Apple iPhone 12 Pro vs 13 Pro: Is the Upgrade Worth It?

When it comes time to replace your old phone, the Apple iPhone 12 Pro and the Apple iPhone 13 Pro are both excellent options. You may even have a 12 Pro that you’re thinking of trading in to help you buy a 13 Pro.

Either way, the question is whether or not the Apple iPhone 13 Pro is enough of an upgrade that buying the newer model makes sense. While the 13 Pro does bring significant improvements in terms of graphics performance and photo quality, are they worth the price of upgrading? Read on to find out.

The iPhone 12 Pro launched on October 23, 2020, while the iPhone 13 Pro followed on September 24, 2021. Though both phones are now a few generations old, they remain capable devices – and the differences between them are worth understanding if you’re deciding which to buy or trade in.

The iPhone 13 Pro starts at $999 for 128GB, with 256GB at $1,099 and 512GB at $1,299. One of the more subtle but appreciated design changes is the notch, which Apple made 20% smaller on the 13 Pro compared to the 12 Pro. The 13 Pro also pushes peak brightness to 1,200 nits, a notable jump from the 12 Pro’s 800 nits, making it significantly easier to use outdoors in direct sunlight.

On the performance side, the A15 Bionic chip in the 13 Pro handles 15.8 trillion operations per second through its Neural Engine, compared to 11 trillion on the A14 Bionic in the 12 Pro – a 40%+ increase. Real-world benchmark results back this up, with the 13 Pro scoring 4,718 in Geekbench 5 multi-core tests versus the 12 Pro’s 3,669, roughly a 30% improvement.

Camera upgrades are another strong reason to consider the move. The ultra-wide camera aperture widened from f/2.4 on the 12 Pro to f/1.8 on the 13 Pro, delivering approximately 92% better low-light performance on that lens alone. Battery life also improved, with Apple claiming around 1.5 hours more daily use from the 13 Pro.

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Apple iPhone 12 Pro vs Apple iPhone 13 Pro Overview

It’s important to use clear, measurable criteria when comparing phone models to decide which is best. We’ve established four key criteria to compare the characteristics, quality, and performance of both phones. These are design, hardware, display, and camera.

• Design and Weight: The design of a smartphone can be a significant factor in your choice. While the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro are close to physically identical, there are subtle differences that might impact your preference – including a 20% smaller notch on the 13 Pro.
• Hardware: Hardware plays a pivotal role in your smartphone experience. Hardware covers areas like battery power, storage, and the CPU and GPU. While the Apple iPhone 13 Pro offers a modest CPU improvement, it delivers a significant leap in GPU power and Neural Engine performance that improves performance in visually and computationally demanding tasks.
• Display: The display is a critical component of any smartphone. Both models feature 6.1-inch OLED panels, but the 13 Pro introduces an adaptive refresh rate and a jump from 800 nits to 1,200 nits peak brightness that significantly improves display quality.
• Camera: The camera system is a major selling point for Apple users, and it’s one area where Apple remains consistently ahead of the competition. While the Apple iPhone 12 Pro has solid camera quality with a telephoto lens and 3x optical zoom, the Apple iPhone 13 Pro introduced long-awaited features like macro photography, Cinematic Mode, and a 92% improvement in low-light photography.

Naturally, the iPhone 13 Pro is at least a bit better than the iPhone 12 Pro in virtually every way. There’s no question of which phone is better, but it does have to be shown whether the iPhone 13 Pro is enough of an upgrade to justify the buy.

Overall, the iPhone 13 Pro is an iterative upgrade on the iPhone 12 Pro, rather than a revolution. In terms of design and core processing power, it’s mostly the same as the already-capable iPhone 12 Pro. But it offers meaningful improvements in storage, battery life, display brightness, and especially camera quality.

Improved low-light capabilities, custom photographic styles, adaptive refresh rates, and new features like Cinematic Mode and macro photography help make the case for the Apple iPhone 13 Pro.

Whether or not it makes sense to make the upgrade will require taking a deeper look at the two phones, though.

