Personal experience: a month with iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro

Specifications

Model	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
Frame	Aluminum + glass	Steel + glass
Screen	6, 1 ″, Super Retina XDR, 2,532 × 1,170 pixels, True Tone, brightness up to 625 cd / m²	6, 1 ″, Super Retina XDR, 2,532 × 1,170 pixels, True Tone, brightness up to 800 cd / m²
CPU	A14 Bionic + Neural Engine
Memory	RAM - 4 GB, ROM - 64/128/256 GB	RAM - 6 GB, ROM - 128/256/512 GB
Main camera	Main module - 12 Mp; wide-angle - 12 MP (120 °, OIS), sapphire crystal, Smart HDR 3; 4K video - up to 60 fps; Dolby Vision HDR video - 30 fps	Main module - 12 Mp; wide-angle - 12 MP (120 °, OIS); telephoto - 12 MP (OIS), LiDAR, sapphire crystal, Smart HDR 3; 4K video - up to 60 fps; Dolby Vision HDR video - 60 fps, Apple ProRAW
Zoom	Optical - 2x, digital - 5x	Optical - 4x, digital - 10x
Front-camera	12 MP + TrueDepth (Face ID), Smart HDR 3; 4K video - up to 60 fps; Dolby Vision HDR video - 30 fps
Communications	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, 5G
Navigation	GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS and BeiDou
Autonomy	Up to 17 hours of video, up to 11 hours of online video, up to 65 hours of music
Charger	Wired - Lightning up to 20W; wireless - Qi up to 7.5 W; MagSafe - up to 15W
Loudspeakers	Stereo
Moisture protection	IP68
Dimensions (edit)	146.7 × 71.5 × 7.4mm
The weight	162 g	187 g
Price	From 79,990 rubles	From 99,990 rubles

Design and ergonomics

For anyone who has ever owned an iPhone 5S, the 12 Series will bring a warm sense of nostalgia. Smartphones are compact, fit neatly in the hands and, in general, resemble the appearance of their predecessor. On the Web, they periodically ask themselves if the metal edges of the device cut the palms of the hands. So, they do not cut, do not rub, and are generally comfortable to use.

Photo: Kostya Ptichkin / Lifehacker

The iPhone 12 has a glossy lid and brushed aluminum edges, while the iPhone 12 Pro has a brushed case with shiny steel edges. The standard model turned out to be more of a brand: at first glance, this is not visible, but if you look closely, you can see specks of dust, fingerprints and everything that infuriates any decent neat so much.

For a month of use, we properly dropped the gadget only once, on the kitchen tile, but this was enough to slightly scratch the lid. The front panel was supposed to be protected by the Ceramic Shield coating, but after 30 days, subtle grooves appeared on it. In general, after each fall of the technique, the heart will tingle slightly.

IPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro lid scratches easily

The iPhone 12 Pro has shown itself to be more durable and less pretentious against the background of the standard model: no dirt is visible on the case, unless you have to wipe the edges more often. The gadget should be purchased immediately with a cover: this way you are less likely to scratch the strongly protruding triple camera unit.

iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro: the protruding triple camera unit is more vulnerable without a case

Both models are IP68 protected against splash and water. The smartphones passed the Moscow rain test and didn't get stuck for a second.

The rest of the design elements do not cause questions: the familiar apple is in the center, the certification mark is now on the side, there is no mini-jack, and the Lightning connector is used for charging.

iPhone 12 is available in five colors: black, white, red, green, and blue. The iPhone 12 Pro comes in four finer shades: Silver, Graphite, Gold, and Pacific Blue.

Summary: the design is nice and functional, but the smartphone will never be clean. It remains to choose between the splattered edges and the back cover. And yes, if you want an indestructible technique, the 12th series is not for you.

Screen

Both smartphones received 6, 1-inch Super Retina XDR screens with a resolution of 2,532 × 1,170 pixels, made using OLED technology. The difference is only in the stock of brightness: the iPhone 12 Pro has it higher, but with normal daily use it is not particularly felt. It is noteworthy that previously only premium models received the Super Retina display, but now the same is available for the standard model. HDR support is also available.

It's great to play on both smartphones, scroll through the news feed and watch YouTube: even dark videos look decent, since all the small details are different. Recall that while the iPhone 11 has a maximum brightness of 625 cd / m², in the case of the 12th model, the figures tend to 1200 cd / m² (HDR). The animation is pretty smooth, although the screen runs at 60Hz - we've seen numbers even higher.

The rich, bright display is a huge plus of the new series. It reproduces colors perfectly, does not glare on a sunny day and makes watching videos a pleasure.

