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On the surface, the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro are very similar phones. They both feature 6.1-inch OLED displays with flat-edge designs and Apple’s A14 Bionic processor inside, but take a look a little closer and there are several notable differences worth exploring. Read on as we review the details of the iPhone 12 vs. iPhone 12 Pro.
In this comparison, we specifically focus on the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 and the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro. While the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 12 are largely the same phones, there are a few key differences in terms of screen size and resolution. The iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max also share many of the same features, but there are notable differences in screen size and camera technology.
We’ll have more comparisons of the iPhone 12 lineup in the coming days. For now, let’s start with the iPhone 12 versus the iPhone 12 Pro.
iPhone 12 vs iPhone 12 Pro: display
The display technology between the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 12 Pro is almost the same. Both devices feature a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR display that uses OLED technology with a resolution of 2532 x 1170 pixels at 460 pixels per inch.
The only difference is that the iPhone 12 Pro display has a higher “typical” brightness than the iPhone 12 at 800 nits vs. 625. However, the actual maximum brightness of the displays is the same, at 1200 nits, thanks to universal HDR compatibility.
The iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro screens are protected by Ceramic Shield technology, which Apple claims offers 4x better drop performance than preview iPhones.
Other display features on the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro include:
- Contrast Ratio 2,000,000: 1
- True Tone display
- Wide color screen (P3)
- Haptic touch
Design
The iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro are also very similar in terms of design, and both feature flat edges similar to the iPad Pro and iPhone 4 / iPhone 5 days. Both devices also feature edge-to-edge displays with equal-sized notch cutouts on the front to house the Face ID sensors.
The key difference in design is that the iPhone 12 is made from what Apple calls “aerospace-grade aluminum,” while the iPhone 12 Pro is made from “surgical-grade stainless steel.” This means that the iPhone 12 has a brushed aluminum finish, while the iPhone 12 Pro has a shiny stainless steel finish.
The difference in materials between the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 12 Pro also has implications for the weight of the phones. The iPhone 12 weighs 5.78 ounces, while the iPhone 12 Pro weighs 6.66 ounces.
Other dimensions of the phones are the same:
- Height: 5.78 inches
- Width: 2.82 inches
- Depth: 0.29 inch
Both the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro are IP68 rated for splash, water, and dust resistance. With this rating, iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro can withstand submersion to a maximum depth of 6 meters for up to 30 minutes.
Performance and battery life
Another area where the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro are nearly identical is when it comes to processor performance. Both devices feature Apple’s latest A14 Bionic process, which Apple touts as “the fastest chip in a smartphone.” The A14 Bionic features two high-performance cores and four efficiency cores.
Both iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro also feature the latest neural engine to enhance machine learning capabilities and functions. Apple says the new 16-core neural engine offers an 80% increase in performance compared to the previous generation.
The iPhone 12 Pro has 6GB of RAM, while the iPhone 12 has 4GB. The additional RAM in the iPhone 12 Pro lends itself to a handful of additional camera features, which we’ll get to in a moment. However, the RAM difference is unlikely to have a major effect on performance outside of camera functions.
Finally, Apple says that the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro have the same battery life:
- Video playback: up to 17 hours
- Video Playback (streamed): up to 11 hours
- Audio playback: up to 65 hours
Both devices also support fast charging for up to 50% charge in 30 minutes with a 20W power adapter. There is also support for 7.5W Qi wireless charging and 15W wireless charging when using a MagSafe wireless charger. .
Connectivity
The iPhone 12 line is the first iPhone line to include 5G connectivity, and that extends to both the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 12 Pro. This means that regardless of the iPhone model you buy, you will get the fastest version of 5G available on your area.
In the United States, iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro support both sub-6GHz 5G and mmWave 5G. However, internationally, iPhone 12 5G support is limited to connectivity below 6 GHz.
Best iPhone 12 Cases:
Camera
However, where the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro really start to differ is in terms of camera technology.
The iPhone 12 features a dual camera system with a 12MP ultra-wide lens and a 12MP wide lens. You also get software features like Night Mode and Deep Fusion Processing along with Optical Image Stabilization and more.
