Is Apple’s iPhone 16 Pro good for gaming?

And he hasn’t quite done it yet. Beyond native Apple TV titles (which, these days, mostly means Apple Arcade), you can mirror your screen to an Apple TV, or plug and (hopefully) play using a USB-C to HDMI cable or a dock HDMI for a more robust experience. But there are shortcomings when mirroring an iPhone screen.

Black edges abound. The annoying startup indicator is usually present. There’s no landscape home screen or any means to launch games with a controller. Button labels do not always match those of the control you use. You may suffer a little lag. For us, the best console-like experience is the one offered by Delta, which is ironic considering Apple rejected it for years. In part, this is because Delta uses the TV as a second screen rather than mirroring it, meaning there are no black borders.

The point is that this should be the norm, not the exception. Even worse, many of our complaints go beyond the “console” experience, affecting iPhone gaming on all gaming settings. We’ve lost count of how many titles don’t take into account Dynamic Island, the Home indicator, or even the curved corners of the iPhone screen. This leaves the platform with great potential, but a frustratingly incomplete gaming experience.

So is the iPhone good for gaming?

Where does this leave us? Can the iPhone replace consoles? More or less. He hardware It is powerful and comfortable. There are strong ecosystems in accessories and games. Although the iPhone 16 Pro can barely handle the latest AAA games, performance will improve as developers optimize titles and Apple iterates its hardware. Of course, that’s assuming the momentum continues and AAA developers don’t abandon the platform.

The key to all of this is whether Apple has enough will, enthusiasm and love for gaming to make it a priority, rather than a way to show off how powerful its silicon is during a keynote. Current indications suggest that…maybe? The fact that Apple is courting AAA developers and talking about games more frequently are promising signs. However, the lack of attention to nearby opportunities, the hype around AAA that clashes with reality and Apple’s failure to offer a complete gaming experience threaten to undermine the progress made.

In conclusion, Apple is slowly approaching AAA. There are enough quality titles on the platform to keep you busy for years. And with a controller, your iPhone can be a great little video game machine. However, your PlayStation 5 and your PC have nothing to fear yet.

What to buy

Are you interested in playing on an iPhone? You’ll need some of these:

iPhone 16 Pro (from $999): If you want the AAA experience, a 15 Pro isn’t enough, but a 16 Pro can get the job done. Don’t go below 256GB of storage if you want to install a lot of games.