Apple announced their long awaited and leaked iPhone 12 series today. As expected, the design resembled the iPhone 5 with familiar flat sides but with the bezeless display’s iPhone’s have had since the iPhone X and of course the inclusion of 5G. The design change was likely driven by the introduction of MagSafe accessories that are dependent on the sides of the iPhone being flat since they are attached from the back, like the new cases that rely on MagSafe for attachment rather than the shape of the iPhone. What could be confusing for consumers this year is that Apple is selling two 6.1-inch iPhone 12 models that have a $200 price gap. How can we account for that $200 price gap? Why not just save $200 right? Well let’s at least help you make an informed purchase with specs comparison below.
What’s the same?
| iPhone 12 | iPhone 12 Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Display | 6.1″ 2532 x 1170 pixel resolution at 460 ppi | 6.1″ 2532 x 1170 pixel resolution at 460 ppi |
| CPU | A14 Bionic chip | A14 Bionic chip |
| GPU | Next‑generation Neural Engine | Next‑generation Neural Engine |
What’s the difference?
| iPhone 12 | iPhone 12 Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Camera | Dual 12MP camera system: Ultra Wide and Wide cameras Ultra Wide: ƒ/2.4 aperture and 120° field of view Wide: ƒ/1.6 aperture 2x optical zoom out Digital zoom up to 5x Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth Control Portrait Lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, High‑Key Mono) Optical image stabilization (Wide) Five‑element lens (Ultra Wide); seven‑element lens (Wide) Brighter True Tone flash with Slow Sync Panorama (up to 63MP) Sapphire crystal lens cover 100% Focus Pixels (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) Advanced red‑eye correction Auto image stabilization Burst mode Photo geotagging Image formats captured: HEIF and JPEG | Ultra Wide: ƒ/2.4 aperture and 120° field of view Wide: ƒ/1.6 aperture Telephoto: ƒ/2.0 aperture (iPhone 12 Pro); 2x optical zoom in, 2x optical zoom out; 4x optical zoom range (iPhone 12 Pro) Digital zoom up to 10x (iPhone 12 Pro) Night mode portraits enabled by LiDAR Scanner Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth Control Portrait Lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, High‑Key Mono) Dual optical image stabilization (Wide and Telephoto) Five-element lens (Ultra Wide); six‑element lens (Telephoto); seven-element lens (Wide) Brighter True Tone flash with Slow Sync Panorama (up to 63MP) Sapphire crystal lens cover 100% Focus Pixels (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) Advanced red-eye correction Photo geotagging Auto image stabilization Burst mode Image formats captured: HEIF and JPEG |
| Video Recording | HDR video recording with Dolby Vision up to 30 fps 4K video recording at 24 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps 1080p HD video recording at 30 fps or 60 fps 720p HD video recording at 30 fps Optical image stabilization for video (Wide) 2x optical zoom out Digital zoom up to 3x Audio zoom Brighter True Tone flash QuickTake video Slo‑mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps Time‑lapse video with stabilization Night mode Time‑lapse Extended dynamic range for video up to 60 fps Cinematic video stabilization (4K, 1080p, and 720p) Continuous autofocus video Take 8MP still photos while recording 4K video Playback zoom Video formats recorded: HEVC and H.264 Stereo recording | HDR video recording with Dolby Vision up to 60 fps 4K video recording at 24 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps 1080p HD video recording at 30 fps or 60 fps 720p HD video recording at 30 fps Optical image stabilization for video (Wide) 2x optical zoom in, 2x optical zoom out; 4x optical zoom range (iPhone 12 Pro) Digital zoom up to 6x (iPhone 12 Pro) Audio zoom Brighter True Tone flash QuickTake video Slo‑mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps Time‑lapse video with stabilization Night mode Time-lapse Extended dynamic range for video up to 60 fps Cinematic video stabilization (4K, 1080p, and 720p) Continuous autofocus video Take 8MP still photos while recording 4K video Playback zoom Video formats recorded: HEVC and H.264 Stereo recording |
| TrueDepth Camera | 12MP camera ƒ/2.2 aperture Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth Control Portrait Lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, High‑Key Mono) Animoji and Memoji Night mode Deep Fusion Smart HDR 3 with Scene Detection HDR video recording with Dolby Vision up to 30 fps 4K video recording at 24 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps 1080p HD video recording at 30 fps or 60 fps Slo‑mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps Time‑lapse video with stabilization Night mode Time‑lapse Extended dynamic range for video up to 30 fps Cinematic video stabilization (4K, 1080p, and 720p) QuickTake video Wide color capture for photos and Live Photos Lens correction Retina Flash Auto image stabilization Burst mode | 12MP camera ƒ/2.2 aperture Portrait mode with advanced bokeh and Depth Control Portrait Lighting with six effects (Natural, Studio, Contour, Stage, Stage Mono, High‑Key Mono) Animoji and Memoji Night mode Deep Fusion Smart HDR 3 with Scene Detection HDR video recording with Dolby Vision up to 30 fps 4K video recording at 24 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps 1080p HD video recording at 30 fps or 60 fps Slo-mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps Time‑lapse video with stabilization Night mode Time-lapse Extended dynamic range for video up to 30 fps Cinematic video stabilization (4K, 1080p, and 720p) QuickTake video Wide color capture for photos and Live Photos Lens correction Retina Flash Auto image stabilization Burst mode |
| Storage | 64, 128, 256GB | 128, 256, 512GB |
| Dimensions | 5.78 x 2.82 x 0.29″ | 6.33 x 3.07 x 0.29″ |
There you have it, Apple two 6.1-inch iPhone models differ in a few important ways. If you need the very best camera on an iPhone, twice the storage of the iPhone 12 and have the extra cash to justify said purchase then the iPhone 12 Pro is the right choice for you. Otherwise the iPhone 12 is nearly the same device in nearly every other way.
