News, specs, and release date for iPhone 13
After being announced at the September 14 Apple event, the iPhone 13 series is now official. Including the all-important pricing and release date, we have all the details on the new handsets.
We’ve outlined the differences between the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Mini below, along with detailed information about each model. The new Pro and Pro Max models boast a 120Hz display, up to 1TB of storage, and a new camera that sounds impressive.
When and how much is the iPhone 13 expected to cost?
At the company’s big launch event on September 14, Apple announced the iPhone 13 series, and you will be able to pre-order the phones from Friday, September 17.
In contrast to the iPhone 12 series, which will be available on separate days in 2020, Apple’s iPhone 13 series will be available in their entirety on September 24.
Starting at $799 / £779 / AU$1,349, the iPhone 13 starts at $699 / £679 / AU$1,199, and the iPhone 13 mini starts at $699 / £679 / AU$1,199. In the US and Australia, that’s for a 128GB storage model, which is the same price as the 64GB model of the iPhone 12 from last year. There’s actually a slight price difference between the launch prices of the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 12 mini in the UK.
| US | UK | Australia | |
| iPhone 13 mini 128GB | $699 | £679 | AU$1,199 |
| iPhone 13 mini 256GB | $799 | $779 | AU$1,369 |
| iPhone 13 mini 512GB | $999 | £979 | AU$1,719 |
| iPhone 13 128GB | $799 | £779 | AU$1,349 |
| iPhone 13 256GB | $899 | $879 | AU$1,519 |
| iPhone 13 512GB | $1,099 | £1,079 | AU$1,869 |
While the iPhone 13 Pro costs $949 / £1,049 / AU$1,699, the iPhone 13 Pro Max goes for $1,099 / £1,049 / AU$1,849. Prices are also the same for 128GB models, though we are seeing a £50 discount in the UK as opposed to last year with the iPhone 12 series.
| US | UK | Australia | |
| iPhone 13 Pro 128GB | $999 | £949 | AU$1,699 |
| iPhone 13 Pro 256GB | $1,099 | $1,049 | AU$1,869 |
| iPhone 13 Pro 512GB | $1,299 | £1,249 | AU$2,219 |
| iPhone 13 Pro 1TB | $1,499 | £1,449 | AU$2,569 |
| iPhone 13 Pro Max 128GB | $1,099 | £1,049 | AU$1,849 |
| iPhone 13 Pro Max 256GB | $1,199 | £1,149 | AU$2,019 |
| iPhone 13 Pro Max 512GB | $1,399 | £1,349 | AU$2,369 |
| iPhone 13 Pro Max 1TB | $1,599 | £1,549 | AU$2,719 |
iPhone 13 design and display
Unlike the iPhone 12 series, there is no notch on the iPhone 13. The iPhone 13 is made of the same ceramic shield glass as the iPhone 12 series. Additionally, this item is IP68 dust and waterproof (to a depth of 6 meters for 30 minutes).
A total of five new colors are available, including Pink, Blue, Midnight, Starlight, and Product Red.
Users of the iPhone 12 series will likely recognize the design from its predecessor. Despite the notch being slightly smaller – Apple claims 20% smaller – there’s still a bit of screen space left.
The device is a little thicker than last year’s models, measuring 7.65mm vs. 7.4mm in their predecessors.
On the other hand, the iPhone 13 mini boasts a 5.4-inch screen with a resolution of 1080 x 2340, while the iPhone 13 features a 6.1-inch screen with a resolution of 1170 x 2532. In each case, Apple uses its own custom OLED technology to create Super Retina XDR displays.
The devices still have 60Hz screen refresh rates, which is in line with rumours.
I am now going to talk about the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max. A Sierra blue or a graphite handset is available for both devices. The last color is a new one, and we’ve never seen anything like it on a Pro iPhone.
There are a few changes to the design of the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max, including the addition of stainless steel edges.
With this device, you’ll get a new Super Retina XDR display that can reach 1,000 nits in the sun. It also supports 120Hz refresh rate.
