Following the arrival of the latest iOS 18.2 update last week with its new Apple Intelligence AI features, iPhone 16 users are reporting that their devices are getting hot in their hands. This isn’t anything new for Apple, with last year’s iPhone 15 also struggling with thermal issues, but the fact that it’s seemingly an AI feature warming the device up doesn’t help the brand’s current marketing strategy.
According to the reports, the new Image Playground feature is causing the iPhone 16 to heat up, which isn’t a surprise considering it utilizes on-device generative AI that demands a lot of the phone’s processor. Similar apps on the best Android phones use the cloud, which asks less of phones such as the Google Pixel 9 and Samsung Galaxy S24, so they don’t suffer from the same thermal issues.
It’s not just the iPhone 16 struggling with some of the new AI features, but also the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Worse still for those using last year’s premium flagships, some users have found that even just using the new Genmoji feature, which uses generative AI to create custom emoji, is leading to general performance issues for the 15 Pro and Pro Max.
Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to avoid this overheating issue; just don’t use Image Playground for the time being, or Genmoji if you’re on one of last year’s AI-capable devices. It’s annoying, sure, especially for those who picked up a new iPhone just to try out the Apple Intelligence feature, but Apple is likely working on a fix, so your best bet is to keep an eye out for the next patch. If you need to fill the time, our guide to the best Apple Arcade games has a bunch of great titles to check out that won’t warm up your device.
Of course, we’ll keep an eye out for any updates from Apple regarding the overheating issue, but considering how quickly it fixed a similar fault with the iPhone 15 last year, we expect the tech giant to address the problem before too long. However, if this issue has you thinking about checking out the Android alternatives, be sure to see our guides to the best Samsung phones and the best Google Pixel phones while you’re here.