• People around the world rushed to their local Apple stores Friday for the new iPhone 16.
• BI spoke with some customers in New York about why they bought the phone.
• Some were excited about the Camera Control button and AI features, while others just felt it was time for a new device.

Thousands upon thousands of people descended on Apple stores around the world on Friday morning to get their hands on the new iPhone 16.

BI spoke with customers who lined up at Apple’s flagship Fifth Avenue store in New York to hear why they’re getting the new device. Their responses ran the gamut from those who just needed an upgrade from their old phones to diehard Apple fans who get the latest model every year.

Akan Assylbekuly, who said he upgrades his phone every year, primarily for camera quality improvements, felt this year was no different: The new Camera Control button or upcoming Apple Intelligence features “doesn’t matter” to him, but he got the 16 Pro Max because “the camera is improved.”

Saul Campos, who said he also purchases a new iPhone each year, got the new iPhone for the same reason.

“For the most part, I’m in it for the cameras because I take a lot of pictures and they upgrade them every year,” he said, noting he’s excited for the Camera Control button.

“For the most part, I’m in it for the cameras because I take a lot of pictures and they upgrade them every year,” he said.

One criticism of Apple’s latest iPhone is that it’s not much different than the iPhone 15. But Analie Cruz, a self-proclaimed “early adopter” of tech, doesn’t see it that way.

“To me, it is still a big change, going from 6.1″ to 6.3″ on the 15 Pro to the 16 Pro and actually adding something on the phone itself,” she said, referring to the phones’ screen sizes and the Camera Control button. “I’m pretty into tech things, so bells and whistles will get me.”

Cruz writes for a tech publication, but said that she wasn’t at the Apple store as a member of the media. She said she ordered and picked up her device because she wanted to experience it first-hand.

“I wanted to see what the new Camera Control button is about,” Cruz, said. “I’ve tried other AI so I also wanted to see how Apple’s works. I’m excited to try it out.”

Film director RD Alba, who shoots with iPhones, says the changes in the iPhone 16 might seem relatively minor but “Apple Intelligence will go a long way.”

“Tech now is so much better they can’t really invent something big so it’s really more of the software,” he said.

Alba, who also lined up for the first iPhone in 2007, got to the Apple store before 6 a.m. Friday and took a selfie with Apple CEO Tim Cook, who usually visits the Apple flagship store on iPhone launch days, to much fanfare. This year, Cook also shot a video outside the flagship store with “The Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon, who was seen wearing the Apple Vision Pro headset.

One new iPhone 16 owner, Sven Korać, marks a return to the iPhone with his purchase. He said he had an iPhone years ago but has most recently used the Huawei P30 Pro. Korać came back to Apple, however, after consulting with friends and finding that “looking at the cameras, they seemed a lot better over the years.”

Korać, visiting from Croatia, said his first time in line for a new iPhone was “crazy.”

“Everyone was clapping when the store opened, saying ‘Tim is here,'” he said. “I have no idea who Tim Cook is.”