iPhone 13 Pro review: One of the best phones ever
Our Verdict
The iPhone 13 Pro is the one of the most powerful phones ever. Despite the larger camera hump and lack of Bear on ID, the latest iPhone is a beast with a stellar display and excellent cameras. It's also $100 cheaper than the equally impressive iPhone 13 Pro Max.
For
- Gorgeous and bright 120Hz display
- Incredible performance
- Spectacular cameras
- Vastly improved battery life
Against
- Fast charging limited to 20W
- No mask-friendly face authentication
- 4K ProRes video limited to 256GB and to a higher place
Tom's Guide Verdict
The iPhone thirteen Pro is the one of the most powerful phones ever. Despite the larger camera hump and lack of Bear upon ID, the latest iPhone is a beast with a stellar display and excellent cameras. It's also $100 cheaper than the equally impressive iPhone 13 Pro Max.
Pros
- +
Gorgeous and bright 120Hz display
- +
Incredible performance
- +
Spectacular cameras
- +
Vastly improved bombardment life
Cons
- -
Fast charging limited to 20W
- -
No mask-friendly confront authentication
- -
4K ProRes video limited to 256GB and above
iPhone 13 Pro specs
Cost: Starts at $999
Display: 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED (2352 x 1170)
Refresh rate: 10-120Hz
CPU: A15 Bionic
RAM: 6GB
Rear cameras: 12MP (f/1.5) main, 12MP (f/ane.8) ultrawide, 12MP (f/2.8) telephoto with 3x optical zoom
Front camera: 12MP (f/ii.two)
Video: Upwards to 4K lx fps, 4K thirty fps ProRes (256GB+), 1080p xxx fps ProRes (128GB), 1080p 30 fps (Cinematic Mode)
Battery life (hrs:min): 11:42
Charging: 20W wired, 15W MagSafe
Size: v.8 ten ii.8 x 0.3 inches
Weight: vii.nineteen ounces
I've seen a lot of phones in my career, but the iPhone 13 Pro is the best phone I've ever reviewed. Apple's latest handset raises the bar and so much that it's hard to find whatsoever true fault with the iPhone 13 Pro except maybe the lack of Touch ID and that the charging speed still maxes out at 20W.
But consider what the iPhone 13 Pro does bring. From an first-class and bright 120Hz OLED brandish to the A15 Bionic'south crushing functioning, this is one powerful device. If you're a fan of slender phones, this is about as good every bit it gets for a phone with a 6.ane-inch screen. All-time of all, there'south no feature disparity betwixt this model and the iPhone 13 Pro Max. Both phones take the same telephoto zoom capabilities and all four iPhone 13 models have sensor-shift optical image stabilization. You lot're non losing anything by opting for the cheaper and smaller iPhone 13 Pro.
In this iPhone xiii Pro review, I'll walk you through why this is i of the best phones you can purchase — information technology is the best if y'all desire a smaller screen.
Be sure to also check out our iPhone 13 Pro Max review, too as our iPhone 13 review and iPhone 13 mini review. And if you lot practise decide to buy the iPhone thirteen Pro, make sure y'all also pick upward 1 of the best iPhone thirteen Pro cases.
iPhone 13 Pro review: Cost and release date
Every bit with every iPhone, the iPhone 13 Pro is bachelor from nearly every carrier in addition to Apple tree. And the iPhone 13 Pro is available to buy right now, starting at $999 for the 128GB model.
From at that place, a 256GB version costs $one,099, while the 512GB sets y'all dorsum $1,299. For the offset time ever, Apple offers a 1TB iPhone 13 Pro, which costs $1,499 — as much as a xiii-inch MacBook Pro with an M1 chip and a 512GB hard drive.
In the U.K. the 128GB iPhone xiii Pro starts at £949, that ramps upward to £1,049 for the 265GB model and £1,249 for the 512GB version. If you lot have deep pockets, and so the 1TB iPhone thirteen Pro will cost a hefty £1,449.
