The US gets an exclusive iPhone 16 version again
As usual, Apple's iPhone 16 series of phones comes with many different versions within the same model name. Even the unlocked and US carrier versions differ somewhat, let alone the iPhone 16 models meant for sale outside the US.
As it stands, only the US version of the iPhone 16 Pro, namely the A3083 model, the iPhone 16 Plus (A3082), iPhone 16 Pro (A3083), and iPhone 16 Pro Max (A3084), carry two specifications that the global iPhone 16 series versions don't have.
First, they come with support for the ultrafast mmWave frequencies of the type Verizon uses for a section of its 5G network coverage, usually in big cities where speed and carrying capacity are as important as reach. The 5G mmWave network was first to be tested in the US, and Verizon wanted to bet big on its expansion, but it just didn't take off.
Granted, it offers much faster speeds and lower latency, but has much shorter range and poor penetration rate, down to the point that the mmWave antenna has to be notched on the side of the phone so that the signal can penetrate the hand that is holding it if it gets covered. Apple was rumored to move the mmWave antenna in the new iPhone 16 models, as there is now a Camera Control button on the side.
Still, US carriers offer 5G mmWave network, so the iPhone 16 has to support it as well. Moreover, the 5G modem in the iPhone 16 series is new and much faster than what is in the iPhone 15, so the owners of the 2024 iPhones will take full advantage of everything that US carrier networks have to offer.
Also, unlike European or Asian models, the iPhone 16 versions sold in the US come with a virtual eSIM card rather than a SIM tray, too. Dual SIM phones are all the rage abroad where people are used to have one local card, and another for travel, or simply take advantage of two different carrier offers.
The eSIM concept, however, has been slow to roll out, as the carriers don't want to make life easier for those who'd want to go to the competition, hence the iPhone 16 comes with an eSIM option only in the US, just like the iPhones before it.
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