This is the first time an iPhone has demonstrated such rapid refresh rates. You will notice smoother images when you scroll through your social media feeds or articles.
The frame rate of your iPhone automatically adjusts according to the content you’re looking at. The technology used in Android phones is similar to what we’ve seen on previous iPad models.
Both the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max have 6.1-inch screens with 1170 x 2532 resolution, whereas they have 6.7-inch screens with 1284 x 2778 resolution.
With the return of MagSafe, you can use any accessory you bought last year for your iPhone 12, while some new accessories are available as well.
iPhone 13 camera
Rather than having the lenses arranged vertically, the iPhone 13 has them arranged diagonally for the first time.
This camera has a wide-angle camera and an ultra-wide camera of 12MP each. Apple claims both cameras are superior to its iPhone 12’s camera, which has a sensor that Apple claims is new.
An f/1.6 aperture is available on the wide camera, and an f/2.4 aperture is available on the ultra-wide camera.
There are three 12MP cameras in the iPhone 13 Pro duo with new sensors and lenses. An ultra-wide camera has an f/1.8 aperture, an ultra-wide camera has an f/1.5 aperture, and a telephoto camera has an f/2.8 aperture.
The latter camera has a 77mm zoom lens and a 3x optical zoom range, a 2x optical zoom out range, and a 6x optical zoom range, as well as a digital zoom of up to 15x.
Apple claims the iPhone 13 Pro’s main camera is 2.2 times better in low light than the iPhone 12 Pro, and the iPhone 13 Pro Max’s camera is 1.5 times better than the iPhone 12 Pro Max. For the first time on an iPhone, the ultra-wide camera appears to perform 92% better in low light than its predecessors.
ProRes video will be available on the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max later this year. Video shooters can use this format, first released in 2007, to encode video footage for faster editing in applications like Final Cut Pro.
Also within the camera app, it allows recording 4K/30fps video in ProRes, though oddly not when you select a 128GB model – ProRes can only be recorded at 1080p.
As part of the new iPhone 13 models, you can also select how to apply adjustments, such as changing the exposure, to add a customized look to your photos. Also included is a Cinematic mode, which produces depth effects and transitions between video clips.
Additionally, all three phones have a front-facing 12MP camera with f/2.2, which is similar to the predecessors.
iPhone 13 specs and performance
Apple claims the iPhone 13 series has a 50% faster CPU and 30% faster GPU than its competitors thanks to its A15 Bionic chipset. Moreover, 16.8 trillion operations per second can be performed by its 16-core Neural Engine.
The four handsets listed above are all 5G-compatible, as were the iPhone 12 models.
Apple will offer 128GB, 256GB, or 512GB of storage in the iPhone 13 duo – the 64GB option has been dropped from Apple’s flagship models, meaning that the cheapest model will have more storage.
As far as Pro iPhones are concerned, you’ll be able to choose from 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, and – a new addition to iPhone – 1TB models.
iPhone 13 battery life
All iPhone 13 devices will have longer battery lives, according to Apple’s announcement. There will be a 90-minute difference in battery life between the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 12 Pro.
iPhone 13 battery life will be 2.5 hours longer than iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro Max, according to Apple. Pro Max battery life will be the longest of any iPhone.
As for specific life, the iPhone 13 mini is said to have a 17-hour battery life, while the iPhone 13 is said to have a 19- hour battery life. The iPhone 13 Pro has a battery life of 22 hours, and the iPhone 13 Pro Max has a battery life of 28 hours.
Many of these improvements are the result of new A15 chipsets and iOS 15 software. Until we open up a handset and find out manually, we won’t know the iPhone 13’s battery size. Apple has yet to confirm the size of the battery in certain iPhone 13 models.
With any iPhone 13 model, you won’t get a charger in the box, as with the iPhone 12 series. If you don’t have a charger, you can buy one separately or use wireless charging.
Each of the four models offers up to 15W of wireless charging, which is still quite slow compared to some Android devices.