iPhone 13 vs. iPhone 12: Which One Is Right for You in 2023?

Every year, Apple releases a new version of the iPhone that makes us question if it is worth the upgrade. Even though the differences are often subtle, they can make a world of difference to your user experience. With the iPhone 13 on the horizon, now is a great time to look at how it compares to its predecessor and decide which of these two devices will be right for you in 2023. In this blog post, we’ll compare the features and specs of both phones so you can decide which one is best for you.

In 2021, Apple announced the iPhone 13 as the successor to the popular iPhone 12 with improved rear cameras, longer battery life, the A15 Bionic chip, and more.

Comparing the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 13,

The iPhone 12 and iPhone 13‌ share several key features, including screen size, 5G connectivity, and camera specs. Apple lists the same features on the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13:

Their Similarities

They have a 6.1-inch OLED super retina XDR display with HDR, True Tone, P3 wide color, and Haptic Touch.
Six-core A-Series Bionic chip
4GB of memory
Photography features include Night Mode, Deep Fusion, True Tone Flash with Slow Sync, Portrait Mode and more
They are available with 128GB and 256GB storage options
They are available in (Product) Red
Ceramic Shield front
IP68 rated splash, water and dust resistance
Magsafe nd Qi wireless charging
Aerospace-grade aluminum
Lightning connector
Videography features including 4K video recording at up to 60fps, HDR video recording with Dolby Vision, Audio zoom, slo-mo video up to 240fps at 1080p, Night mode Time-lapse, and more

Their Differences

IPhone 13

Super Retina XDR display with 800 nits max brightness (typical)
Smart HDR 4 for photos
Cinematic mode video recording with shallow depth of field (1080p at 30 fps)
Up to 19 hours battery during video playback
20 percent smaller notch
Photographic Styles
A15 Bionic chip
Available in Starlight, Midnight, Blue, Pink, Green, and PRODUCT(RED)
Dolby Vision HDR video recording up to 4K at 60fps
Weighs 174 grams
Available with 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB storage options
Dual SIM (nano-SIM and eSIM) and dual eSIM support

IPhone 12

Super Retina XDR display with 625 nits max brightness (typical)
Smart HDR 3 for photos
Up to 17 hours battery during video playback
A14 Bionic chip
Dual SIM (nano-SIM and eSIM)
Available in Purple, Blue, PRODUCT(RED), White, and Black
Available with 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB storage options
Dolby Vision HDR video recording up to 4K at 30fps
Weighs 164 grams

Design

The iPhone 12‌ and iPhone 13‌ share the same industrial design, with square edges and flat aluminum rails on the sides. The hardware uses aircraft-grade aluminum around the edges and a single piece of floating glass on the back. The iPhone 13‌'s dual rear cameras are offset from each other along the diagonal, which is the opposite of the iPhone 12‌'s vertical orientation.

iPhone 13‌'s TrueDepth camera notch is 20% smaller, freeing up more viewing area and making the notch-less intrusive. Other than the rear camera placement and smaller notch, the devices look identical in every way.

Display

iPhone 12‌ and ‌iPhone 13‌ feature a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with HDR, True Tone, P3 wide color gamut, and Haptic Touch‌. The only difference with the iPhone 13's display is that it's 175 nits brighter in normal use without HDR, but that's not a big reason to buy the newer model.

Cameras

The ‌iPhone 12‌ and iPhone 13‌ have two 12-megapixel cameras on the back, an ƒ/2.4 wide-angle camera and an ƒ/1.6 wide-angle camera. The wide-angle camera on iPhone 13‌ features a larger sensor on iPhone 13‌ that captures 47% more light, resulting in less noise and brighter photos, while the Ultra Wide camera features a new sensor that captures more light.

The wide-angle camera also features sensor-shift optical image stabilization for smoother video and higher image quality.

While both devices can record Dolby Vision HDR video, the iPhone 13 can record up to 60 fps, compared to the iPhone 12's 30 fps.

The iPhone 13 has a new camera feature called Cinematic Mode that allows users to record video at 1080p and 30fps with a shallow depth of field. Cinematic mode seamlessly switches focus from one subject to another while shooting a video. It keeps the subject sharp while blurring the background and can automatically shift focus when a new subject is about to enter the scene.

Blur and focus can also be adjusted using the Photos app after video recording.

The iPhone 13 also supports Photo Styles and smart, adjustable filters that can improve washed-out colors without affecting skin tones. Styles are applied selectively to images rather than filters to the entire image. Photo styles include Vivid (enhanced colors), Rich Contrast (darker tones and deeper colors), Warm (enhanced golden tones), or Cool (emphasis on blue tones). Hue and warmth can be adjusted for each style to get your desired look.

Although the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 camera specs are similar, the iPhone 13 offers Dolby Vision HDR video at a higher frame rate, movie mode, and camera mode, and hardware improvements such as a larger sensor and sensor-shift stability. The iPhone 12‌ camera is still very good, but with more photo and video options and higher image quality, the iPhone 13‌ is the better choice.

Battery

Battery life is one aspect of the noticeable difference between the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 13. The iPhone 13 has a battery life of 19 hours during video playback, two hours longer than the iPhone 12's 17-hour battery. When playing video, the iPhone 13 can provide up to 15 hours of battery life instead of 11 hours on the iPhone 12. ‌iPhone 13‌ can also play ten more hours of audio than the iPhone 12‌. So, compared to the iPhone 12, the iPhone 13 is the best device for users who need the longest battery life for an iPhone.

Storage

The iPhone 12‌ comes in 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB storage options, while the iPhone 13‌ comes in 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB storage options. If you need more than 256GB of storage, you'll need an iPhone 13 to get the larger 512GB storage option. Otherwise, the units regarding storage options are the same.

Which One Is Right for You?

The ‌iPhone 13‌'s upgrades over the ‌iPhone 12‌ are mostly iterative, offering refinements in a brighter display, a smaller notch, performance improvements, and new camera software features. The more significant upgrades include the camera hardware and longer battery life, but at face value, there is likely not enough to justify getting the new model over the ‌iPhone 12‌ for most customers.

However, when looking at the 128GB and 256GB storage options only, since these options are available with both models, the ‌iPhone 13‌ costs $699 and $799, and the ‌iPhone 12‌ costs $649 and $749, respectively. There is only a $50 price difference between the ‌iPhone 12‌ and the ‌iPhone 13‌, provided you need more than 64GB of storage. While the ‌iPhone 13‌'s upgrades are mostly iterative and not major reasons to upgrade, they are easily worth the additional $50, so if you need more than 64GB of storage, you should buy the ‌iPhone 13‌.

Conclusion

As the mobile technology industry evolves, Apple will continue to innovate and create new iPhones with more features and capabilities. While both the iPhone 13 and iPhone 12 offer users exciting updates, it's important for you to consider your needs before making a purchase decision. By weighing the differences between these two models in terms of features, price points, design elements, battery life, and other considerations that may be important for you when choosing a phone in 2023, you can make an informed decision about which one is right for you.