I'm no expert but I just looked into this last week. I researched drop ratings for slim profiles and chose the Nomad Modern Leather Case iPhone 16 Pro. It provides 8-foot protection without the bulk of traditional rugged cases. I found the Torras Diamond Shield Screen Protector iPhone 16 Pro uses an alignment frame that centers it perfectly on the thinner bezels to prevent edge lifting.

this comes up a lot tbh... search the forum and youll see a hundred threads but the short answer is you gotta look at boutique brands. if you wanna upgrade from the basic stuff and actually get quality without a brick in your pocket:

• Caudabe Synthesis iPhone 16 Pro: its the GOAT for slim cases. the texture is super grippy and it feels way more premium than a standard shell.
• Phone Rebel Gen-6 iPhone 16 Pro: if you care about the camera bump protection but hate bulk, this is the one. its engineered specifically for drops without adding width. for the screen, go with Zagg InvisibleShield Glass XTR3 iPhone 16 Pro. the clarity is INSANE and it covers those thin bezels perfectly. its pricey but worth it if you dont wanna trash another screen like your 12... just take your time with the install.

Look. You are moving from a base 12, so the 16 Pro already feels different. Don't make it worse with a cheap plastic shell. Listen, I have spent 25 years in a shop and I know what builds actually hold up. Stop buying the cheap 3-pack protectors that crack if you look at them wrong.

• Buy the Mous Limitless 5.0 Aramid Fibre. It uses AiroShock technology. It stays slim but handles a drop on a concrete floor.
• For the thinnest profile, get the Pitaka MagEZ Case 5 iPhone 16 Pro. It is 600D aramid fiber. It adds almost zero bulk to that new camera setup.
• Use the Belkin UltraGlass 2 Screen Protector. It is 0.29mm thick. It covers the thin bezels without lifting. Clean the glass with 99% isopropyl before install. Dust is what ruins the seal.

Honestly, everyone keeps pushing these big name brands like they're some kind of miracle fix, but I'm pretty sure most of those rave reviews are just people who haven't actually dropped their phone yet. I’ve seen people spend sixty bucks on a piece of plastic that cracks the first time it hits the kitchen tile — wait, no — actually it’s the screen protectors that really get me because they're all basically the same glass from the same factory anyway. Speaking of kitchen tiles, I actually spent all of last weekend trying to regrout my bathroom floor because I thought I could save a few hundred dollars doing it myself. Huge mistake. My knees are still killing me and I ended up getting grout all over my old phone — which, funny enough, survived that but couldn't handle a three-foot drop onto carpet later that night. It's weird how physics works like that. Anyway lol, sorry kinda went off topic there.