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The iPhone 15 Pro is the smaller, more "pocketable" version of the two new Pro handsets released by Apple this year.
The biggest difference between the two is that the 15 Pro Max has a new tetraprism lens with 5x optical zoom suited for shooting subjects at a distance, and a visibly larger size means a bigger battery.
We’ve been testing the regular 15 Pro for the last few weeks. Although it is 6.1 inches, it is not a small phone.
What’s new in the iPhone 15 Pro?
Apple also made another change to the 15 Pro: it is now made from titanium instead of stainless steel, making it 19g lighter, though I didn’t notice a big difference because my phone always has a cover.
The A17 Pro chipset is meant to handle gaming better, though my battery life is too precious to throw everything at it. I already use it primarily to shoot and edit videos.
The new action button takes some time to get used to, apart from being awkward to reach. I temporarily made it my focus mode to easily toggle do not disturb, and it has since stuck. It can be used for functions such as torches, voice memos, shortcuts, magnifiers and accessibility features.
Now, back to that major switch to USB-C. I loved it on my recent travels because it minimised the number of cables I packed. It’s convenient and I can share cables for my Macbook Air and iPad mini. The downside? I’m sitting with a bunch of accessories and lightning cables that are of no use to me.
Day-to-day usage
The iPhone 15 Pro suffered from overheating issues, which have been widely reported. I experienced it before Apple rolled out a software fix with iOS 17.0.3.
The update helped, but what I’m now experiencing is my phone heating up while it's charging and I need to use it. Subsequently, when it reaches the 80% mark, it stops charging. This is despite my charging optimisation settings being turned off, which have an 80% limit.
READ: Watch: Apple's new iPhone 15 glitches | It overheats, bends, changes colour
Other than that, it works smoothly and handles a lot based on my daily tasks. As a freelance writer, I treat my phone as a work tool. I have access to everything on it when I’m away from my laptop.
My most intensive task is shooting and editing videos solely on the phone. It handles this very well, though occasionally when I experience a tiny bit of lag, I close a bunch of apps that are opened in the background. You can easily forget to do it because it’s so efficient.
I did encounter a bug on the camera once when I took photos, and the image didn’t display on the whole screen. It showed as a crop with a large black background. At the time, I couldn’t find anything about it online, but it has since disappeared and I hope it stays that way.
When it comes to battery life, it’s safe to say it’s all relative. I push my phone to the max some days and even more frequently when I’m travelling. Plus, I run two mobile networks through an eSIM, and it’s connected to my Apple Watch.
On intensive days when I’m travelling and use Google Maps or on-demand cab services, I need a powerbank by afternoon. On the weekends, my phone lasts all day into the night. For the average user who doesn’t have heavy consumption habits, it is decent.
The upgraded cameras
The camera set-up is just like its predecessor. It consists of a 48MP main shooter, accompanied by two 12MP lenses for ultrawide and zooming, and a 12MP selfie-cam.
Toggling between the focal lengths makes a difference in the room you’re in and how well lit it is, and the type of photos you want to take.
Portrait mode has also received a significant upgrade; you can go into images after shooting to change the area of focus.
Gone are the days when you have pictures that are focused on the wrong subject. I found this new mode incredibly useful for food and product images I like shooting.
When it comes to videos, it now supports shooting in a log profile for colour grading. I’m not a pro videographer and didn’t need to use this, but it’s there if you want more control of your videos.
It works in ProRes mode, which also uses a lot of storage. But the USB-C port means you can shoot directly to an SSD through USB 3 speeds on the Pro line-up (the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus have USB 2 speeds).
Should you upgrade to the iPhone 15 Pro?
As mentioned in my previous reviews, consumers are holding on to phones for longer, arguably because they are being built better. If you have an iPhone 12 Pro or older, it may be time to consider a new phone.
The thing with Apple is it makes small changes to the iPhone every year, so it makes sense to hold on to your current device for more than the two-year upgrade cycle.
READ: Review: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 – A (flex) window into the future of content creation
Plus, Apple’s iOS support for older hardware is unmatched when compared with Android, making it easier to use your device for as long as it is supported with software updates.
For the average consumer, if you have an iPhone 13 Pro, you may not see it as a worthy upgrade and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Apple has also made significant upgrades to the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus, which should not be overlooked if you want value for money.
If you’re a content creator, aspiring videographer, mobile journalist or power user, the iPhone 15 Pro is the best iPhone you can buy.