I encourage you to bank check out our best iPhone 13 deals page to ensure that you go the all-time offer, whether you opt for a merchandise-in, payment plan, or buy the phone outright. And besides check out our iPhone 13 delays page to see the latest shipment engagement info.
iPhone 13 Pro review: Design
The iPhone thirteen Pro looks remarkably similar to the iPhone 12 Pro except for ii key differences: the bigger photographic camera hump and the smaller notch. The former is pretty cocky-evident. The lenses and the square around them stick out quite noticeably — the phone is far from flat when laying on a table or desk.
The smaller notch is worthy of note, though. Apple says it'due south about 20% smaller than the one we're all used to. In practice, you tin can definitely tell the divergence when you concord up the new phone next to an iPhone 12 Pro.
The smaller notch is certainly a step in the right management, though I nevertheless detect it unsightly. Since Apple tree remains all-in on Confront ID, the notch is hither to stay for now — nether-display TrueDepth tech is probably still a means off.
On that annotation, a serious omission on the iPhone xiii Pro is Touch on ID. Rumors suggested that Apple was testing in-display fingerprint applied science like to what yous find on many of the best Android phones. In a world where the COVID-xix pandemic is however raging and many of u.s.a. are heavily encouraged to wear masks, I think Apple failing to offer an unlock alternative to Face ID remains a problem. The Apple Watch workaround introduced with iOS 14.5 earlier this year isn't skilful enough.
A stainless steel frame gives the iPhone 13 Pro a serious heft. It feels heavier, more solid, than the 7.19 ounces Apple lists as the phone'south weight. While my time with the phone has been cursory up until now, I did feel wrist and pinky fatigue while using it, more than so than the iPhone 12 Pro I use as a daily driver.
Considering the iPhone xiii Pro's design is largely unchanged, it feels more than like an iterative upgrade over its predecessor instead of one pushing the boundaries. I recall Apple tree played it safe this yr, instead focusing on the display and camera enhancements.
iPhone xiii Pro review: Display
With the same size OLED panel as its predecessor, the iPhone 13 Pro packs a lot of pixels in a screen that measures 6.1 inches diagonally. Apple tree calls this the latest version of its Super Retina XDR technology, and it sure is pretty. Colors pop, there'south plenty of dissimilarity, and the viewing angles are stellar.
Whether I was playing the anime-inspired, saturated Genshin Affect or watching the harsh orange scenes in the latter function of Bract Runner 2049, the iPhone 13 Pro'southward display delivered in every regard. Even vibrant cyberpunk or retrowave images with their vivid neon pinks, magentas and purples looked stunning.
Hither'south how the iPhone 13 Pro's screen stacks upwardly against the Milky way S21 Plus and iPhone 12 Pro in brandish benchmarks.
| iPhone thirteen Pro | Milky way S21 Plus (Vivid / Natural) | iPhone 12 Pro | |
| sRGB (%) | 117 | 212 / 104 | 116 |
| DCI-P3 (%) | 83 | 150 / 74 | 82 |
| Delta-E | 0.27 | 0.31 / 0.18 | 0.28 |
| Nits | 1024 | 747 | 742 |
The iPhone 13 managed similar color saturation to its predecessor, and its Delta-E color accuracy score (where 0 is perfect) was nigh the aforementioned equally the iPhone 12 Pro'south. Only pay attention to the max brightness we measured in our lab: 1,024 nits is insanely bright.
Of course, the star this year is the 120Hz ProMotion refresh charge per unit on both the iPhone xiii Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max. The ProMotion experience is really nice. The iPhone 13 Pro's display can automatically leap betwixt 10Hz and 120Hz, offering a smoothen experience that adapts to not only the content on screen, but also how fast your finger swipes across the glass.
Once yous experience a 120Hz brandish, information technology's hard to become dorsum to a 60Hz i. The same holds true for the iPhone 13 Pro, which has a noticeably smoother screen than the 12 Pro. Side-by-side, I strongly prefer the ProMotion display. Non only is it easier to read text on a spider web page while scrolling, simply the crisp animations jumping between emails in Gmail or just unlocking the phone all make for an extremely premium feel.
