After shooting with the iPhone 13 Pro for over two weeks, I have not looked back on the iPhone 12 Pro Max even once. This is a camera update that’s just incredible. While the normal day-time photos continue to be the best in the smartphone business, there are subtle improvements even there. The colours are more natural, the contrast is life-like and the dynamic range continues to impress. Taking portraits at both 1x and 3x does deliver incredible results, and should please anyone. Even the hair detection has gotten better.
The 13mm ultra-wide lens has also become better. The resulting images show lesser distortion as a 13mm lens. The larger f/1.8 aperture. The daytime images are fabulous, but the low light images, despite Apple’s software magic, definitely leave a lot to be desired.
Lastly, we have the brand new 77mm telephoto lens. Apple’s managed to increase the focal length, while keeping the aperture the same as before, f/2.8. Thanks to this, the lens remains usable even indoors, as long as you have enough lights on.
Perhaps the most standout feature of the iPhone 13 Pro’s camera system is its ability to shoot macro images. Apple is using the sensor behind the ultra-wide-angle lens to shoot these macro shots, just like how most Android smartphones achieve the result, but Apple takes two important steps to improve the results significantly. First, the field of view is reduced to 26mm of the primary lens. This eliminates any distortion from your macro shots.
The other is that since the ultra-wide angle camera features auto-focus, which allows you to frame your shots just the way you want. While the daytime shots look pristine, once the light levels drop, you can see the drop in quality too since the sensor on the ultra-wide angle camera. The one downside, however, is that the cameras switch between macro and non-macro mode automatically, sometimes making shooting very difficult and jarry. It would have been good if Apple had created a separate Macro mode in the camera interface, but for now, the best way to keep the macro mode from automatically engaging is by covering the ultra-wide camera. It's not the best solution, but it’s one that works.
Apple iPhone 13 Pro Review: Battery Life The Apple iPhone 13 Pro features a 3085mAh battery, a paltry capacity by Android standards, but this is perhaps the most important upgrade to this year’s iPhone. I am getting an average screen on time of anywhere between 8-9 hours, and that isn’t even with Dark Mode enabled. Dark mode extends the life by another hour easy. Once again, Apple is showing us how numbers don’t matter, the real world usage does. This is Apple’s marriage of hardware and software at its very best.
The notch is smaller on the iPhone 13 series.
Do remember that this battery life is being delivered on a phone with a Super Retina XDR OLED display with a refresh rate of 120Hz. Sure, the display isn’t operating at 120Hz all the time, but even so, this is just down right impressive. Most Android flagships need atleast 25% more battery capacity to deliver the same amount of screen on time. You can easily get through an entire workday on a single charge. The only downside to the battery angle is the relatively slow 23W fast charging, but if you’re going to charge the phone overnight, then it shouldn’t be a problem.
Apple iPhone 13 Pro Review: Conclusion The Apple iPhone 13 Pro may look like last year’s offering, but under the hood, it’s a whole new beast. It starts with the performance, which continues to be class-leading. The cameras themselves are also very good and as of now, it's clear that no android flagship comes close to the level of quality an iPhone can deliver. The display is also significantly improved, with a smaller notch and Apple’s ProMotion 120Hz refresh rate. But perhaps the most compelling reason to consider the iPhone 13 Pro is its incredible battery life. Seriously, don’t let the lack of a design change put you off. This is a phone that seriously delivers on more promises than one, in ways more than one.
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