Last Updated on January 23, 2023 by Filip Poutintsev
Apple Inc unveiled its latest iPhone at a special event on the 13th of October, 2020. The pre-orders started on the 16th of October and the shipping began from the 23rd October, 2020. By now people have already started flaunting their latest iPhone.
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iPhone 12 Pros and Cons. Is it Worth Upgrading?
Every new iPhone makes people think whether or not they should upgrade if they are already an iPhone user or even to switch to iOS if not. To give you a heads up, this probably is not the best of upgrades an iPhone has ever had.
What are the Upgrades in iPhone 12?
1. New Size
The iPhone 12 series went on to release the two extremes – iPhone 12 Mini – The smallest with 5.4-inch and iPhone 12 Pro Max with 6.7-inch. You should in informed that the 5.8-inch iPhone 11 Pro is replaced by 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro.
Super Retina Display
A new Super Retina Display has been standardized across all iPhone 12 series variants.
2. Magsafe
Magsafe is a striking upgrade to the iPhones. Those of us who are using the MacBooks will be pretty familiar with this because they’ve been used for long with MacBooks.
The MagSafe is a magnetic connection that you can use to charge the phone. The charger comes with a circular magnetic accessory that snaps onto the case of the phone.
MagSafe for iPhone 12 uses a magnetic connection to attach a wireless charger and a potentially endless supply of magnetic accessories you can snap onto the back of the phone, such as cases, docks, mounts and even a wallet.
3. Ceramic Shield – Back to iPhone 5
Ideally, nobody would want to use a case if it was not for being in a blue funk of an accidental drop and breakage of the screen now right? Everybody would want to flaunt their new iPhones. So probably keeping that in mind, Apple has Ceramic Shield protection for the iPhone 12 display.
But hey! The case is handy when it comes to charging as well. Remember Magsafe?
4. 5G, Hello 5G
The 5G race is on and Apple would not want to fall behind. The users of iPhone 12 can expect upto 4Gbps. The gamers will feel the lift once they get their hands on it.
5. LiDAR
LiDar means Light Detection And Ranging which will enable the users to experience an improved augmented reality feature. In other words, you’ll get more detailed and accurate AR games.
6. Camera
- ProRAW
If the wait for the RAW format photos in iOS as in the Andriod was cringing you, well the wait is over. You’ll get that feature in the new iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max. This is handy when you have to edit the exposure of uncompressed images and also recover the lost details of the pictures.
- HDR Video
HDR Movies in iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max lets you shoot videos in expanded capabilities. It can shoot 10 bit HDR movies that too in Dolby Vision and that those will be editable as well.
7. No Accessories
Not an upgrade. Here is the disappointment! They have stopped it. No earbuds and charger in the box this time. Only a USB C and cable will be delivered to you. Yes, not the USB power brick as well.
Pros of iPhone 12
1. Better Design
The good old bezel of the iPhone 4S with the right angled edges that fits well and feels comfortable in the hand is back. This design was well received in the older versions of the iPhone and people seem to have missed this from the 6S version.
The user experience is no where compromised with the sharp edges though there are a few complaints that the curved design did gave a smoother feel but only to some. The new colors is a good and added feature with the pacific blue being liked the most.
2. Network Strength
iPhone 12 is Apple’s first ever 5G enabled smartphone as it has used it as a marketing tool, hence the network strength is exceptionally good. The signal strength is customer-reviewed to be better than the previous versions of iPhone.
With the 5G capabilities comes the Gigabit speed of the internet and when we get 5G service, that is definitely going to be awesome. Many reviews have come out to be positive as far as pulling up a network signal is concerned. iPhone 12 is said to better receive the signals than all the previous versions.
3. OLED Display
First iPhone ever to come with an OLED display. The display of iPhone 12 is slightly larger than that of 11 pro. The display of iPhone 12 is the best among any recent flagship phones and certainly stands out in the crowd.
With the Ceramic Shield (Nano ceramic crystals) in the display the iPhone 12 is definitely more durable and gives you a super protective layer that can pass 4x drop test than the previous versions.
4. Speakers
iPhone 12 Pro is amazingly good with the audio output. The speakers are so good for the size and weight of these phones. The Pro and Pro max are fantastic with the audio and you can feel the quality with the upbeat music to try out. To be honest, the sound quality and speakers performance of the 12 Pro raise a high standards and outsmarts all other smartphones.
5. Cameras
The LiDar scanner is definitely improving the photography experience which was not known when iPhone 11 was launched in 2019 and benefiting more with the AR applications.
It further improves the auto-fucus capability and low light photography features. Its because of the very LiDar scanners that you’ll be able to click portraits even in the night mode.
6. Overall Performance
To start off, iPhone 12 comes with a 6GB of RAM as compared to 4GB of last years 11 Pros and it runs on the A14 Bionic which significantly improves the performance over the A13 of the 11 Pro.
That specification is enough for someone whose buying decision is strictly based on the upgrades a phone has been done compared to the immediate previous version. The 2GB of added memory single-handedly sums up the performance given that 11 Pros were already among the best in the business.
Related: What are the pros and cons of the iPhone XR?
Cons of iPhone 12
1. Hidden Compromises in the Display
Something that has become a basic features even amongst the Android flagship phones is missing in the iPhone 12. The ProMotion display or the high-refresh-rate is not there which, to most users is the biggest disappointment.
2. Battery Life
Apple’s decision to use a smaller battery in the iPhone 12 has to some extent backfired as far as the battery life is concerned. The reviews of the 12 Pro have come out to be worst of the new iPhone. Even for a light weight user and those who use their phones in a low brightness settings. The performance of the battery is poor compared to what iPhone 11 Pro Max had given.
3. WiFi Stability
Its obvious that we tend to compare our latest gadgets with other contemporaries. Turn out, in case of WiFi signal, some users have accepted it heavy-heartedly that the WiFi strength is not up to the mark. Its definitely a setback if something like WiFi that is mandatory to test other features is itself not best in the business. They complained that the connection keeps coming on an off.
Conclusion
Although this isn’t the best upgrade that Apple has done, we still feel that the iPhone 12 has improved enough to be worth the money. Relative to the competition, the iPhone still comes out on top in a number of categories.
