iPhone 12 and 12 Pro: Apple raises the bar again

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Apple has never sold so many iPhones at so many different price points.

Only the four models announced a week ago range

, depending on the model and capacity.

But at the same time, they have never been more similar in user experience.

They all share the same processor and a very similar screen and design.

Even the cameras are quite comparable, up to a point.

During the last week we have tested both the iPhone 12 and the 12 Pro. They are very similar smartphones;

so much, in fact, that they can be discussed within this article.

They are both very capable, but different in some ways:

Differences between models

The iPhone 12 Pro has a telephoto camera, equivalent to a 56mm.

focal length or 2x or 4x zoom depending on the lens taken as reference.

The iPhone 12 has 4Gb of RAM. The 12 Pro has 6GB of RAM, a figure that Apple rarely includes on its spec sheet.

The iPhone 12 screen is slightly less bright.

The iPhone 12 Pro can record 4K in Dolby HDR at 60 frames per second, 12 only at 30 frames per second.

The iPhone 12 is made of aluminum, the 12 Pro of steel (and it is a bit heavier), the colors in which they are available are also different.

The iPhone 12 Pro includes the LiDAR sensor capable of developing a three-dimensional map of the scene captured by the main camera or helping with focusing in low light.

The iPhone 12 is available in 64, 128 and 256 GB sizes.

The iPhone 12 Pro doubles these capabilities.

Of all those differences, those that correspond to the camera module are perhaps the most important.

In the rest, the experience, as we say, is very similar.

Fast and with 5G

Let's talk about something you have in common.

The new iPhones are fast.

That is perhaps its essential feature.

Fast when connected to 5G networks and fast running applications thanks to the new A14 Bionic processor.

The A14 Bionic is the first mobile processor to be manufactured

.

That means that more transistors can be put on the same surface, which increases power - and also reduces consumption.

Broadly speaking, the A14 has 30% more computing power than the previous A13, the graphic power is more or less similar (around 10% more) and Apple has significantly increased the area dedicated to the 'neural engine ';

basically the area of ​​the chip that is used in many of the machine learning and artificial intelligence features.

The A13 Bionic was already the most powerful processor in mobile telephony and the A14 Bionic continues the trend.

Apple has been at the forefront of this industry for several years and is not slowing down at all.

On 5G: the iPhone of 2020 are

.

The models we have tested are American, so they include support for networks that use the so-called 'millimeter wave' and that will allow speeds of up to 4Gbps under ideal conditions.

In Europe, the iPhone will only be compatible with the so-called 5G Sub6Ghz networks, which are the ones that most of the operators are deploying.

These networks have a little more speed, but not as much as that offered by the millimeter wave.

They mostly help with latency.

In return, they have greater reach.

That of millimeter wave networks is so low that the idea is to use them especially in very specific places, such as stadiums and concert halls, where the mobile signal with traditional networks often fails.

The quality and speed of the 5G connection will depend a lot on the operators, especially now that coverage is limited.

In Atlanta, with the operator Verizon, our experience has not been stellar, but

;

here the deployment of 5G is still scarce.

When we have achieved a good signal, we have achieved up to 340 Mbps of connection.

Good, but far from the theoretical maximum and always under sub6ghz networks.

The new iPhones, by default, only connect to 5G networks if conditions are good, although you can force them to always choose a 5G signal if it is available.

They do this to save battery and the best thing is that if the coverage in our area is not good, the function is deactivated and LTE is chosen until the operators expand the network.

One detail: if two SIMs are used simultaneously, the new iPhones cannot connect to 5G networks, although Apple will release a software update that will correct this point.

In general, the inclusion of 5G is important not so much for 2020 or even 2021, but as safe for three or four years ahead.

IPhones have a very long life, and putting such a powerful chip and a 5G connection more or less guarantees that this generation will last even longer.

Design and display

The 2020 iPhone also debuted a new design, with flat edges reminiscent of the iPhone 4, 4S and 5 or the modern iPad Pro. This means that they can be held standing on the table (it is not recommended to do so), although they are thinner than their predecessors.

They are comfortable in the hand and the grip is good thanks to the flat edges.

They are slightly larger than the previous generation equivalents but also

so for all practical purposes, more or less the same.

Less slippery, which is appreciated.

The camera module, of course, sticks out a bit more, which makes the phones 'dance' a little more as well when resting on a table if a case is not used.

They are only tenths of a millimeter but it shows.

Apple ensures that the screen is four times more resistant to shocks than in previous versions, thanks to a new protective material developed together with Corning.

The glass on the back is twice as resistant as that of the iPhone 11. This in terms of bumps, in terms of scratches the resistance should be similar to that of previous models.

Speaking of screen, all iPhones of this generation use OLED, and one brighter than the previous generation, although

.

The screen is fantastic in color reproduction and contrast, but it remains in this generation at 60 Hz, when many competitive high-end phones already double that refresh rate.

Rumors suggest that Apple was considering adding higher speed, but high consumption, just in the year that the company introduced 5G in phones, has delayed plans (Apple does use faster refresh rate screens, which contribute to achieve smoother animations, on iPad Pro).

MagSafe and autonomy

A major novelty for this year's iPhones is the

magnetic

on the back.

As in previous years, these iPhones support wireless charging under the Qi standard, but at the lowest possible power, 7.5W.

With MagSafe, Apple enables wireless charging power to be increased up to 15W, speeding up an otherwise

.

Other manufacturers have their own fast charging systems, even at higher power, but they are not compatible with the iPhone.

Although Apple does not explain why, it is primarily about efficiency.

