At its “Wonderlust” event in September 2023, Apple unveiled the iPhone 15 lineup, which includes the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max.
Here, we’ll compare the two phones with 6.1-inch displays from the lineup—the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro—diving into the differences across their features to help you make an informed purchase decision.
Pricing and Storage Options
While rumors hinted at price increases for the iPhone 15 Pro lineup, Apple has stuck with the same pricing tiers as before, at least in the United States. The standard iPhone 15 will start at $799, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro will start at $999, demanding an additional $200 for its titanium build and premium features.
As for internal storage, Apple offers 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB storage options for both models, but the iPhone 15 Pro gets an additional 1TB option.
Design, Display, and Colors
Althoughthe iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Proresemble each other in more than one way, there are a few design differences involving the display, build, colors, and camera hardware on the back.
Focusing on the build first, the iPhone 15 features an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro uses titanium, moving away from the stainless steel frame that we’re familiar with. While the former doesn’t see much reduction in weight, the iPhone 15 Pro is now roughly 10% lighter due to the new material.
As for colors, Apple gives iPhone 15 buyers five options—Black, Blue, Green, Pink, and Yellow—all featuring a matte back glass. These colors are more fun despite the pastel aesthetic.
On the other hand, the iPhone 15 Pro comes in four titanium finishes—Natural Titanium, Black Titanium, Blue Titanium, and White Titanium. If you’re looking for a hint of stealth in your smartphone, the Pro series does have it down with its color choices.
If you put the iPhone 15 next to the iPhone 15 Pro, you’ll notice that the standard model sportsthe Dynamic Island cutoutand that both phones can reach 2,000 nits outdoors. So, a few distinctions that favored the Pro iPhone models in 2022 don’t exist anymore.
But there are still two differences between the Super Retina XDR OLED panels that Apple uses here that make the iPhone 15 Pro the better pick: smaller bezels and support forProMotion adaptive refresh rate.
Performance
Moving on to performance, the iPhone 15 features the A16 Bionic from the iPhone 14 Pro, while the iPhone 15 Pro features the all-new A17 Pro chip built on a 3nm fabrication process. Apple claims the A17 Pro delivers 10% faster CPU performance than the A16 Bionic, while its 6-core GPU is 20% more powerful with support for hardware-accelerated ray tracing.
The iPhone 15 Pro will undoubtedly provide a more enjoyable experience forthe best mobile games available. But that’s not all; it can also flex its muscles on console-quality games like Death Stranding, Resident Evil Village, and Assassin’s Creed Mirage.
Camera Comparison
The camera hardware on an iPhone is seen as a key selling point with the launch of each generation. Fortunately, Apple has bumped the resolution of the standard iPhone 15’s main camera, almost bringing it on par with the iPhone 15 Pro models.
The iPhone 15 features a dual-camera setup that includes a 48MP wide and 12MP ultrawide lens, where the former supports sensor-shift stabilization to improve image quality. The iPhone 15 Pro’s triple-camera setup comprises a 48MP wide, 12MP ultrawide, and 12MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom.
The two devices also share many newly introduced software add-ons like the next-gen Portrait mode with Focus and Depth Control and Smart HDR 5. Front-facing camera hardware remains identical for another year, with both phones defaulting to a 12MP shooter with autofocus support.
Battery Life and Charging
Although Apple hasn’t officially revealed the battery capacities of the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models, it claims that the iPhone 15 can deliver up to 20 hours of video playback on a single charge, while the iPhone 15 Pro can last for up to 23 hours while watching videos. you’re able to thank the latter’s adaptive refresh rate display for its slightly higher battery life.
When it comes to audio playback, though, the standard iPhone 15 has the edge, lasting five hours longer than the iPhone 15 Pro, according to Apple’s estimates.
In terms of charging speeds, Apple doesn’t favor one phone over the other as they’re both rated to charge up to 50% within 30 minutes as long as you’re using a power adapter that provides 20W of power. Both models also support 15W MagSafe and 7.5W Qi wireless charging.
The iPhone 15 Packs a Decent Punch!
In 2022, the iPhone 14 Pro offered a lot more value for its $200 price increase over the iPhone 14. Though, in 2023, that’s not the case.
Although the iPhone 15 Pro sports a titanium build, ships with a better processor, and has a more versatile set of cameras, the iPhone 15 at $799 packs enough of a punch as it brings an air of modernity with its design and its processing power won’t leave you wanting for more in daily use cases.
