrees Celsius, while the Xiaomi 14's was 37.2 degrees Celsius. At an outdoor temperature of 30 degrees Celsius, the iPhone 16's highest temperature was 44.5 degrees Celsius, while the Xiaomi 14's was 38.5 degrees Celsius.

• 4K Video Recording Test: Neither the iPhone 16 nor the Xiaomi 14 showed overheating warnings. The iPhone 16's highest temperature was 44.6 degrees Celsius, while the Xiaomi 14's was 45.8 degrees Celsius.

• Heat Exchange Test: Within 3 minutes after the test ended, the iPhone 16's temperature fell to 35.9 degrees Celsius, while the Xiaomi 14's was 42.2 degrees Celsius.

The test results show that the iPhone 16's heat exchange efficiency is indeed not bad, but the temperature during gaming is significantly higher than that of the Xiaomi 14. This may be due to the iPhone 16 only upgrading the chip's thermal dissipation and not modifying the CMOS module's dissipation, leading to heat accumulation in the upper half of the phone.

Conclusion: Thermal Upgrade Works, but Room for Improvement

Overall, the iPhone 16's thermal upgrade is effective. Compared to the iPhone 15 Pro, even in high temperature environments, it is unlikely to encounter overheating issues during normal usage. However, compared to Android flagship phones, the iPhone 16's thermal performance still has room for improvement, especially in gaming scenarios, where temperature control needs further enhancement.

The iPhone 16's thermal upgrade is a step forward but not a perfect solution. As mobile phone chips continue to improve in performance, Apple needs to continue exploring the field of thermal dissipation to provide a more comfortable user experience.