Apple Stores arund the globe were crowded last Friday as the iPhone 16 line was released

Starting last Friday, the iPhone 16 line became available for purchase at Apple Stores around the world. Even though most iPhone users get their handsets shipped to them and the days of camping out at your nearby Apple Store are long gone, that doesn't mean that large crowds aren't still showing up on the day of release in order to buy one of the new iPhone 16 models which include the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Apple CEO Tim Cook made an appearance at Apple's Fifth Avenue retail store. That's the location that features the iconic glass cube that you enter to get to the staircase that takes you into the store. Cook also posted a tweet that included a video. Apple itself has published a number of photographs from the Fifth Avenue store showing happy iPhone users holding their new phones.

From the all-new iPhone 16 lineup built for Apple Intelligence to the stunning new Apple Watch Series 10 and groundbreaking AirPods models, there was so much to be excited about today. Grateful to be with our incredible teams & customers celebrating at Apple Fifth Avenue! pic.twitter.com/SLR5rGUQW2

— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) September 20, 2024

Apple also shared photos from the Apple Store on Regent Street in London. One photo had a nostalgic tint to it as it showed a long line of Londoners queuing up to get into the store to purchase one of the new iPhone 16 models. That reminds us of the early days of the iPhone when consumers would spend a night (or even two) camped out at an Apple Store and then face a long line to get in the store in order to buy the latest iPhone model.

The refreshed Apple AirPods Max also got into the action as a photo taken from inside the Regent Street store shows a consumer trying on a pair of the over-ear headphones. The latest version of the AirPods Max includes a USB-C charging port, new colors such as Midnight, Starlight, Blue, Purple, and Orange, and the addition of personal spatial audio. The latter delivers a more personal listening experience.

Consumers were also photographed in London taking a look at the Apple Watch Series 10 timepieces with a larger display, a thinner design, and a brighter screen. The new health feature allows the device to alert the user if he/she has a serious condition called sleep apnea which pauses breathing during sleep. Besides being tired because you're not getting a full night of shuteye, sleep apnea can lead to other health issues.

Apple also took photos of the Apple Store in Mumbai, India, the Apple Store in Shanghai, China, and the retail location in Seoul, South Korea. While Apple is willing to ship you one of the new iPhone 16 series handsets, in some areas of the world iPhone buyers remain excited about the just released models and are willing to brave large crowds and long lines to purchase their next iPhone in person. The next new iPhone expected is the lower-priced iPhone SE 4 which should be released early in 2025.

TF International analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said last week that demand for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max was lower than expected during the pre-order period. The iPhone 16 Pro has a larger 6.3-inch display, and the addition of the Tetrapixel periscope camera delivering 5x optical zoom (matching the iPhone 16 Pro Max). The iPhone 16 Pro Max now sports a 6.9-inch display and the best battery life found in an iPhone. Both Pro models are equipped with the new Camera Control button, a 48MP ultra-wide camera, and the new A18 Pro application processor produced by TSMC using its second-generation 3nm process node.

All four iPhone 16 models will support Apple Intelligence. Apple's AI initiative will have a staggered release with the first batch of features to be released with next month's iOS 18.1 release.