iPhone 13, 13 Pro Max first look: Apple’s biggest camera upgrade

Dubai - The iPhone 13 series is powered by the new A15 Bionic processor.

Apple has unveiled its new iPhone 13 line-up, and just like last year, we have four models to choose from: the iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max. While they differ in size and some features, they share a number of key upgrades, with one major innovation that would surely make them stand apart from the competition.

Externally, there are no significant differences between the iPhone 13 and its predecessor, except for the fact that the iPhone 13 mini and 13’s dual cameras are now in a diagonal design; Apple says this is the reason they were able to fit in more innovation into these two devices (which we will find out later). The camera blocks are also slightly bigger across all the four new devices and are a little heavier compared to last year’s phones.

The iPhone 13 mini and 13 come in pink, blue, midnight, starlight and red, and come in a glass finish, while the 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max come in silver, gold, graphite and this year’s unique color, Sierra Blue, and come in a matte finish. Apple also guarantees that these are the toughest iPhones by far, while still retaining its IP68 rating.

Another change is the notch in front, which is now 20% smaller in width. It may not be that remarkable, but it does somehow avoid the cramping of icons and text on both sides.

Going inside, the iPhone 13 series is powered by the new A15 Bionic processor. Apple says that it is 50% faster than others in the market, which makes it the “faster processor in a smartphone”. The unique and ultra-compact construction of the A15 — which has a 6-core CPU, 2 high performance cores and 4 high efficiency cores — allows it to fit 15 billion transistors. It also has a 4-core GPU that is 30% faster than the leading competition and ensures smooth handling of content such as gaming. It also has a new 16-core Neural Engine, which can crunch a whopping 15.8 trillion operations per second (up from 11 trillion on the A14), further boosting machine learning computations.

Battery life has also been improved, with Apple saying that the devices can last up to 1.5 hours more compared to the iPhone 12 series. This has been a hot request from users in previous iPhone models, and finally they’re getting what they deserve in order to do more.

And as mentioned above, the biggest upgrades are within its cameras: All four iPhone 13 devices now have Cinematic Mode, which brings new innovations to the table, a number of which haven’t been seen on a smartphone.

The iPhone 13 series have the biggest-ever camera update. With Cinematic Mode, so much more detail is captured thanks to what Apple calls next-level hardware, coupled with “superintelligent” software for new photo and filmmaking techniques. “It’ll change the way you shoot,” they say.

Cinematic Mode, which supports Dolby Vision HDR, allows users to shoot with a shallow field of depth and automatically add focus transitions between subjects. It can also anticipate when a new subject is about to enter the scene and bring them into focus. And with this, the iPhone 13 devices are the only smartphones in the world that lets you edit depth effects after a scene has been shot.

Macro photography and video are also now available on the iPhone 13, with a redesigned lens and an improved autofocus system that can take clear shots at as close as 2 centimeters from the subject.

Apple also boasts that its night mode has also been significantly improved, with up 2.2 per cent more light captured from its wide lens and 92% more light from its ultra wide lens for clearer night shots. The telephoto lens, on the other hand, now features a 77 millimeter focal length and 3x optical zoom.

The iPhone 13 devices will be available in the UAE starting on Friday, September 24, and starts at Dh2,999. Pre-orders are ongoing.

— business@khaleejtimes.com