Some third-political party apps are apparently experiencing problems with ProMotion, with the brandish either locking at 60Hz or jumping between 60Hz and 120Hz, but Apple says a fix will come soon in a software update.
It'due south not something I've experienced, though, and while I wouldn't say that the iPhone 13 Pro has the best brandish on the market, it'due south certainly very, very proficient and more competitive now thanks to ProMotion.
iPhone 13 Pro review: Cameras
The iPhone 13 Pro comes equipped with iii 12MP rear cameras, including a telephoto lens offering a 77mm focal length and 3x optical zoom. The chief shooter features a larger sensor and wider discontinuity this year at f/1.5, so it can let in more light than before.
The 12MP 120-caste ultrawide also received a larger sensor, as well as autofocus for sharper super broad-angle shots. It's in low-light where the new phone actually shines, particularly over its predecessor and the competition.
In this photograph of a drove of signs, the iPhone thirteen Pro kept an interesting rest. Not only are the colors more natural, but they're also vibrant. I compared the iPhone's photographic camera to the Galaxy S21 Plus, which produced a surprisingly done-out image, as if the phone struggled to compensate for the sunlight. The iPhone'due south focus is besides sharper and the dissimilarity is stronger.
With this photo of an old trailer with the weeping willow in the background, the iPhone handled the directly sunlight very well. The image is well-lit with plenty of detail and depth. The S21 Plus' shot is dimmer and more than muted. The focus is also softer in that telltale Samsung fashion.
Moving inside, I captured this warm, artificially-lit scene. In that location'southward a lot going on this image from the lamp in the foreground to the backlighting and multitude of shadows. The iPhone managed a pretty squeamish image with proper tones and sharp focus. The S21 Plus struggled with soft focus and proper dissimilarity over again, creating an prototype that feels flatter than the iPhone's.
Another indoor shot offered some first-class natural lighting and more colour variation than our concluding scenario. The iPhone 13 Pro's paradigm is vibrant, capturing the autumn-esque colors virtually perfectly. From the oranges to the nighttime greens, the iPhone'south picture is cozier.
The S21 Plus' photo isn't also bad, but it once again struggles with soft focus and ever-so-slightly done out colors. The lines on the wall look almost smoothed over, making for a flatter image.
Trying out the ultrawide lens, I challenged the iPhone xiii Pro to take a good photograph of this pile of bright orange pumpkins in straight sunlight. The last prototype is pretty expert, with natural color rest, proper exposure, and sharp focus — the autofocus on the ultrawide camera this year definitely helps. The Galaxy S21 Plus did the typical Samsung thing past oversaturating the colors, notably on the plants in the groundwork. Information technology takes on a fantasy oil painting vibe. The focus likewise seems off, as well.
For the telephoto test, I took a film of these knick-knacks from across the room. The yellow ducks, blueish birds, and crimson frame await plenty colorful in the iPhone's shot, fifty-fifty if the epitome feels a bit too warm for my liking. The S21 Plus' photo is cooler, only the colors in the aren't every bit vibrant as the iPhone'southward. Both phones struggled with this scene.
For portraits, I had my photographer stand a few feet away from me. The iPhone 13 Pro has a much stronger bokeh effect around my face, artistically blurring the hats on the wall behind me. It did make my face up actually red and splotchy, but I'll chalk that up to a hot twenty-four hours and beingness indoors without A/C. The Galaxy S21 Plus had a much weaker mistiness radius and information technology didn't depict enough attention to the subject. Information technology also applied too much face smoothing past default.
The night mode shots were interesting, if only to see the differences betwixt them. It'southward strange to say that the S21 Plus' prototype is brighter than the iPhone'south. It'southward also a bit sharper with meliorate colors. The iPhone 13 Pro's Night Mode should have surpassed the Galaxy S21 Plus', only in this virtually pitch black scene (to my eye), it did not.
I establish this incredibly surprising, and I noticed a similar matter with the iPhone 13 mini (which faced off against the regular Milky way S21). Apple tree touted improvements to Nighttime Mode — which as well works on the ultrawide and telephoto cameras now — and then seeing the results here, which speak for themselves, left me flabbergasted.
