iPhone 12 pro: pro-grade cam and all new flat-edge design

Chennai

This year Apple unveiled four iPhones during its big annual iPhone event. The iPhone 12 Pro, one of the two premium siblings (along with the 12 Pro Max) might represent the sweet spot for many users like myself. It’s kitted with top of the line specs and finds the perfect balance between an immersive display and the ideal heft for a smartphone. You will find shades of the iPhone 5 in the new flat-edge design that takes a detour from the curved design of the last few years. These flat edges might also remind you of the iPad Pro. It makes the iPhone 12 Pro nicer to hold; we’ll go as far as saying that this is the most elegant iPhone design ever.

We checked out the Pacific Blue colour variant, it’s arguably the best shade on any smartphone right now and one of four finishes that the 12 Pro and Pro Max is currently available in. Apple opts for surgical-grade stainless steel, it makes the device a tad heavier than the aluminium build of the iPhone 12 but it looks every inch premium. One of the highlights of the 12 Pro is the new Ceramic shield (with nano crystals infused into the glass) for the front cover that Apple claims is four times tougher than glass. The 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display (1170 x 2532 pixels / 460 PPI) is gorgeous with deep blacks and vibrant colours but misses out on the 120Hz refresh rate that is fast becoming a norm in flagship devices.

The other major talking point is Apple’s all-new A14 Bionic chip that powers the iPhone 12 quartet. It’s insanely fast; something that I discovered while pushing the 12 Pro beyond the limit in intense gaming sessions. Apple has upped the entry level device to 128GB (from 64GB for last year’s 11 Pro). Battery estimates are tougher in 2020 where WFH is the norm; we’ll say this – the 12 Pro delivers a similar battery life as the 11 Pro in our initial tests.

During its iPhone 12 launch keynote, Apple announced that it would be omitting a power plug and headphones as part of its environment initiatives. While we believe more companies should take a cue, this is a decision that may not please many users. You will need to find a plug for a USB-C to Lightning cable or go wireless.

Last year’s iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max raised the benchmark for smartphone photography. The 12 Pro takes it to the next level. Night mode and Apple’s Deep Fusion now being available on all lenses and shooting scenarios. This year’s iPhones are the only devices in the world to enable an end-to-end experience for HDR video with Dolby Vision up to 60 fps, and even better video stabilisation for cinema-grade productions. The 12 Pro features the LiDAR sensor that we saw on the iPad Pro. While you may not use some of its AR capabilities in 2020 this sensor has a visible impact on lowlight photography. One more reason why the iPhone 12 Pro is our pick of this year’s iPhone line-up if you don’t mind the asking price. It has an outstanding camera, looks every inch premium and the 6.1-inch display might be the perfect size for most users.

The iPhone 12 Pro is available in silver, graphite, gold and pacific blue and starts at Rs 1,19,900.

(Ashwin Rajagopalan is a lifestyle writer and consumer technology expert. Catch the latest digital and tech updates in this weekly column.)