iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus: new design, 48-megapixel camera, Dynamic Island, USB-C – and a lower price!

iPhone 15 an 15 Plus

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Before we dive into the iPhone 15 Pro, it’s worth discussing the iPhone 15 models, which, of course, include the iPhone 15 and the 15 Plus. In my opinion, the iPhone 14 and 14 Plus were rather sluggish and didn’t really justify an upgrade. They didn’t receive a new processor, and there were minimal changes to the camera, and so on…

However, with the iPhone 15, Apple has caught up. And yes, just like with the Apple Watch Series 9, it’s worth considering the switch to the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus because we’ve received many new features this year. It’s also worth noting that you can purchase the iPhone 15 for £50 less compared to last year’s launch prices, so Apple has reduced the price. Let’s take a look at what we get from the entry-level iPhones this year and why it’s worth switching to them.

Last year, with the iPhone 14 and 14 Plus, we didn’t get a new processor, and consequently, we didn’t get a new display either. The camera received very minimal updates, and overall, in my opinion, it became a rather unremarkable product, despite introducing a larger display with the Plus model but with an older processor and camera.

iPhone 15 exterior design

The new design includes a glass back that is tinted in its material. Thanks to its proprietary, double-ion-exchange process glass and aerospace-grade aluminum casing, the iPhone 15 is exceptionally durable. The new color here is also pink, just like in the aluminum casing version of the Apple Watch Series 9, but I think the black variant looks incredibly good this year, check out the pictures below:

iPhone 15 design colours

So overall, the exterior design has changed, making the device more attractive, and instead of the Lightning connector, we now have a USB-C port, which, of course, is not new in the world of Apple products, as seen with the iPad Pro or the Mac series. Nonetheless, it’s indeed a novelty for the iPhone, and now we can charge it or communicate with it using a wide range of USB-C accessories. By the way, if you own other Apple products, you’ve probably already encountered USB-C a few times, and these days, it was more of a hassle to carry a Lightning adapter along with an extra cable when you could charge your laptop, iPad, and even the AirPods case directly from USB-C.

However, there’s a typical twist to this: the connector has essentially changed to USB-C only in a physical sense, as the device’s data connection is still limited to USB 2 speeds. The USB 3, with up to 10 Gb/s transfer speeds, is a privilege reserved for the 15 Pro models, where the new processor includes built-in support for it.

iPhone 15 charging port USB-c

So overall, the new exterior of the non-Pro product line has become entirely positive, and I believe that USB-C is a kind of forward-looking move, although Apple could have easily adopted it here 2-3 years ago.

iPhone 15 camera

Essentially, the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus received the camera system of the iPhone 14 Pro, with just two lenses. Apple calls this the Advanced dual-camera system, and it includes a 48-megapixel main camera and an ultra-wide-angle lens. It was like this before, but now we’ve got a more advanced camera system. This has brought quite a few changes.

iPhone 15 camera

So, overall, the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus have received the camera system of the iPhone 14 Pro, with just two lenses. Apple calls it the Advanced dual-camera system, which includes a 48-megapixel main camera and an ultra-wide-angle lens. This was the case before, but now we have a more advanced camera system. This has brought about quite a few changes.

The sensor in the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus is significantly larger than in the iPhone 14, which has greatly improved the camera compared to the previous generation. We now have the action mode, advanced HDR video recording, 48-megapixel photos, and of course, in terms of photography, we’ve also got something new due to the ProRAW and the larger sensor. Thanks to this, the “basic” camera is now capable of capturing 48-megapixel resolution photos, as well as the familiar RAW photography. This means that if you pay a little more attention to your photos, edit them, adjust colors, Apple provides even more options for this on the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus.

I’ve taken quite a few photos with the iPhone 14 Pro Max, so it’s worth reading my article as well because it will give you everything you need to know about the new iPhone 15 camera: Long-term test and my honest opinion about the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

New, more advanced portrait mode However, what’s not available even with the iPhone 14 Pro is the new, more advanced portrait mode. Apple describes it like this:

“Don’t want to miss the magic of the moment? You no longer have to switch to Portrait mode separately. When you take photos of people, dogs, or cats, the iPhone 15 automatically captures depth data. This way, you can decide whether to view your photo immediately as a portrait with an artistically blurred background or later in the Photos app.”

In addition to this, with iOS 17, the new Photonic Engine enhances your portraits:

“It combines the best pixels from a super-high-resolution photo with another one optimized for light collection. This way, you can automatically capture 24-megapixel images – that’s twice the resolution of before. This resolution is perfect for everyday photography since it’s small enough for storage and sharing.”

Regarding the latter, Apple doesn’t mention that it’s only available on the iPhone 15 or newer devices; I think it applies to other devices with newer camera systems as well.

Up to 2000 nits brightness and Dynamic Island 👀 It’s worth mentioning right from the start that the always-on display, often less favored by many, hasn’t been introduced in the iPhone 15 or 15 Plus, even though other display innovations are present, such as Dynamic Island, which was available with the 14 Pro models – I’ve written more about this in this article, but let’s briefly mention it here as well.

It’s important to note that Live Widgets are available on all devices running iOS 16 or iOS 17, but on the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus, it also shows on the always-on display, which is not available on the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus.

As you can see, the delivery information of the Wolt app updates live on the locked screen, and similarly, apps that support this functionality work in the same way. Apple displays this information in Dynamic Island, which can be dynamically changed depending on how long you press it, thanks to the island, continuous pressure tracking is possible.

At the Apple event, I think the company convinced everyone that this is an outstanding innovation, no longer exclusive to Pro devices. Nonetheless, I personally haven’t found much use for it so far. It looked nice, but overall, it was useless until now. I think it still depends on the apps and, therefore, their developers, whether this island will be useful.

iPhone 15 és 15 Plus Prices

While we might not have been an expecting an iPhone 15 price hike, we certainly weren’t expecting a price cut. Although all of the iPhone 15 handsets are remaining the same price in the US, they are coming down in price here in the UK.

The base iPhone 15 starts from just £799 for the 128GB model, while the iPhone 15 Plus starts from just £899. That’s a welcome £50 price cut over the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus from last year. The iPhone 15 Pro received an even bigger price cut.

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