Apple tree talked upwardly the new macro mode that uses the ultrawide lens to accept photos of subjects at up to two cm away. I tried this out on this yellow flower, getting pretty close to it. Overall, the image looks pretty good, with precipitous details and on-point focus. Compare this to the Galaxy S21 Plus, where I just used the zoom lens to become close. Here you lot tin can come across soft focus, colors that are too warm, weak dissimilarity that makes the image look apartment.
The iPhone's motion picture could apply some work in mail-processing to be presentable, only it ultimately shows that a phone doesn't need a dedicated macro lens to take some absurd pictures.
The macro mode is an automatic switch, only Apple says, "A new setting will be added in a software update this fall to turn off automatic camera switching when shooting at close distances for macro photography and video." Equally it stands the macro mode tin be fiddly to use, with information technology being fussy and jerky when triggering automatically, but Apple is working on a prepare.
Finally, the iPhone 13 Pro features a 12MP front camera with support for Dark Style selfies. It captured the proper amount of warmness from the scene, which made my blood-red face stand up out. But at the same time, the Galaxy S21 Plus produced a cooler image with my optics being a bit brighter. Information technology also seemed to do ameliorate with the harsh backlighting.
Standard
Rich Contrast
Vibrant
Warm
Cool
Standard
Rich Contrast
Vibrant
Warm
Cool
Standard
Rich Contrast
Vibrant
Warm
Cool
The iPhone 13 Pro includes Photographic Styles — essentially preset filters, though calling them just that would be a disservice. Each mode appears in real-time, letting you observe the correct lighting and color residual option to match the artistic expect you're going for. From Vibrant to Loftier Contrast, these modes offer new ways of taking pictures without applying filters after the fact. These work on both the front end and rear cameras. Above is a gallery of the default way and the four options you become out of the box — y'all tin can customize them to your liking later.
iPhone 13 Pro review: Video
For the last several years, the iPhone has been the phone to get if y'all cared almost video recording. New with the iPhone 13 Pro is Cinematic Mode, which is essentially the portrait video we heard rumors about. This new mode is much more than that, though, offering a truly professional person and artistic mode to shoot videos. Cinematic Fashion not only applies a bokeh consequence around the subject field, merely it tracks said bailiwick every bit you shoot.
For example, it tin tell when a subject enters or leaves the frame, dynamically shifting the focus accordingly. Or if the subject looks backside them, the iPhone 13 Pro volition shift to the expanse that the person is looking at. In this mode, you can record at 1080p 30 fps. Cinematic Mode is really absurd in practice, and expertly shows off the power of the A15 Bionic'due south Neural Engine, but I'thou not sure how frequently an average user will take advantage of it.
For a more traditional video approach, the iPhone 13 Pro supports Dolby Vision HDR at upwards to 4K threescore fps. You tin can too shoot in the ProRes format, which lends itself well to professional-grade editing — which yous can also edit on the iPhone 13 Pro, thank you to the phone'due south processing power. However, ProRes in 4K thirty fps is only available on the 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB iPhone xiii Pro models. The 128GB version is express to 1080p at thirty fps for ProRes.
To learn more, see our tutorial on how to record ProRes video on the iPhone 13 Pro series.
iPhone thirteen Pro review: Operation
New with the iPhone 13 series is the A15 Bionic system-on-bit. Information technology features a half dozen-core CPU and a v-cadre GPU on the Pro models, plus an upgraded Neural Engine. (The iPhone xiii and iPhone thirteen mini make do with quad-core GPUs). Paired with 6GB of RAM, the iPhone 13 Pro is a veritable powerhouse, leagues ahead of the best Android has to offer. The A15 crushes the Snapdragon 888 and further proves the quality of Apple's deft hand with silicon.
