iPhone 12 or 13?

[disneysteve]

Time for a new phone. I’ve been waiting for last week’s announcement of the 14 so the price would drop on the older models. Now I have to decide what to get. I believe the 13 was just better/faster/newer than the 12 without any major advances. Considering I’ve still got my 7, I doubt that the difference would be significant to me.

Do any of you know any strong reason to spend the extra money for the 13?

Please don’t bother responding to tell me about other phones. The only two considerations are the 12 and 13. I will definitely get one of those.

[Jluke]

What’s the price difference between the 12 and 13?

I imagine in the grand scheme it’s a rounding error for you and I would just go 13 so that you are only 1 model year behind and not two.

Since you don’t like replacing phones.

[QuarterMillionMan]

For both generations are you referring to the mini, SE, regular, Pro, or Pro Max. For my old-aged eyes I would need the Pro Max with the 6.7" screen, anything smaller and no dice for me.

[ua_guy]

When I upgrade my phone I typically try to go latest/greatest. I did that with an iPhone 12 Pro back in very early 2021, when I upgraded from an 8?. I think there was a 12 Max model available at the time, but the 12 Pro is already huge and the 12 Max felt like the size of a tablet. For that reason I stuck with the Pro model. I struggle to use my 12 Pro with one hand - phones are just getting HUGE.

There's nothing about the 13 or 14 which would inspire me to upgrade before the phone has reached the end of its service life. Battery life isn't much different with a 13 or 14, processors are faster, but the 12 is still very fast, and most of the enhancements don't add a lot of value for me, personally.

[disneysteve]

I never got latest/greatest and keep it until it dies. I got rid of my 3 when Apple stopped supporting it so the apps stopped working. I got rid of my 5 when the battery expanded and burst the case open. Now I’m getting rid of my 7 because the battery only lasts an hour or two.

Each time I bought a couple of models behind.

[disneysteve]

For both generations are you referring to the mini, SE, regular, Pro, or Pro Max. For my old-aged eyes I would need the Pro Max with the 6.7" screen, anything smaller and no dice for me.

The regular I think. I don’t want a mini tablet. I want a phone.

[kork13]

I am a Google Pixel/Android user.. so I can't speak intelligently to it. But as a consideration, what is Apple's policy on providing ongoing software & security support for older models of their phones? For example, Google Pixel only gets full/direct support for the first three years of the model, then it goes down to security updates only (which I think also dies off a couple years later). If Apple does something similar, that might be a reason to get the newer model. Otherwise, from what others are saying, it seems that the 12 would do just fine for you.

[QuarterMillionMan]

Good question Kork. I recently learned for Samsung galaxy it went from 3 years to 2 years of updates which made me cringe since I just bought my Samsung last month. When I owned Apple I don't recall such short time frame of updates. The battery life would die before the updates stopped so I'm curious to hear how long Apple provides updates.

[ua_guy]

Apple is still supporting the iPhone 6S with software updates. The 6S is more than 6 years old. Apple commits to providing hardware and service/parts (note: not warranty) for 5 at least years for most of its devices.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Apple is still supporting the iPhone 6S with software updates. The 6S is more than 6 years old. Apple commits to providing hardware and service/parts (note: not warranty) for 5 at least years for most of its devices.

i think it'll deprecate soon. it appears to have a ~6 year cycle on phones

[QuarterMillionMan]

Disneysteve will you be trading in your old phone or selling it on your own. This is from the Apple store's website which they pay only peanuts for your iPhone 7.. My new galaxy S22 plus for reference should I decide to trade it in only pays $320 and they could negotiate further down upon possession of my galaxy saying it's not worth $320 and say it might only be worth $250 or something like that. I would sell on my own and not trade in.

[madal38089]

I'm for the 13th iPhone, as it's newer and therefore better.

[disneysteve]

In case anybody cares, I got a 13 today. Haven’t set it up yet. I’ll probably do that tomorrow after work.

[ua_guy]

In case anybody cares, I got a 13 today. Haven’t set it up yet. I’ll probably do that tomorrow after work.

I was just reminded "Face ID" (facial-recognition unlock) on iPhone 12 and later is now compatible with wearing a mask Let us know how you like your new iPhone 13.

[disneysteve]

I was just reminded "Face ID" (facial-recognition unlock) on iPhone 12 and later is now compatible with wearing a mask Let us know how you like your new iPhone 13.

I'm not looking forward to the switch from touch ID to face ID. It's definitely going to take some getting used to. I'm accustomed to just reaching over and activating my phone without picking it up or having it in front of my face which won't work anymore. Losing the home "button" is a big change.