Specification / iPhone 12 Pro / iPhone 13 Pro

Dimensions (mm) / 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.4 / 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.65

Weight (grams) / 189 / 204

Processor / A14 Bionic / A15 Bionic

RAM / 6GB / 6GB

Storage Options / 128GB, 256GB, 512GB / 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

Main Camera / Triple 12MP / Triple 12MP

Ultra-Wide Camera / f/2.4 aperture / f/1.8 aperture

Front Camera / 12MP / 12MP

Peak Brightness / 800 nits / 1,200 nits

Battery Life / Up to 11 hours of streamed video / Up to 20 hours of streamed video

Design

In terms of design, the iPhone 13 Pro mostly retains the look and feel of its predecessor. It’s slightly larger to accommodate a larger battery, as well as a smoother camera bump. One noticeable refinement is the notch, which Apple slimmed down by 20% compared to the iPhone 12 Pro.

Overall, the appearance of the Apple iPhone 13 Pro is slightly sleeker and more seamless in comparison to the 12 Pro, but they’re both equally functional in your hand. Both models have ceramic shield glass, stainless steel construction, and a range of finishes available.

In all, the only real disadvantage of the 13 Pro is that the larger battery makes it slightly heavier than the 12 Pro. However, the added battery life more than makes up for it.

Hardware

When it comes to hardware, the iPhone 13 Pro builds upon the foundation set by its predecessor, the iPhone 12 Pro, with several key improvements. While it’s mostly an iterative step forward, there are a few significant areas where the 13 Pro pulls ahead.

Here’s a closer look at how the iPhone 13 Pro’s hardware stacks up to its predecessor:

RAM

RAM is one area where the Apple iPhone 13 Pro fails to improve on the 12 Pro, as both have 6GB of RAM. While this is adequate for everyday tasks, it’s not a differentiator between the two models. However, the 13 Pro scores points elsewhere with sizeable upgrades in internal storage and chip performance.

Internal Storage

Both the 12 and 13 Pro come in a variety of configurations starting at 128GB of storage for all your photos, videos, apps, music, and other content. However, the 13 Pro has a higher maximum limit than the 12 Pro.

The Apple iPhone 12 Pro maxes out at 512GB, which is a respectable amount of storage. However, it’s not difficult to fill that capacity over time. The Apple iPhone 13 Pro offers nearly twice the storage ceiling, with a 1TB option available – a first for the Pro line at that time. If you’re wondering how much phone storage you actually need, it depends on your usage habits.

CPU

While the iPhone 12 Pro uses the A14 Bionic chip, the 13 Pro uses the A15 Bionic chip. In Geekbench 5 multi-core testing, the 13 Pro scored approximately 4,718 compared to the 12 Pro’s 3,669 – roughly a 30% improvement. That said, the CPU gains in isolation are the more modest part of the A15’s performance story.

For most everyday processor-intensive tasks, the difference may not be immediately apparent, but it contributes to a snappier and more future-proof experience overall.

GPU

Where the A15 Bionic chip makes a more dramatic statement is in GPU performance. It offers up to 30% better GPU performance than the A14, which translates into smoother and better-looking results in gaming, streaming, and other visually demanding tasks.

Neural Engine

One often-overlooked upgrade is the A15’s Neural Engine, which processes 15.8 trillion operations per second – more than a 40% increase over the A14’s 11 trillion operations per second. This directly powers features like Cinematic Mode, enhanced computational photography, and on-device machine learning tasks, making the 13 Pro noticeably smarter in how it handles complex software features.

Battery Life

The standout improvement of the Apple iPhone 13 Pro’s hardware is its impressive battery capacity. While the iPhone 12 Pro offers up to 11 hours of video streaming on a single charge, the iPhone 13 Pro nearly doubles that figure.

The iPhone 13 Pro delivers up to 20 hours of video streaming, and Apple noted it provides approximately 1.5 hours more real-world daily battery life compared to the 12 Pro – a meaningful difference for anyone who relies heavily on their phone throughout the day.

Despite not being a dramatic redesign, the Apple iPhone 13 Pro has many quality-of-life improvements that make it a better and more enjoyable phone to use day to day.

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Display

While the Apple iPhone 13 Pro shares the same 6.1-inch OLED form factor as the 12 Pro, it incorporates several meaningful display upgrades. The most notable is ProMotion, which introduces a variable refresh rate that dynamically adjusts the screen between 10Hz and 120Hz depending on what’s on screen.

This results in smoother scrolling and enhanced touch responsiveness, particularly noticeable when navigating through apps, using video playback, or playing games – a clear step up from the 12 Pro’s fixed 60Hz refresh rate.

Beyond refresh rate, the 13 Pro also jumps from 800 nits to 1,200 nits of peak brightness, making it significantly easier to view in direct sunlight and improving overall visual quality for HDR content.