The iPhone xiii Pro's graphical prowess is not to be underestimated. The GPU in the A15 Bionic is powerful, with Apple claiming it's 50% faster than the competition (likely referring to the Snapdragon 888 and its Adreno 660 GPU). It's difficult to measure existent-world gaming performance since iOS doesn't allow you track framerates in games, but the more intensive titles like Genshin Touch on and Asphalt nine look swell on the iPhone 13 Pro.
| iPhone 13 Pro | Galaxy S21 Plus | iPhone 12 Pro | |
| Geekbench 5 (single / multi-core) | 1733 / 4718 | 1116 / 3300 | 1585 / 3669 |
| Adobe Premiere Rush (Mins:Secs) | 0:26 | one:00 | 0:27 |
| 3DMark Wild Life Unlimted (Score / FPS) | 11,963 / seventy | 5571 / 33.3 | 8619 / 51 |
| 3DMark Wild Life Extreme Unlimited (Score / FPS) | 2766 / 16.5 | 1447 / viii.5 | Not measured |
I included the iPhone 12 Pro in this comparison so that y'all could meet the generational improvement from concluding year. Not only has the A15 Bionic improved over the A14, but information technology is several leaps alee of the Snapdragon 888 in the Milky way S21 Plus. Nothing in Android land can hold a candle to the A15, even if synthetic benchmarks aren't necessarily analogous to real life.
Using Adobe Premiere Blitz, we try to become a sense of real-world performance by having a phone transcode a 4K video file to 1080p. The iPhone 12 Pro could already knock out the test in a blistering 27 seconds while the Galaxy S21 Plus lags far behind at a flat minute. The iPhone 13 Pro managed to perform the transcode in only 26 seconds. It'southward not a huge leap over the A14-equipped iPhone 12 Pro, merely it furthers Apple'due south lead over Qualcomm.
3DMark's Wild Life is a graphics benchmark, and I included the original and Extreme test results. The Farthermost Unlimited benchmark brings any phone to its knees, even the iPhone 13 Pro. But the boilerplate framerate in the original Wild Life Unlimited test shows a huge boost over the A14, and a massive step alee of the Galaxy S21 Plus.
This all to say, the iPhone xiii Pro is the most powerful phone you tin get right now (along with its big blood brother, the iPhone 13 Pro Max). Android and its multitude of devices certainly have their own strengths, but the hardware backing the ecosystem has a hard time keeping upwards with Apple tree's own chips.
Check out our iPhone 13 benchmarks page to run into how the iPhone xiii Pro and all the new iPhones compare to each other and the Android phone competition.
Apple tree upgraded its phones' 5G capabilities this year, furthering the steps made with the iPhone 12 series. The iPhone 13 Pro features more 5G bands this time effectually, meaning it tin can work more places and on more than carriers. Smart Data Manner returns, letting your telephone switch to LTE when 5G isn't needed (and theoretically saving on battery life).
Nosotros're still in the early days of 5G and, thank you to some rollout issues, it's not ever an improved experience everywhere yous go. Just that's a carrier trouble. Rest bodacious that the iPhone thirteen Pro has the hardware chops to handle future network improvements.
iPhone thirteen Pro review: Battery life and charging
We don't know the iPhone 13 Pro's battery capacity because Apple doesn't disclose that information. Teardowns will fill in that info, but we do know from Apple that at that place's bigger batteries in this year's iPhones.
To that end, Apple says the iPhone 13 Pro lasts up to i.v hours longer than the iPhone 12 Pro. Apple is usually fairly bourgeois in its battery life estimates, so I was excited to come across how the new telephone would perform in the Tom'due south Guide battery exam, where we force a phone to endlessly reload web pages on a cellular connection until it dies.
The larger battery in the iPhone xiii Pro certainly pays off, increasing the telephone'due south longevity by nearly three hours over its predecessor and more than than 2 hours longer than the Galaxy S21 Plus for a total time of xi hours and 42 minutes. For reference, the last iPhone hit 9 hours and 6 minutes while the Milky way S21 Plus managed 9 hours and 41 minutes.
This is a major do good for people looking to upgrade, seeing as the iPhone 13 Pro landed on our best phone battery life listing even with an adaptive display and power-hungry 5G connectivity. Seeing such a jump over the iPhone 12 Pro'due south lackluster bombardment life is certainly impressive — fifty-fifty the Galaxy S21 Plus tin can't compare.
