Apple iPhone 12 vs 12 Pro in 2021: Is It Just Size?

Introduction

So, you want to find out if the iPhone 12 is good enough? Or should you spend even more and go for the iPhone 12 Pro?

Let's see what sets them apart.

These phones were released in October of 2020.

In this article, we see how the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 12 Pro compare to each other to help you decide and see which one of these is the right one for you.

If you have the time, click here to skip the spoilers and continue to the full comparison.

The iPhone 12 definitely has the iPhone 12 Pro beaten on price. That is something worth considering when comparing them.

Down below, there's a "Tek-Score" in every analyzed section of these models. For a quicker analysis of how far they are from each other, we'll consider all their specifications. There's also a global rate for you to compare them to other phones if you're interested in other than these two.  ? 

That score is research-based. It's from Globalwebindex.com on what features users value on new smartphones. But you'll get a say in the matter by setting it to what you value. You can check this out now, but keep reading because there are many things to unveil about these two and their rivals.

For additional information regarding our smartphone comparisons, check this FAQ.

There's a colored progress bar next to some items. It's for you to know how well they fare against other smartphones at the same price range.  ? 

If you click here: i , you'll see our list, but basically, we include every smartphone within a 20+20% price range, up and down.

Some items are underlined, and you can tap to access the top 10 phones for that feature for every spending plan.

Price*			vs.
Device	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
Release Date	2020, October	2020, October	0y.
OS Updates	6 years	6 years	0y.
Security Updates	6 years	6 years	0y.

*Reference: 100: Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

Which One Has The Best Performance?

As you may have guessed, Geekbench 5 gave these two the same performance. Basically, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference.  ? 

These two also have their performance well above the average for their price range.

It's safe to say that both of them can be tagged as high-end.

Both come with the Apple A14, so this actually isn't a speed race.

This also isn't a GPU battle because they all have a proprietary Apple GPU.

They all were released with the iOS 14.1 OS.

Performance*			vs.
Features	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
SoC	Apple A14	Apple A14
Graphics	Apple GPU	Apple GPU
Geekbench 5 Score	4067	4056	-11
OS	iOS 14.1	iOS 14.1
Tek-Score	8.8	8.8	0.0

*Reference: 100: Apple iPhone 12.

Which Phone Has The Best Display?

There isn't a winner here, so you can pick any of them.

They both have a 6.1-inch AMOLED display. Which one would you choose? Me, I'd go for an AMOLED screen, but a remarkable LCD is honestly as good.

These phones also share the same amount of pixels: 1170x2532 Full HD.

Screens seem to get bigger each year, so you need to know about their glass protection. Both have a Corning Gorilla Glass Victus display.

Unfortunately, none of them support the Always-On display feature.

If you set your brightness to auto, the iPhone 12 will reach 639 nits, while the iPhone 12 Pro does 802 nits.  ? 

These two are capable of displaying HDR10 videos.

About the iPhone 12, you should know that 94% of its rivals can play HDR content and have an Always-On display, and all of them have an AMOLED screen.

For the iPhone 12 Pro, just so you know, all of its rivals can play HDR content and have an AMOLED screen, and 90% of them offer you more than 60hz of refresh rate, have an Always-On display, and have Gorilla Glass 6 or better.

Display Density (DPIs)*			vs.
Features	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
Size	6.1	6.1	0.0
Screen Type	AMOLED	AMOLED
Resolution (px)	1170x2532	1170x2532	0
Refresh Rate	60hz	60hz	0
Dots per Inch	457.25	457.25	0.00
Always-On-Display	No	No
Notch	Wedge	Wedge
Peak Brightness	639 nits	802 nits	163
HDR	HDR10	HDR10
Sub Tek-Score	2.9	3.2	0.3
Protection	Corning Gorilla Glass Victus	Corning Gorilla Glass Victus
Tek-Score	7.5	7.6	0.1

*Reference: 100: Sony Xperia 1 II.