Here are the features of the iPhone 12 camera:
- 12MP dual camera system: Ultra Wide and Wide cameras
- Ultra wide: ƒ / 2.4 aperture and 120 ° field of view
- Width: ƒ / 1.6 aperture
- 2x optical zoom
- Digital zoom up to 5x
- Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and depth control
- Portrait lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Outline, Stage, Mono Stage, High-Key Mono)
- Optical Image Stabilization (Wide)
- Five-element lens (ultra wide angle); seven element lens (wide angle)
- Brighter True Tone flash with slow sync
- Panorama (up to 63MP)
- Sapphire glass lens cover
- 100% pixel focus (wide)
- Night mode (ultra wide, wide)
- Deep Fusion (ultra wide, wide)
- Smart HDR 3 with scene detection
- Wide Color Capture for Photos and Live Photos
- Lens correction (ultra wide angle)
- Advanced red-eye correction
- Automatic image stabilization
- Burst mode
- Photo geotagging
- Captured Image Formats: HEIF and JPEG
On the other hand, the iPhone 12 Pro features a triple camera setup consisting of ultra, wide-angle, and telephoto lenses. You also get support for night mode when using portrait mode, which is made possible by the new LiDAR scanner, exclusive to the iPhone 12 Pro.
Another key difference is that the iPhone 12 Pro is compatible with Apple’s new ProRAW photography format, giving iPhone photographers more control over their images and new tools for post-processing.
Here are the features of the iPhone 12 Pro camera:
- 12MP professional camera system: ultra-wide, wide-angle and telephoto cameras
- Ultra wide: ƒ / 2.4 aperture and 120 ° field of view
- Width: ƒ / 1.6 aperture
- Telephoto: ƒ / 2.0 aperture
- 2x in optical zoom, 2x out optical zoom; 4x optical zoom range
- Digital zoom up to 10x
- LiDAR Scanner Enabled Night Mode Portraits
- Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and depth control
- Portrait lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Outline, Stage, Mono Stage, High-Key Mono)
- Dual optical image stabilization (wide angle and telephoto)
- Five-element lens (Ultra Wide); six element lens (telephoto); seven element lens (wide angle)
- Brighter True Tone flash with slow sync
- Panorama (up to 63MP)
- Sapphire glass lens cover
- 100% pixel focus (wide)
- Night mode (ultra wide, wide)
- Deep Fusion (ultra wide, wide, telephoto)
- Smart HDR 3 with scene detection
- Apple ProRAW
- Wide Color Capture for Photos and Live Photos
- Lens correction (ultra wide angle)
- Advanced red-eye correction
- Photo geotagging
- Automatic image stabilization
- Burst mode
- Captured Image Formats: HEIF and JPEG
The iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro have the same video recording capabilities, except that the iPhone 12 Pro can record Dolby Vision HDR at up to 60 fps, while the iPhone 12’s Dolby Vision support is limited to 30 fps. The iPhone 12 Pro also has a higher digital zoom while recording at 6x versus 3x and the 2x optical zoom in support.
Colors, storage and prices
IPhone 12 is available in five different colors: Black, White, Product (RED), Green, and Blue. IPhone 12 Pro is available in four different colors: Pacific Blue, Gold, Graphite, and Silver.
In terms of pricing, the iPhone 12 starts at $ 829 (or $ 799 for Verizon and AT&T buyers) for 64GB of storage. You can upgrade to the 128GB configuration for $ 879 ($ 849 for AT&T and Verizon), or to the next 256GB for $ 979 ($ 949 for AT&T / Verizon).
On the other hand, the iPhone 12 Pro retails for $ 999 for 128GB of storage, $ 1099 for 256GB of storage, and $ 1299 for 512GB of storage.
Included
Citing environmental concerns, Apple no longer includes headphones or a charging block in the iPhone 12 box this year. Here are some accessories you might consider purchasing to help fill that gap.
Features of iPhone 12 vs. iPhone 12 Pro
Summary: iPhone 12 vs. iPhone 12 Pro
As you can see throughout this comparison, the main differentiating factors between the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro are the camera features. The iPhone 12 Pro offers a variety of different camera capabilities that are not supported by the iPhone 12.
When you zoom out and look at the non-camera features, the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro are harder to distinguish from each other. Both feature 6.1-inch OLED displays, 5G connectivity, Apple’s fastest A14 Bionic processor, and similar designs.
For many, if not most, people, the iPhone 12 is more than enough smartphone. You can handle daily tasks with ease and the camera will take amazing pictures even without all the bells and whistles of the Pro.
What do you think of the iPhone 12 versus the iPhone 12 Pro? Does Apple do enough to justify the $ 200 premium for the iPhone 12 Pro? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
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