Review of the Cheapest and best iPhones so far

There is no shortage of novelties in the new iPhones, just as there is no shortage of new ones. Test the smallest-cheapest and most-expensive iPhone 13 models.

Apple this year is back to normal and has unveiled new smartphones in mid-September. The iPhone 13 mini is designed for those who want serious performance in a compact size, above which the iPhone 13, which can be considered a golden mean in all respects, is located.

For those looking for more severe camera production, the iPhone 13 Pro is the ideal choice, and for those who like big-screen pleasures, the iPhone 13 Pro Max may be a perfect choice. This time, we present the two ends of the product range in detail, i.e., the latest mini and Pro Max on a skinning test.

iPhone 13 mini

In 2020, the iPhone 12 mini, which featured a relatively large display and high-end hardware in a smaller and lighter case than the current iPhone SE, sounded great. In the end, the sales indicators did not develop as expected. As a result, there will be no 14 mini next year, but now we have another run, as the 13 minis have been completed.

The design of the novelty in five colors has changed almost nothing. It isn’t easy to see with the naked eye that the thickness has increased from 7.4 to 7.7 millimeters, just as the weight from 135 to 140 grams is mainly revealed only by the pharmacy scale.

The hair’s larger size and weight are due to Apple’s battery size based on customer feedback. We can’t expect a world redemption from a nearly 10 percent larger battery, but this is probably why many will be able to extend the usage time to a full day and not have to plug in the charger in the early evening.

The charging head is still not included in the basic package – and of course, it is suspected that it will not be there anymore. The manufacturer asks for $25 for the 20 W unit, which can be purchased separately. On the downside, this year, neither wired nor wireless charging has gotten faster.

The size and resolution of the display and the refresh rate of 60 Hz have remained unchanged, but in bright sunshine, the brightness, which is nearly 30 percent higher, comes in handy. Although the display island has become 20 percent smaller, and although it has shrunk in width, it hangs a little better in height at the panel than before, and in proportion, it still delivers the most visual delights in the case of the mini.

The 13 mini is most distinguished from its predecessor in terms of the rear-mounted rear camera. The primary camera has received the sensor motion stabilization that only the 13 Pro Max knew last year, primarily an advantage in low light conditions.

The appearance of the photographic styles supported by the entire series is a novelty: they are a little more than simple filters because they have a different effect on specific shots. Thus, skin tones in photos with different moods may remain stably lifelike.

There is still no lidar scanner and telephoto camera, and the wide-angle camera is not equipped with autofocus.

We didn’t feel slow on the iPhone 12 either, but the successor to the already biting iOS 15 operating system has become even more agile, thanks to the A15 Bionic chip. The great thing is that the flash memory capacity has been doubled, from 64 to 128 GB, from 128 to 256, and from 256 to 512. There was no expandability, there isn’t, and isn’t expected to be, water resistance is still assured.

iPhone 13 Pro Max

On the Pro Max front, it is even harder to distinguish between last year’s and this year’s model, as in this case, the location of the rear cameras has not changed either. In this case, the thickness has also increased by 0.3 millimeters, which is a grievous sin, but the weight gain of 238 grams can already take the fuse out of many.

The resolution and size of the display remained the same, and as before, we now get 53 percent more useful surface area from a Pro Max than a mini. Brightness has increased by 25 percent, but in our experience, the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra image is minimally more visible in strong sunlight.

It’s no longer a novelty in the Android camp, but Apple has just introduced the 120 Hz adaptive update, which makes the visuals on the Pro even smoother and smoother than before. The notch that throws into the screen can be said to be significant even after shrinking. You still do not receive the Permanently On Standby (AOD) function.

The battery capacity has been increased by nearly 20 percent, which, combined with the efficient chipset, promises noticeably longer operating time despite the 120 Hz update. The one-day operating time is smooth even with the most severe skinning, and the two days are more accessible to achieve than ever before. Interestingly, this year’s Pro Max is beating 96 percent on last year’s mini on the capacity front.

It’s a shame that a full charge takes about 1.5 hours when Xiaomi already offers a mid-range 120W rechargeable phone with a battery more significant than the 13 Pro Max that can be fully charged in just 17 minutes. Nor can we be glad that the Lightning port is left, even though the manufacturer already uses USB-C on other products.

The death penalty for the USB 2.0-capable Lightning socket could be signed by the EU, which could soon make the use of standard chargers, even in USB-C format, mandatory.

7.5-15 W wireless charging is also highly advanced technology, and if reverse charging technology were finally available, we could even charge AirPods by simply placing the phone on the back.

The 6-wifi was wind-fast, and during the test, we measured excellent mobile net speeds of several 100 Mbit / s on the networks of Telekom and Telenor. What is new is that up to two eSIMs are now supported by iPhones 13, which means that the dual SIM configuration can be implemented differently than before.

This year, the standard and Pro models differ in chipsets, with the latter featuring five graphics cores instead of four. The CPU speed has increased by 10-20 percent compared to last year, but on the graphics front, the increase is around 50 percent, which has not been seen much before. The iPhone 13 Pro Max is super fast in all conditions, giving all its rivals a thorough lesson.

According to the manufacturer, the primary camera can absorb 2.2 times more light than before, which is difficult to measure. In any case, the image quality has improved in low light conditions, even if not by twice the amplitude. The wide-angle camera has also become brighter, and at least as significant a change is that it has finally got autofocus. The macro mode, which provides a subject distance of 2 cm, is excellent, but it would be good to switch it on and off manually, if necessary.

The optical zoom of the telephoto unit is now capable of 3x magnification instead of 2.5x, which, in addition, lacks a 5-10x periscope module used by the competition. What’s new is that night mode is now available for all cameras, including the zoom module, and digital zoom coverage has been increased from 12x to 15x.

All 13 devices know the so-called movie-like mode. The essence is that the focus automatically switches between the actors’ faces during video recording, according to who is looking at the camera. The guide can be adjusted afterward. All of this is spoiled by the depth-of-field effect already familiar from portrait photos, which isn’t as accurate for videos as it is for photos.

On the downside, 1080p / 30 fps is the ceiling for movie-like mode. 4K is not obtained in this format. Promising the best picture quality, ProRes videos are already in 4K resolution, but since they take up a lot of space, we need to develop Full HD quality for 128GB devices. In addition to the 128, 256, and 512 GB versions, the top 1 TB model joined this year, for which they ask for $694 more than for the basic model.

Conclusion, prices

In terms of appearance, we have witnessed almost scandalously little change this year, and Apple did so without changing the proven recipe. The technology under the cover, on the other hand, has changed, even more, notably the super-fast and efficient chipset, the larger battery, and the improved battery.

As a high ball, however, the sluggish charge, the notch that is too large even after shrinking, or the still only 3x optical zoom bounces in front of us, to name just a few of the problems that an innovative mammoth sitting on almost all the money in the world he should have solved it a long time ago.

It is a welcome fact that compared to last year, iPhone prices have fallen, albeit minimally, and in some cases, the amount of memory has increased in parallel.

We can have a new apple mobile phone for the cheapest for $949 because that’s how much a 128 GB iPhone 13 mini costs. In a slightly larger size, the iPhone 13, which features essentially the same hardware, opens at $42,912.31, with a stronger Pro version of the camera starting at $1,367

The iPhone 13 Pro Max can be taken home for a minimum of $1,496. The price tag of the new 1 TB top model is $2,190. In comparison, the 128 GB Galaxy S21 Ultra.