Which Phone Has The Best Cameras?

You should note that the iPhone 12 is in the neighborhood of 21% above other competitors with comparable prices. But between these two, it doesn't matter.

Who's gonna win this battle? The iPhone 12's primary camera has a 12 Megapixels sensor, with an aperture of f/1.6, a 26mm wide-angle lens, four flash LEDs, HDR abilities, and Optical Image Stabilization. Videos on its shooter have a maximum resolution of 2160p.

It also has another shooter with a 12 Megapixels sensor and an aperture of f/2.4 plus a 13mm ultra-wide-angle lens.

The selfie camera is a 12 MP sensor with an f/2.2 aperture complemented with a 23 mm wide-angle lens.

DXOMARK tested this camera and gave it a rate of 132. If you also consider its wide-angle lens, it'll get 139 points. If you click here, you can check what they think of it.

Last (but not least), all of its rivals can record videos in 4K or more, have an ultra-wide-angle lens, and feature Optical Image Stabilization. Though only 6% of them feature a macro lens.

As you're about to see, the iPhone 12 Pro shares the iPhone 12 camera setup. There's also an extra dual sensor with 12 Megapixels (f/2.0 plus a 52mm telephoto lens) and 12 Megapixels (f/2.4) with a 13mm ultra-wide-angle lens, plus a depth sensor, working together to give more freedom when framing shots.

Apple included the same 12 MP (f/2.2) sensor for selfies and the same 23 mm wide-angle lens.

DXOMARK evaluated this camera, and here's the rate: 135. By considering the telephoto and wide-angle lenses, this score goes up to 147 points. You can click here to check it out.

Furthermore, just like the other device, all of its rivals can record videos in 4 or 8K, feature a telephoto lens, have an ultra-wide-angle lens, and feature Optical Image Stabilization. That said, none of them feature a macro lens.

We can classify these two as high-end.

Something I love about the iPhone 12 Pro is its 2x optical zoom. This gives you an extra bit of freedom when taking your photos.

As a side note, the iPhone 12 Pro telephoto lens is, on average, 71mm lower than what you'd get on related-priced phones.

Picture Quality*			vs.
Primary Camera	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
Megapixels	12	12	0
Aperture	1.6	1.6	0.0
Lens	26mm	26mm	0
Lens Type	Wide-Angle	Wide-Angle
Flash	4	4	0
HDR	Yes	Yes
OIS	Yes	Yes
Video	2160	2160	0
Score	139	147	8

*Reference: 100: Huawei Mate 40 Pro.

Extra Camera(s)	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro	vs.
Megapixels	12	12	0
Aperture	2.4	2.0	-0.4
Lens	13mm	52mm (2x zoom)	39
Lens Type	Ultra-wide-Angle	Telephoto lens
Megapixels	-	12
Aperture	-	2.4
Lens	-	13mm
Lens Type	-	Ultra-wide-Angle
Score	7	12	5

Selfie Camera	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro	vs.
Megapixels	12	12	0
Aperture	2.2	2.2	0.0
Lens	23mm	23mm	0

	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro	vs.
Tek-Score	8.2	8.6	0.5

Who has the best frame?

The iPhone 12 does have an advantage here, thanks to its weight. But I don't see any meaningful winner here.

Both phones share the same height (146 mm / 5.75 inches) and the same width (71 mm / 2.80 inches).

When it comes to thickness, there's no difference here: 7 mm (0.28 inches). Be aware that the iPhone 12 Pro is around 17% smaller than other devices at about this price level.

Both have a premium feeling thanks to their glass body. The iPhone 12 Pro is a little bit heavier: About 25 g. (0.99 oz). But because screen size also matters, I've developed a formula for a kind of "display size to phone weight" ratio. The iPhone 12 got a score of 6.9, which means it has a pretty nice weight for a 6.1 inches screen. Having said that, the iPhone 12 Pro has 3.8, which suggests it's considerably hefty.  ? 

