Apple’s New iOS 16 Is Here Now. Can Your iPhone Get It?
The iPhone 14 models will certainly come preloaded with iOS 16 when they are released.
Patrick Holland/CNET
This story is part of Focal Point iPhone 2022, CNET’s collection of news, tips and advice around Apple’s most popular product.
iOS 16, the most recent update to Apple’s iPhone operating system, is now available for all iPhone users — that is, all iPhone users with compatible iPhones.
Not every iPhone supports Apple’s newest software release. Some devices simply won’t be able to install iOS 16, though these are typically older devices that you might be hanging onto or repurposing to give your old iPhone new life.?
If you’re unsure about whether your iPhone will get the latest update or not, we’ll walk you through how you can check.
And if you want to learn more about iOS 16, read about some of the new features, like the ability to?unsend text messages?and automatically?remove people and objects from photos. Also, here’s how you can preorder the iPhone 14, which will go on sale this Friday with iOS 16 preinstalled.
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Every iPhone model that supports iOS 16
The following iPhones are compatible with iOS 16:
- iPhone 8
- iPhone 8 Plus
- iPhone X
- iPhone XS
- iPhone XS Max
- iPhone XR
- iPhone 11
- iPhone 11 Pro
- iPhone 11 Pro Max
- iPhone 12
- iPhone 12 Mini
- iPhone 12 Pro
- iPhone 12 Pro Max
- iPhone 13
- iPhone 13 Mini
- iPhone 13 Pro
- iPhone 13 Pro Max
- iPhone SE (second generation and later)
And although it hasn’t been released yet, the iPhone 14 series will come preinstalled with iOS 16.
Find out which iPhone model you have
Not sure which iPhone you own? You can easily figure out the model from within your settings to check if it will run iOS 16.
To find your iPhone model, launch the Settings app and go to General > About. Next to Model Name, you should see what type of iPhone you own. Underneath that, you’ll see a Model Number, which you can use to find out more specifics about your model, such as capacity and year introduced, but that’s not necessary (only for iPhone SE) for checking whether your phone will support iOS 16 or not.
To check your iPhone model, go to Settings > General > About.
Nelson Aguilar/CNETWhat happens to older iPhones like the iPhone 7 Plus?
Any iPhone older than the iPhone 8 will not support iOS 16, including the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. Many people on Twitter were surprised by this, because many expected at least the iPhone 7 Plus to support iOS 16. Instead, the iPhone 7 series and some older models will only support up to iOS 15.
The latest generations of the iPad and iPad Mini will both support iPadOS 16.
Scott Stein/CNETWill my iPad work with iOS 16?
Yes, the iPad has its own version of iOS 16 that’s known as iPadOS 16, but that won’t be released until October according to Apple. This newest operating system will be supported on the following iPad models:
- iPad Mini (fifth generation and later)
- ?iPad? (fifth generation and later)
- iPad Air (third generation and later)
- iPad Pro (all models)
Whether you’re going to keep your current iPhone or buy a new iPhone 14, here are 22 little known iPhone settings you should know about to make their phones faster, safer and more fun to use.?