Software, autonomy and performance

The 12-series smartphones are powered by the A14 Bionic processor, which the company claims is the fastest among the iPhones. It is responsible for high energy efficiency - up to 17 hours of video playback and up to 65 hours of music playback.

Both smartphones really work without blunts and do not need frequent recharging - all promises at Apple have kept. We recharged the devices on average once every two days. With a 15W adapter, charging is pretty quick. That would not have had to buy anything in addition!

Another plus: even under high load, gadgets do not heat up.

Sound and vibration

Both models have stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos support. The sound really feels rich and voluminous: both bass and mids are heard. True, it's still too early to use smartphones as portable speakers: we lacked the treble, as well as the volume margin. It is enough for everyday video viewing, but during a party, even a not too emotional conversation will drown out the music.

Vibration, unfortunately, no surprises: quite hard, loud and even slightly rattling. You are unlikely to miss a call in silent mode, but such a use case will quickly become annoying.

Camera

This is the most talked about element of new products, and absolutely deservedly so. iPhone 12 received a dual camera with a 12 megapixel main module and an ultra wide-angle lens for the same 12 megapixels. On the iPhone 12 Pro, this combination is complemented by a 12MP telephoto lens.

Shooting with an ultra wide angle lens

Shooting with a standard camera

Macro shot

Shooting with a standard camera in low light

Shooting with a standard camera in daylight

Shooting at night with a standard camera

Shooting at night with an ultra wide angle lens

Shooting at night with difficult lighting

In both cases, the company promised that smartphones will capture much more light (especially in dark rooms) and take pictures with better white balance and contrast thanks to Smart HDR 3 technology. There is also Deep Fusion, which also works to improve quality. It seems that it is because of her that shooting slows down during night photo shoots, but you get used to it.

Shooting with a standard camera

Ultra wide angle lens

Shooting with a standard camera

Ultra wide angle lens

The camera picks up the main color well and pulls up its shades

Macrophoto

Shooting at night with an ultra wide angle lens

Shooting at night with a standard camera

Macro photo at night

Shooting at night with a standard camera

Apple didn't lie. The novelties are really excellent at shooting: during the day they transmit even the smallest shades of color, in the evening they allow you to distinguish the details of the picture. With flickering objects, you don't have to do it again and again: buildings glittering in the dark still sometimes look overexposed, but if you fix the camera, you will succeed in the frame. A good picture is obtained thanks to neural networks, which seem to pull up the shades and allow you to make the photo more balanced and clear. Perhaps this is the main feature of Apple's new products: its race is not about megapixels.

In a country where nine months of the year are gray and where it gets dark in winter at five in the evening, Episode 12 allows you to make truly breakthrough shots - rich, bright and clear.

iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro guarantee high quality selfies

Selfies turn out decent too, even at night. In portrait mode, we were promised shots with a higher level of detail, but in practice this is not very noticeable. The bokeh effect is pleasant and soft. The only thing is that it is undesirable to take a photo with glasses in portrait mode: part of the frame is blurred along with the background.

Both smartphones can shoot 4K video in the top Dolby Vision standard, including the front-facing one. Looks great: the camera captures a maximum of objects even in the dark.

A distinctive feature of the iPhone 12 Pro is LiDAR technology, which scans the environment and more accurately captures the nuances of each photo plan. It is she who allows you to take cool portraits in night shooting mode and accelerates autofocus in low light. Also, thanks to her, you can shoot a video in Snapchat with an augmented reality filter and quite accurately measure growth through the Roulette application - we told you how. All in all, self-indulgence.

MagSafe

Another feature of the new products is the MagSafe technology. The case has magnets that allow you to securely hold the wireless charger or attach various accessories such as a wallet.

Wireless charging looks cosmic and connects instantly. For all the miracles, you will have to pay an additional 3,990 rubles. And yes, do not forget that the adapter will also need to be purchased. In this case, for the opportunity to feed the smartphone, the user will give a total of about 6 thousand rubles. Against this background, the ability to attach a wallet to a smartphone does not seem very significant: you stick a pocket, but there will be nothing to put there.

Outcomes

New smartphones have a lot of advantages and confirm the manufacturer's beautiful promises. It brings together a neat design, a bright display and the ability to take cool pictures, especially in the dark.

iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro have a lot of advantages

But somehow you can't close your eyes to the minuses: suddenly the case is too easily soiled and not very durable, the speakers are not loud enough, the need to buy an adapter, and there are many chips that an ordinary user is unlikely to fully appreciate now. The same LiDAR seems to be the company's investment in the future, as well as 5G in modern Russian realities.

iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro have received a large supply of features that seem to reveal their potential later. Now these are just very convenient smartphones with good cameras. Whether this convenience is worth 79,990 and 99,990 rubles is up to you.