You'll also get some color options here. The Apple iPhone 12 Pro comes in Silver, Gold, Graphite, and Pacific Blue. The Apple iPhone 12, in its turn, comes in Black, Red, White, Green, and Blue.

Is the lack of a fingerprint scanner a deal-breaker to you? It seems like they're out of fashion.

Although a pin isn't the only login option in both of them. Usually, logging in with a fingerprint scanner is faster, but at least you'll get a Face ID scanner.

You can drop the iPhone 12 into the water, up to 1 to 3 meters deep, and the same goes for the iPhone 12 Pro. That shouldn't last over half an hour, in standby and freshwater only, so no saltwater or pools here.

Looks*			vs.
Body	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
Size	146 x 71 x 7 mm (5.15 x 2.50 x 0.25 in)	146 x 71 x 7 mm (5.15 x 2.50 x 0.25 in)	0
Weight	164 g. (5.78 oz)	189 g. (6.67 oz)	25
Build	Front and back glass	Front and back glass
Colors	Black, Red, White, Green, and Blue	Silver, Gold, Graphite, and Pacific Blue
Screen To Body Ratio	88.18%	88.18%	0.00
Disp.Size To Weight Score	6.9	3.8	-3.0
Looks	10.0/10	10.0/10	0.0
Waterproof	IP68	IP68
Biometrics	Face ID	Face ID
Tek-Score	8.6	7.6	-1.0

*100% = 4+ colors + front and back glass + S2BR: 86+%.

Which has the best battery?

They do share their battery capacity: at about 2815 mAh, And by GSMArena's standards, you should get the same battery life with either device.

That's what you can expect from the iPhone 12 after charging it up:  ? 

• If you do 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 1 hour of video playback, you'll have 79% of the battery remaining.
• From 1 hour of talking, 3 hours of web browsing, and 1 hour of video playback, the battery charge will be about 64%.
• By talking for 1 hour, browsing the web for 1 hour, and playing videos for 3 hours, this is where your battery will be: 64%.

And this is how the iPhone 12 Pro handles these tests:

• For 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 1 hour of video playback, you should have 79% of the battery left for the rest of the day.
• If you do 1 hour of talking, 3 hours of web browsing, and 1 hour of video playback, you'll still have 63% left for the rest of the day.
• For 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 3 hours of video playback, the phone will have 65% left for the rest of the day.

This isn't a competition for charging speeds, as they both do 20w/hour.

Both phones support wireless charging at 15w. Wireless charging is magnetic on the new iPhones. It's useful, but I'd favor a non-proprietary USB-C port.

Battery*			vs.
Features	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
Capacity (mAh)	2815	2815	0
1h Talk + 1h Web + 1h Video	79% left	79% left	0
1h Talk + 3h Web + 1h Video	64% left	63% left	-1
1h Talk + 1h Web + 3h Video	64% left	65% left	1
Bat. To Phone Size Score  ?	6.4	6.4	0.0
Sub Tek-Score	6.9	6.9	0.0
Fast Charging	20w	20w	0
Wireless Charging	15w	15w	0
Tek-Score	6.6	6.6	0.0

*Reference: 90: Samsung Galaxy A31.

Which has more storage?

The iPhone 12 Pro. Clearly.

The iPhone 12 comes equipped with 64GB of integrated storage and 4GB of RAM. Memory cards aren't welcome here. If 4k videos and games are your things, it could be an issue sooner than later. Be aware that at this price segment, others offer more RAM and more storage. They're closer to 135Gb of storage and 9GB of RAM.

The iPhone 12 Pro offers 128GB of storage and 6GB of RAM. There's also no expandable storage here, but 128GB is more than enough for most people. Again, you'll get more storage and more RAM on most of its rivals. They'd give you around 179Gb of storage and 11Gb of RAM.

Most people should be OK with only 64 GB of internal storage. However, if you love to store 4k videos, you'll soon figure out that 64 GB is too short for you.

