The iPhone 16 launch day is one of the most anticipated days of the year in the smartphone world, and even if you have no intention of buying an iPhone, it's worth seeing what Apple has in store and how its new device compares to the best phones out there

The iPhone 16 will be of more interest than just for the new AI-powered features that will be included in iOS 18 We expect new screen sizes and improved cameras in the iPhone 16 Pro model Meanwhile, all iPhones should feature Apple's latest A18 system-on-chip

In short, when the new model arrives, we can expect to see complete changes to the iPhone in terms of both hardware and software The biggest question remaining is when that will be

Since the fall launch is still several months away, the specific release date for the iPhone 16 is not yet clear However, thanks to Apple's track record with iPhone launches and some rumors about the release date, we can make a pretty good guess as to when the new model will be available

Here is our best guess as to when the iPhone 16's likely release will happen, in case you are trying to decide if you are going to upgrade your phone once the new model arrives

Looking at the history of Apple iPhone releases - especially recent history - you notice some clear patterns For example, the current iPhone SE 2022 shipped on March 18, 2022, etc With the exception of the iPhone SE models released in the spring, Apple holds its iPhone launch events in the fall By doing so, the new models hit retailer shelves in time for the holiday shopping season, the most important quarter of Apple's fiscal calendar

However, one can delve further into Apple's release history by looking at the timing of cell phone launches going back nearly a decade Only once in the past decade has Apple released a cell phone in October, and that was at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 Otherwise, Apple's phone launches in September, with a full release approximately 10 days after the launch event

Last year, all four iPhone 15 models debuted on September 12 and were available by September 22 iPhone 14 was released on a similar schedule in 2023, with the iPhone 14 Plus shipping a few weeks after the rest of the new lineup

This raises another point about Apple's iPhone track record Typically, cell phone manufacturers release all new models at the same time However, since 2015, Apple has had to stagger the release of some phones four times Usually, this is due to supply constraints when introducing new sizes to the lineup iPhone 16 Pro's display is expected to grow to 63 inches and iPhone 16 Pro Max's screen to 69 inches, so supply chain issues have prevented iPhone 16 We have not yet heard of any potential staggering of the release of the four models in the lineup, but it could be related to this year's release

One last thing about Apple's new iPhone release schedule Only once in the past decade has the company held a launch event later than September 15, and that was the year of the pandemic that introduced the iPhone 12 lineup to the world If one wanted to determine an iPhone 16 launch date, one would expect it to be in the first two weeks of September

At this early stage, nothing definitive is known about an iPhone 16 release date Most rumors about Apple's new phone point to a fall release, with some citing its likely September release window

This may be a case of "no news is good news" since any reports about a later-than-expected iPhone 16 release would probably have surfaced by now At least until there are some reports, we can only assume that the iPhone 16 is in full development and production

Apple already has its hands full with upcoming events, including an event on May 7 that is expected to unveil the new iPad and the WWDC 2024 developer conference in June Once these events are over and the fall release date approaches, more details about the release will be revealed

Given the scarcity of guidance on the iPhone 16 release date rumors, we have taken to speculating on a specific date for Apple's iPhone launch In other words, we will rely primarily on the assumption that Apple will repeat the strategy it has used in eight of the last nine years

Let's break the calendar with four ideas in mind

Labor Day falls on Monday, September 2 this year, so unless Apple holds an event on a Wednesday, we imagine that the first week of September is excluded from a possible iPhone 16 launch event (This is because the 2018 iPhone XR/iPhone XS launch event coincided with the anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the Tuesday of that year) Otherwise, the iPhone 16 announcement would be the week of September 9 or September 16

We speculate the week of September 9, given that Apple prefers to announce new phones before the midpoint of the month This would mean that September 10 would be the date that Apple would hold its launch event Assuming Apple follows its normal cell phone launch pattern, iPhone 16 pre-orders would begin later that week and would be on retail store shelves by September 20

Our guess of a September 10 launch date for the iPhone 16 is just that, a guess As more definitive rumors emerge, we will update our prediction accordingly

For now, though, it sounds like the iPhone 16 is on track for a September launch, even if we don't yet know for sure on what date that launch will take place