iPhone 15 vs iPhone 15 Pro: 5 Reasons to Skip the Pro This Year

In Summary

At the Apple event on September 12, 2023, Apple unveiled the new iPhone 15 series along with the new Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2. The regular iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus have more changes this year than the iPhone 15 Pro series.
There are some major changes, such as iPhones switching to USB Type-C port on all devices, starting with the iPhone 15 series. The regular iPhone 15 dropped the notch and added the dynamic island and many other changes.
In this article, we’ll introduce you to the top 5 features of the iPhone 15 that make it a much more affordable buy compared to the iPhone 15 Pro series.

Apple announced the iPhone 15 series, as well as the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2, at the Wonderlust Event on September 12, 2023. Of all the products announced, we were most excited to see Apple finally put the USB Type-C port in all devices, including iPhones.

In our opinion, most of the improvements this year were built into the regular iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus, not the Pro series.

The regular iPhone 15 has finally started to catch up with the Pro series in terms of specs and features offered while being $200 cheaper than the Pro series in the US (INR 54,900 in India). In this article, we’ll present you with the top 5 reasons why you should buy the iPhone 15 this year and skip the Pro model. Let’s start.

Table of Contents

iPhone 15 vs iPhone 15 Pro: Top 5 Reasons to Skip the Pro

The 48MP Camera System

This year, the iPhone 15 comes with the same 48MP sensor that was available on the iPhone 14 Pro series last year. This 48MP sensor captures 24MP images with pixel-binning by default. The sensor, with an aperture of f1.6, can also be cropped to create high-resolution 12MP images with 2x telephoto. You can also shoot video in 4K with the iPhone 15. This sensor is capable of creating great images and videos, just like last year’s iPhone 14 Pro. The 0.5x ultra-wide angle lens can also be used as a macro lens, while the 2x mode is as good as a true telephoto lens.

With an improved image processor and a neural engine, the new camera system of the iPhone 15 can keep up with the Pro series in terms of image and video quality – and at a much lower price.

The Matte Design

The iPhone 15 comes in five new colors and with a frosted matte back glass this time, unlike the glossy back of the previous models. This makes the entire phone matte, as the aluminum sides are also matte. Previously, the matte glass back was only available on the Pro models, but not anymore. This makes the phones feel better in the hand, and there are little to no fingerprints on the back.

The new design changes make the iPhone 15 an overall higher-quality device compared to last year.

The Display and the Dynamic Island

The iPhone 15 features a Retina XDR display with a peak brightness of up to 2000 nits, which is the same as the iPhone 15 Pro series. This makes the iPhone 15’s display almost as bright as that of the Pro models. The regular iPhone 15 doesn’t have Pro Motion, of course, but I haven’t seen any people complaining about it yet. Some people don’t even know that the Pro series has 120 Hz. Nevertheless, it is a really excellent display.

This year, Apple also brought the Dynamic Island, introduced in the iPhone 14 Pro series to the regular iPhone 15. This makes the display a bit more visible compared to the previous iPhones with the notch. Both the high brightness and the Dynamic Island make the iPhone 15’s display a cheaper choice again compared to the Pro series.

Related Read: 7 Best iPhone 15 Accessories

The USB Type-C Port

After persistent urging from the European government, Apple has finally added the USB Type-C port to the iPhone. They have also launched a new case for the AirPods with USB Type-C, moving all Apple device categories to USB Type-C. This is a very good thing for consumers because now they can use the same cable to charge all of their Apple devices. Apple says they did this to reduce clutter and electronic waste, but we all know why they had to do it.

The iPhone 15’s USB Type-C port is only USB 2.0, which means slower transfer speeds, but it opens the way for connecting a variety of USB Type-C accessories that are already on the market. Hopefully, the iPhones will also charge much faster.

Why would you buy the iPhone 15 when the entire line comes with USB Type-C? By default, all phones have USB 2.0 speeds with the included cable. Although the iPhone Pro Max supports USB 3.0, you’ll need to buy a separate cable for it to actually work. That means even if you buy the regular iPhone 15, you’re not missing out unless you absolutely need the USB 3.0 transfer speed. So, once again, the iPhone 15 is a better value purchase.

The A16 Bionic

The iPhone 15 comes with the A16 Bionic chipset, which was already used in the iPhone 14 Pro series last year. This is a very powerful chipset, and most people won’t even notice the performance increase, but still, the performance will be good enough, especially since the new Apple A17 Pro in the iPhone 15 Pro series only has a short performance boost for general use.

If you only use your phone for normal things like calling, social media, streaming, and the camera, then the iPhone 15 is the best choice for you because it’s fast and powerful enough to do almost everything. Plus, the iPhone 15 brings all the camera enhancements from the iPhone 14 Pro series. So get the iPhone 15 and save your money.

Skip the iPhone 15 Pro Series and Get the iPhone 15 Instead

This brings us to the conclusion that the iPhone 15 Pro series has not received the most incremental updates this year, while the regular iPhone 15 series has. You get almost everything the iPhone 14 Pro series had last year packed into a more colorful exterior. The price-to-performance ratio of the iPhone 15 series is way too high, especially in a country like India, where the Pro series costs almost double. That’s why you should get the iPhone 15 this year and skip the Pro series unless you have the money to spare for unnecessary purchases.