iPhone 13 is very similar to 12, but it has improved a lot | Technique

The iPhone 13 and 13 Pro will be available from Friday, September 24, but this site was probably one of the first to start using the hardware. The tech giant has already sent a copy of the iPhone 13 Pro and the smaller iPhone 13 mini, which are sold alongside the regular iPhone 13 and 13 Pro Max.

Phones that are almost indistinguishable from their predecessors. Overall, the design is identical to the 12 and 12 Pro, with a glass back and a metal band around the device. The differences this year lie in the small details: the cameras are different, with a diagonal design on 13 regular units and thicker lenses on both types. The notch at the top of the screen for the face scanner and selfie camera has narrowed slightly, and the phones are available in new colors.

They’re changes that only really stand out when you put old and new phones side by side — a bit like a car maker changing the side mirrors on its latest model. That’s also what we expected: Apple usually gives its iPhones a major design update every two years, which it did with the iPhone 12 last year. The latest phones are a modified version of that, sort of the iPhone 12S.

While the exterior of the new iPhone is largely unchanged, a few things have changed on the inside. Let’s start with the cameras: Not only are the lenses on the back thicker than previous models (which makes the phone a bit wobbly on the table), there are some technical improvements.

According to Apple, the wide-angle lens collects more light, which is something we also see in our tests: photos with this lens are generally sharper and clearer, even if we use the special night mode on both phones.

The biggest difference in the camera can be found in the Pro phones, which are equipped with a new telephoto lens. It can zoom in three times instead of the 12 Pro’s double zoom. Although more zoom also means greater vibrations, the 13 Pro is actually not that bad for us: the enlarged image remains stable thanks to the built-in stabilization.

Pro phones can also take macro photos, where you can see the subject up close. In the photo of a strawberry, all the seeds are visible, and when you pick up your skin, you see each individual pore in sharp focus. It’s fun to play with, although the question is how long macro photography will still be fun. How often does the average phone user take such screenshots?

When taking photos, you can now switch between different styles, for example with higher contrast or warmer colours. They look like filters, but according to Apple, they are organized differently: the camera calculates what to adjust based on the current photo. We’ve seen the advantages of this especially in selfies: clothes and color change color, while the skin doesn’t suddenly turn gray or orange.

For content creators, there’s a new movie mode that gives recordings a cinematic touch. The camera looks at what is happening in the frame, so that the most important subject remains in focus. This can also change in the middle of the shot: in a two-person video, one was clearly in the frame, and then the depth of field shifted to the other when he looked into the camera.

The best thing about movie mode: You can also set everything up afterwards. With a few clicks, you can go through the video again and decide where something should be sharp. You can quickly make a professional looking movie without knowing much about the movie.

Looks like Apple wanted to make a better camera this year. The iPhone 13 and 13 Pro are not significantly improved in other areas: the new processor, according to Apple, is more efficient and not necessarily faster, which we have not noticed much in practice. Heavy games start just as quickly and apps run as smoothly as in the iPhone 12. And it’s not a disaster, because last year’s hardware was also pretty fast.

New to Pro phones is a ProMotion display that can refresh up to 120 frames per second. The animation looks much smoother this way, but you have to be a foodie to appreciate it. Relatives and colleagues who watched with us rarely noticed the difference. It will be especially interesting for the most enthusiastic players.

The battery life of two iPhones has been increased — the iPhone 13 can be used for 1.5 hours longer on a full battery, according to Apple, which is up to 2.5 hours with Pro phones. In the half week we were able to test, it’s hard to say if this was achieved. We got the idea that the phones actually last longer than the 12 and 12 Pro.

See the iPhone 13 unveiling photos below, and the review continues after the video.

iPhone 12 and 13 are very similar: they are phones with almost the same design, which also do not differ from each other in terms of speed. On the other hand, there is a camera that is making great strides. Photos taken with iPhone 13 are often more beautiful, while additions like Movie Mode, Styles, and Macro Photography add a lot of modernity.

It seems these iPhones weren’t made to compete with Samsung smartphones, but rather the more serious cameras from Nikon and Canon. Every year, Apple takes new steps to replace the benefits of a serious SLR camera with clever software tricks, which we see in the latest iPhones.

Here’s a clear trend: Rely on the fact that your future iPhones, once upgraded, will rely primarily on camera lenses.