iPhone 12 vs iPhone 13: What Can We Expect This September?

Apple’s new iPhones – either the iPhone 13 or iPhone 12s – will land in September. But how will they compare to the current iPhone 12 range?

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Design

As per usual, Apple will NOT be messing with the design of the iPhone 13 too much. This means the iPhone 13 will look pretty much identical to the iPhone 12.

The iPhone 13 will reportedly have a smaller notch. This, however, is likely to be the only physical change to the core design of the handset.

And some new colors as well. But physically, the iPhone 13 will look just like the iPhone 12 – and the iPhone 11 before it.

How much smaller will the notch be? We’ve seen reports of it being as much as 15% to 20% smaller than the iPhone 12’s notch.

There is also talk of Apple bringing back TouchID aboard the iPhone 13, only this time around TouchID will function as an under the display fingerprint sensor.

Apple might also rejig the camera module too. It won’t look dramatically different, but we could see the lens arranged in a slightly different manner versus how they’re positioned on the iPhone 12.

Bottom line: DO NOT expect any meaningful design changes on the new iPhone 13 range. They will look more or less the same as the iPhone 11 and the iPhone 12.

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Specs & Internal Components

Just because the iPhone 13 – or the iPhone 12s, as it might be called – is shaping up to be something of an incremental update doesn’t mean we won’t see some key changes to how the phone performs.

The biggest update, as always, will be the inclusion of Apple’s new SoC – the A15 CPU. This next-generation chipset will, once again, be based on a 5nm process and should bring some pretty significant performance boosts.

The iPhone 11 and the iPhone 12 are already monumentally potent in the processing department, so adding in even more horsepower will make the iPhone 13 the most powerful phone on the market – by a considerable margin.

This means that even if you’re coming from the iPhone 12, you’ll still see and feel a perceivable difference in speed and performance. And if you’re coming from the iPhone 11 or the iPhone XS or older, it will be even more pronounced.

Bottom line? The iPhone 12 – regardless of what it ends up looking like – will be an extremely powerful phone. It will be faster than the iPhone 12 which is already extremely powerful, and it’ll run rings around older iPhones like the iPhone 11, iPhone XR, and iPhone XS.

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Battery Life

For me, this is the most important aspect of the iPhone 13. Apple’s iPhone 12 does not have a good battery, especially when compared to the iPhone 11 – this is all down to 5G.

With the iPhone 13, Apple is expected to focus heavily on battery life, ensuring parity with the iPhone 11. Who knows, it might be even better. To date, there has been plenty of talk about Apple’s iPhone 13 range using the largest batteries ever used inside iPhones.

And given how bad the iPhone 12’s battery life was, this is music to my ears.

The Cameras

In 2021, there has already been plenty of leaks about Apple’s plans for the iPhone 13’s camera. We’ve heard talk of LiDAR sensors for all, improved ultra-wide-lens, and better camera tech on the cheaper models.

I don’t think this year’s updates will be earth-shaking, however, they’ll most likely be incremental improvements on the iPhone 12’s hardware. Things like better low-light performance, better machine learning.

This is what Google has been doing for years, and it works. Apple, smartly, seems to be doing the same thing with its iPhone camera modules.

Price

How much will Apple’s iPhone 13 cost? According to the most up-to-date information from my sources, Apple is keeping the price the same as the iPhone 12’s pricing.

There will not be any price increase on any of the models, and the iPhone 12 will be heavily discounted as soon as the new iPhone models land during Q4.

This means you’ll be able to pick up the base model iPhone 13 (or iPhone 12s) for $699.99 and the top of the range iPhone 13 Pro Max from $1099.99.

What does this mean? Simple: if you want a deal on an iPhone 12, the best time to get one will be during Q4 2021. Alternatively, if you’re running an iPhone 11 and want 5G, the iPhone 13 will be well worth the update.

iPhone 12 vs iPhone 13 (or iPhone 12s): Wrapping Up

I was a huge fan of the iPhone 11 range; the iPhone 11 Pro Max is one of the greatest phones I have ever owned. The damn thing is flawless from top to bottom. It doesn’t have 5G, of course, but I can live with that.

The iPhone 12 didn’t really do it for me; I found the battery life drop-off way too pronounced and, for me, this was too much of a trade-off – especially for a phone that cost $100 more than the iPhone 11.

With the iPhone 13, I think Apple will right some of these wrongs. You will be able to get 5G connectivity without the battery issues, and it looks as if Apple isn’t going to want any more money for the iPhone 13 than it did for the iPhone 12.

Should you get the iPhone 13? If you’re running an iPhone 11, as I am, then, yes, the iPhone 13 will almost certainly be worth the update. Apple will have improved the camera performance, processor performance, and it will run 5G with great battery.

If you have an iPhone 12, though, I’d probably hold on to it for another 12 months or so. I don’t see the iPhone 13 being a significant update, not compared to the iPhone 12. I think this update is for iPhone 11 and below users.

The iPhone 14, due in 2022, will be the one with all the big design changes, so if you’re waiting for something revolutionary from Apple, your best bet is to hold off until 2022.