Wireless chargers alone are very inefficient, but if the induction coils are not properly aligned, even more energy is lost during the process as heat, and that heat can damage the battery in the long run.

Apple has released an official MagSafe charger, but it will allow other companies to make alternatives.

The charger has the advantage of being smaller than other wireless charging surfaces because it is always perfectly aligned.

Better yet: being magnetic you can pick up the phone and continue to use it while charging, just like traditional wired charging.

MagSafe magnets are not very powerful.

They are designed to adhere firmly to accessories but will not necessarily attract keys and all the metal objects that we have in a bag, for example.

And no, unlike the iPad Pro, the iPhone

.

Although the MagSafe charger is the star of the new collection of accessories (and by the way, it charges any other product using the Qi standard, including AirPods and even iPhones of previous generations, even if they do not latch magnetically), Apple has also launched a line of cases and even a small wallet with the capacity to carry two or three credit cards.

It is very comfortable, undoubtedly our favorite accessory in the collection, although since the magnet is not very powerful, it is possible that when inserting the phone in tight pockets it will come off.

Speaking of accessories and although it has already been commented previously: the iPhone no longer includes a power adapter or headphones.

They do include a USB-C to Lightning cable for charging.

The autonomy of the two phones has been quite similar and in line with expectations.

The A14 consumes less than the A13 but 5G consumes more than LTE and the battery in these iPhone is smaller than that of the iPhone 11. In the end, so much addition and subtraction makes the experience of using an iPhone 12 very similar to the one. previous generation.

In intensive days, with many photos, video and Internet use (Twitter, mainly), it is normal to reach the end of the day

.

In a continuous test, in which the iPhone 12 was reproduced a

continuous video

(YouTube) under WiFi connection, 10 continuous hours of viewing were exceeded with the screen brightness at 50%.

It is a figure in line with what Apple itself estimates (about 11 hours of

under similar conditions)

Camera

The important thing about the new iPhone, apart from speed, is the camera.

This should not be surprising.

The camera has long been the biggest differentiator in high-end mobiles, both between different brands and between generations of phones from the same manufacturer.

The ones on the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro are, in a word,

.

Apple has improved practically all the sensors, lenses and components of the cameras, both in the 12 and in the 12 Pro (which adds the sensor and telephoto lens).

Ultra-wide angle is now sharper, especially in the corners of the image, where color aberrations and loss of focus typical of this type of lens are less noticeable.

The camera can now capture long exposure night photography with this lens as well.

Overall, it's the lens that benefits the most from this generational leap, at least on these iPhone sizes (the iPhone 12 Pro Max has a larger, stabilized main sensor).

The traditional wide angle has been improved, with an aperture equivalent to f / 1.6.

This makes the sensor capture

.

There is also a new seven element lens set.

The result is sharper images, especially in interior scenes.

In the iPhone 12 Pro, the telephoto lens, equivalent to 56mm, is also faster and captures more light.

It now has an aperture of f / 2.2.

That means that it will not be so often that in low light situations the iPhone chooses to shoot with the main lens and crop the image before using the telephoto lens.

The 12 Pro also relies on the LiDAR sensor to improve focusing speed in low light and for taking night portraits.

All these new features alone would already make the iPhone 12 camera a considerable leap.

Maybe not dramatic for a user coming from the previous generation, but obvious to almost everyone and a much more useful tool for those who enjoy photography.

But in this generation, and thanks to the A14 Bionic, Apple has added a

.

The first, as we have said, is that now all cameras, not just the main one, can take long exposure night photos.

The second is a new high dynamic range (HDR) mode, capable of better balancing shadows and highlights in complex scenes, such as a backlight or a sunset.

This new generation of what Apple calls Smart HDR can even interpret and adjust the scene according to the content, applying different parameters, for example when photographing people or food.

The results can be over the top at times, but they usually produce

.

The A14 now also supports Deep Fusion with all three cameras, a setting that brings out textures on fabrics and skin, and the portrait mode now does a better job with glass surfaces, which are always complex to render.

It still doesn't work miracles but it cuts out background subjects better as well.

And all this also applies to the front camera, which can now take long exposure photography in selfies.

Shooting with the iPhone, in short, is still as satisfactory as in previous generations but the results are

, especially in low light scenes, which until now forced to use the main camera -the best quality-, but to which now there are many more creative possibilities.

Special mention deserves the video.

These are the first mobiles capable of recording in 4K Dolby HDR format with 10 bit color.

In the case of the iPhone Pro it can be done at 60 frames per second;

in the case of the iPhone 12, at 30 frames per second.

The iPhone already allowed recording with an expanded color range but the Dolby HDR support achieves greater uniformity in the reproduction from all types of sources and achieves greater color fidelity.

It is worth seeing on a good screen.

It is hard to believe that a mobile is capable of recording video with this quality.

conclusion

Almost every year our conclusion when analyzing the iPhone is similar: the new generation represents a considerable leap but

.

The iPhone 12 and 12 Pro camera is exceptional and its processor an engineering marvel, but the iPhone 11 is not far behind and may be a better option at the current price for most users.

5G is a good addition but for now we would not say that it is essential.

Anyone coming from an older iPhone (an XR or iPhone 8) will appreciate the leap in quality and new camera features, however, and so will any lover of photography or video.

Also the OLED screen and the new industrial design that is very, very attractive, especially in the new blue color.

The iPhone 12 is available now for reservation at a price of

with 64 GB of memory.

The iPhone 12 Pro starts at

with 128 GB of memory.

Both will begin delivery later this week.

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