Head over to our iPhone 13 battery life results page to encounter how the iPhone thirteen Pro compares to the other new iPhones and the best Android phones.
Unfortunately, Apple hasn't figured out how to include faster charging on this phone. The iPhone 13 Pro maxes out at 20W wired and 15W via MagSafe. In a globe where the OnePlus 9 Pro can charge at 65W over a cablevision or at 50W wirelessly — or where Xiaomi has gotten to 120W — Apple's paltry offering is but disappointing. The iPhone 12 Pro just hit 53% in 30 minutes in our testing.
The iPhone 13 Pro still uses a Lightning connector instead of USB-C, which even the new iPads employ. At that place'due south no charger in the box either, standing a tendency Apple started with the iPhone 12 release.
iPhone 13 Pro review: Software and iOS 15
The iPhone 13 Pro ships with iOS fifteen. Nosotros've covered the latest version of Apple tree'due south mobile OS quite extensively since nosotros got our hands on the beta over the grade of the summer. At that place are quite a few features to take annotation of, such as a tweak to notifications, Live Text/Visual Expect Up, Focus, FaceTime enhancements, and improvements to many of the cadre apps. I encourage you to cheque out our extensive coverage of the update, including our iOS fifteen review and our expect at the current iOS 15.2 update.
I didn't observe any iPhone 13-specific software features (other than the camera and video stuff I mentioned earlier), but I remember iOS 15 is best experienced on the iPhone 13 Pro because of the ProMotion brandish and the A15 Bionic chip. That'south ordinarily the case — the newest hardware runs the latest software version the best and shows off everything it has to offer.
If y'all accept an Apple tree Scout, we practice advise you lot proceed with caution if you're going to buy an iPhone thirteen Pro right away, equally a caveat with on the software side of things in that it appears iPhone 13 models are having a problem unlocking with the Apple Lookout man. However, this issue doesn't announced to be affecting every single user and Apple tree has officially acknowledged the problem and a fix may already be available.
I of the best things most iOS is how developers have embraced the platform and continue to make great apps for Apple devices. We'd advise loading upwards on some of the all-time iPhone apps or, if you're new to the platform, grabbing the best apps for a new iPhone.
iPhone 13 Pro known problems
Every bit is often the case with a new telephone release, iPhone 13 owners have already encountered a few issues. For example, some iPhone 13 users are finding that the telephone won't unlock with an Apple Watch, though a set is on the way. There are also issues with the bear upon brandish reportedly not being responsive enough in some cases, though that could exist an iOS 15 issue rather than an iPhone thirteen i.
As far every bit the iPhone thirteen Pros go, there are complaints that the cameras are automatically switching betwixt lenses without alert; an update that volition enable users to turn this off is said to be coming. Plus, the ProMotion displays on the iPhone 13 Pros are not running at 120Hz with some apps, which Apple volition be addressing in an update. And developers need to optimize their apps as well.
See our iPhone 13 problems roundup for more info.
iPhone xiii Pro review: Verdict
The iPhone 13 Pro and its bigger brother are the best phones you can purchase right now. This smaller Pro model is amend suited for people who balk at larger phones. The battery life has vastly improved over by iPhone models, which is a serious point in this device'due south favor. And Apple tree has proven its prowess with cameras, with the iPhone xiii Pro producing some cute photos and videos.
I accept two gripes with this phone, though. I'd like to see faster charging, just more than importantly, I really wanted to see Affect ID this year. Despite the annoyance of unlocking the iPhone 13 Pro manually, and a second time to utilise Apple Pay, though, the iPhone thirteen Pro has basically everything else going for it.
Of course, you might decide to look for the iPhone 14 before you upgrade from your current Apple phone; if then check, out the vii biggest upgrades we want to see from the iPhone xiv.
Merely, if you desire the absolute all-time experience on a phone possible right now, this is the device to go. Bold you lot're used to iOS, you won't be disappointed.
Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/reviews/iphone-13-pro
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