Storage*			vs.
Features	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
RAM (GB)	4GB	6GB	2
Internal (GB)	64GB	128GB	64
Micro SD	No	No
Tek-Score	2.8	6.0	3.3

*Internal Storage + 256GB Memory Card (Max: 512GB).

Which is the most connectivity-friendly?

There isn't much to see here.

When it comes to connectivity, you can count on the traditional Bluetooth 5.0 chip. As for the NFC chips, both have them.

If you love good-old wired headphones, you're out of luck because none of them included a 3.5mm headphone jack. You can try an adapter if you want, but the wireless buds are the way to go here.

You can connect them to (LTE and) 5G networks.

Connectivity			vs.
Features	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
Network	5G	5G
Bluetooth	5.0	5.0
NFC	Yes	Yes
3.5mm jack	No	No
Tek-Score	4.6	4.6	0.0

Which is more affordable?

You're likely not considering the iPhone 12 to make all your pennies count. That, of course, depends on the place and the deals that you'll eventually find. The last time we've checked, it was 5% more expensive compared to its rivals. Most of them aren't that far from $713. The Apple iPhone 12 Pro, in its turn, isn't that cheap, but I believe that it shouldn't come as a surprise at all.

Let's see if it really worths it or not.

Here are the best deals on some major online stores:

Reference: $880

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$750.00

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Apple iPhone 12

Reference: $1,120

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$1,150.00

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Apple iPhone 12 Pro

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Prices marked with ! are from renewed/refurbished/carrier-locked phones (except eBay prices that, as a last resort, can be from bids or used devices).

How much of a "phone" can your money buy?
That's how much "score" you can get with $100 based on the global score that you'll see in the next section (higher is better).

Have you found better prices elsewhere? The formula is simple: score/price*100.

Also, don't forget to check the latest deals from these four stores, and the state of the art on mobile technology, if you don't want to overpay on your next smartphone.

Related articles:

Best smartphone deals

The Best Unbiased Smartphones For All Budgets

Smartphone Specs Statistics: The State Of The Art (Q1 2021)

Want to know about that global rate? For reference purposes, I'll tell you where most of its rivals average. They're in the ballpark of 7.1 for the iPhone 12 and 7.7 for the iPhone 12 Pro.

Verdict: What Makes the Apple iPhone 12 Pro Stand Out?

These two do have their similarities. I'd prefer it if Apple opted for a slightly larger display on the iPhone 12 Pro. Something in the lines of 6.3 inches. But they didn't. Maybe that's easier for you to pick one of them.

They share their performance and display, so nothing to state here. Their cameras, on the other hand, tell a different story. Apple added a telephoto lens on the iPhone 12 Pro, and that can really make a difference. Still, 2x of optical zoom is way too low for its price-point.

And that leads us to their weight. I guess the extra camera weighs about 25 grams (0.88 oz).

Another major difference is the 4+64GB vs. 6+128GB of RAM and storage.

Aside from that, they're pretty much the same.

Pros	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
#1	Performance	Performance
#2	AMOLED	AMOLED
#3	Cameras	Cameras
#4	Fast Charging	Fast Charging
#5	Wireless Charging	Wireless Charging
#6	Glass Protection	Glass Protection

Cons	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
#1	Always-On-Display	Always-On-Display
#2	MicroSD Slot	MicroSD Slot
#3	3.5mm Jack	Weight
#4	Price	3.5mm Jack
#5		Price

Relative Score*			vs.
Global Score	iPhone 12	iPhone 12 Pro
Gaming Score	6.3	6.8	0.5
Tek-Score	6.76	7.40	0.64
Your Score

Scroll the sliders down below to get your own personalized score. Let's suppose you value performance and battery life, and you don't really care about anything else. Then, just set the "Performance" and the "Battery" sliders up to 5 (5+5=10), and then the other sliders down to 0. You'll know what's the best phone for you.

*Reference: 100: Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

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