iPhone 13 roundup

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The 6.1-inch iPhone 13 and 5.4-inch iPhone 13 mini were unveiled on September 24th and are the latest flagship iPhones for 2021. They replace the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini, which are still on sale.

Design and models

Both iPhone models have a very similar design to the previous models, with aluminium flat edges, glass on the back and thin bezels. iPhone 13 models are now available in new Product(RED), Pink, Blue, Midnight and Starlight finishes. While the design remains largely the same, the rear cameras have been redesigned in a diagonal layout, and have slightly larger lenses. Both devices are also thicker, at 7.65mm (verus 7.4mm on the iPhone 12). They are also IP68 water and dust resistant, up to a depth of 6 meters for 30 minutes.

Display

The iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini both sport edge-to-edge Super Retina XDR displays with resolutions of 2532x1170p and 2340x1080p, respectively. These are now 28 percent brighter, and have a max brightness of 1200 nits in HDR. They also support TrueTone, for matching the colour temperature of the display to the environment, Wide Color, and Haptic Touch, for force feedback.

Apple has reduced the size of the notch on the iPhone 13, by making the TrueDepth sensors 20 percent smaller. The smaller notch means that there is more screen real-estate at the top, and the speaker grille has been relocated to the top bezel. The iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini support Face ID facial recognition for unlocking, authenticating payments and accessing passwords. No notable improvements have been made to the speed or features of Face ID.

Performance

The A15 Bionic chip inside the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini brings a modest increase to performance. It has a 6-core CPU, 4-core GPU and 16-core, improved Neural Engine. The new chip is based off of the 5-nanometer process, and is more efficient, despite the brighter OLED panels. Apple promises up to 17 hours of video playback on iPhone 13 mini and 19 hours video playback on iPhone 13.

Camera

Apple significantly improved the camera capabilities on iPhone 13. The 12 megapixel Wide camera has a lower f/1.6 aperture, which lets in 47% more light, for more detailed images. The Ultra-Wide lens has a f/1.6 aperture, which should perform better in low light.

Cinematic mode uses a rack-focus system to adjust and shift the focus in a shot to another subject, such as a person or object. This blurs the background, which can also be adjusted afterwards in the Photos app.

Smart HDR 4 can recognise up to 4 different people in an image, and optimise the contrast, lighting and skin tones, while Deep Fusion will be automatically enabled in mid to low-light scenarios. The 12-megapixel front-facing camera also supports Night Mode, Smart HDR 4, Deep Fusion and Cinematic Mode.

Photographic Styles are filters that can be applied to images, creating a muted, vibrant or warm effect, and allowing you to tweak the settings for further refinement.

Connectivity

iPhone 13 has improved 5G connectivity, with more bands to make use of 5G in more places. 5G allows for faster streaming, high-definition video calls and improved browsing and gaming, and significantly faster download and upload speeds compared to 4G/LTE. Sub-6GHz 5G is available outside of the U.S., while faster mmWave is currently only available in the U.S only.

Both models also support WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0. The iPhone 13 keeps the Lightning port, but has magnets in the back for MagSafe charging, which is compatible with a range of MagSafe accessories and charges at up to 15W.

Storage and Pricing

The iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini start at $699 and $799 for 128GB storage. Apple has increased the baseline storage from 64GB, and no longer offers that option on iPhone 13. Along with 128GB, 256GB and new 512GB storage capacities are also available.

Recommended by the editors:

• Apple announces new green finishes for iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro

• Apple to offer Face ID repairs without full iPhone replacement

• Apple will soon allow Face ID with third-party replacement screens on iPhone 13

• Android manufacturers are now copying the iPhone's flat design

• iOS 15.1 Beta introduces ProRes Video

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