Camera Quality: Macro Photography, Cinematic Mode, and More

The camera system is one of the most important elements of any smartphone, and industry-leading camera performance is a large part of what users turn to Apple for. At the baseline, there are many broad similarities between the Apple iPhone 12 and 13 Pro models.

Both have triple 12-megapixel camera systems, including a telephoto lens that supports 3x optical zoom. However, the 13 Pro comes with one major hardware improvement: the ultra-wide lens aperture widens from f/2.4 to f/1.8, allowing the camera to capture significantly more light. Apple confirmed this translates into a 92% improvement in low-light photography – a substantial real-world difference.

But where the iPhone 12 Pro and 13 Pro truly separate themselves is in software features and camera capabilities. Cinematic Mode is one of the 13 Pro’s landmark additions, using dynamic depth-of-field effects to automatically shift focus between subjects in video – producing results that previously required professional equipment.

Macro photography is another standout addition, dramatically improving the detail and quality of extreme close-up shots using the ultra-wide camera. Smart HDR 4 also makes its debut on the 13 Pro, intelligently optimizing exposure and detail for every face in a group photo.

In all, camera performance is the standout area where the iPhone 13 Pro most clearly outshines the iPhone 12 Pro – and remains one of the strongest reasons to consider the upgrade even years after both phones launched.

Pros and Cons of Upgrading to the Apple iPhone 13 Pro vs iPhone 12 Pro

There are a variety of reasons to upgrade to the Apple iPhone 13 Pro instead of the 12 Pro, or even to switch your 12 for the 13.

Here’s a quick rundown of the key points for and against upgrading to the iPhone 13 Pro:

Pros:

• Up to 1.5 hours more daily battery life than the iPhone 12 Pro
• ProMotion 120Hz display with up to 1,200 nits peak brightness (up from 800 nits)
• A15 Bionic chip processes over 15.8 trillion neural operations per second – a 40%+ jump over the A14
• ~30% multi-core performance improvement in benchmark testing
• Ultra-wide camera upgraded from f/2.4 to f/1.8, delivering ~92% better low-light performance
• Consistently great photo quality across all lighting conditions
• Smart HDR 4 with subject tracking for multiple individuals in a single photo
• Cinematic Mode for professional-looking video
• Photographic Styles for personalized, on-the-fly photo filtering
• 20% smaller notch than the iPhone 12 Pro

Cons:

• Relatively slow charging speeds compared to Android competitors
• No USB-C port – still uses Lightning (this wasn’t resolved until the iPhone 15 series in 2023)
• Slightly heavier than the iPhone 12 Pro
• Higher starting price at $999 for 128GB — see our guide to the best Apple iPhone model to buy if you’re weighing your options

Final Verdict: Is the iPhone 13 Pro Enough of an Upgrade?

Both iPhones are great choices, but the iPhone 13 Pro has many large and small advantages. At the end of the day, the deciding factor in choosing the right phone is going to be the price.

A used iPhone 12 Pro with 512 GB of storage in good condition goes for just under $500. Looking at a used iPhone 13 Pro with 1 TB of storage, you’ll be paying over $660. That’s not a world of difference, but it’s still a difference that needs to be justified.

However, the improvements seem to justify the upgrade in most cases. The iPhone 13 Pro’s adaptive refresh rate and roughly 30% greater multi-core performance will translate into a better, smoother experience for casual use and video streaming. The A15 Bionic’s Neural Engine also handles over 40% more operations per second than the A14 Bionic found in the 12 Pro. Likewise, everyone will appreciate the 1.5 extra hours of daily battery life that Apple says the iPhone 13 Pro offers over its predecessor.

If you’re someone who values photo and video quality, the 13 Pro’s upgraded camera system makes it no contest. The ultra-wide camera alone saw its aperture widen from f/2.4 to f/1.8, which Apple says translates to a 92% improvement in low-light photography.

The 13 Pro also brings a noticeably better display experience, with peak brightness jumping from 800 nits on the 12 Pro to 1,200 nits — a meaningful difference in outdoor visibility. Even smaller touches, like the 20% smaller notch, add up to a noticeably more refined device overall.

Need Help Making the Upgrade? Gazelle is Here to Help You and the Environment

Finding the money to make the upgrade to a new phone can be difficult. That’s where Gazelle comes into play; we’ll buy your old phone and hook you up with a great price on a newer model. Not only do you save money on upgrading to a new phone, but your old phone won’t end up in a drawer, or worse – a landfill. Do yourself and the environment a favor; trade in your current phone and buy your next one with Gazelle.

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