IPhone 15 vs 15 Pro: Everything that’s different and buyer’s guide

iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro are Apple’s latest and top devices. While the iPhone 15 Pro is naturally more feature-rich and powerful, it may be overkill for many. And the iPhone 15 has gained pro features of its own this year like the Dynamic Island, 48MP main camera, and more. Follow along for a deep dive into the iPhone 15 vs 15 Pro for all the differences and advice on which to buy for yourself or individual else.

iPhone 15 vs 15 Pro

Screen sizes and design

The iPhone 14 lineup was the first time Apple launched the exact same display sizes across the standard Pro devices. That continues for the iPhone 15 lineup with 6.1 inches for the 15 and 15 Pro displays and 6.7-inches for the 15 Plus and 15 Pro Max.

A large change for the more affordable 15 and 15 Plus this time around is getting the Dynamic Island which was a Pro exclusive. And the screen brightness is now the same across all iPhone 15 models.

However, the 15 Pro and Pro Max inactive keep exclusivity for Always-On and ProMotion. Here’s the full look at the display specs for iPhone 15 vs iPhone 15 Pro:

While the displays have reached parity for the iPhone 15 lineup erstwhile it comes to specs like resolution and brightness, the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max do have slimmer bezels.

iPhone 15 vs 15 Pro/Pro Max bezels

Size, weight, design

Overall, the plan of iPhone 15 and 15 Pro remains very akin to the 14 and 14 Pro, but Apple has given the 15 lineup more rounded edges for a more comfortable feel.

And for the first time, Apple has utilized titanium for iPhone with the 15 Pro and Pro Max. That means fresh brushed finishes, advanced strength and durability, and lighter devices too.

The another major update for the 15 Pro and Pro Max is the change of the side control to the fresh Action Button that offers customization.

For size, weight, and materials, here’s iPhone 15 vs 15 Pro:

Because the 15 Pro and Pro Max have slimmer bezels than the 15 and 15 Plus, the Pro models are ever-so-slightly more compact.

Of course, the fresh iPhones besides come in fresh colors, we’ll get into that in item below. And here are any large case options to defend iPhone 15:

Performance – A17 Pro vs A16 Bionic

This marks the second year that Apple is putting the latest A-series chip in the Pro models and giving last year’s chip to the standard models.

Year-over-year performance improvements are becoming more insignificant but Apple says the A17 Pro is the “fastest mobile CPU.”

Here’s a breakdown of the iPhone 15 vs iPhone 15 Pro chip specs:

In real-world use, both the A16 Bionic and A17 Pro are more than powerful adequate for almost everyone. But here are a couple more A17 Pro stats:

• Up to 20% faster GPU than A16 Bionic (with AV1 decoding, Pro Display engine, ProRes codec, hardware-accelerated ray tracing)
• Up to 10% faster high-performance CPU cores than A16 Bionic
• Up to 2x faster neural engine, up to 35 trillion operations per second

And game developers like CAPCOM say the fresh A17 Pro GPU has made it possible for console-exclusive games like Resident Evil 4 to come to iPhone.

Battery life

When it comes to battery life, the iPhone 15 lineup has the same ratings as the iPhone 14 devices. We’ll gotta wait and see how real-world results compare but here are Apple’s ratings for video and audio playback:

For how that compares to iPhone 13 and 12 and more details, check out our full post on iPhone 15 battery life:

Cameras

Rear cameras

Some of the main fresh features Apple highlighted for the iPhone 15, and specifically the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max are the fresh camera strategy capabilities.

All the iPhone 15 devices come with a 48MP main rear camera, next-gen image with Focus and Depth Control, Smart HDR 5, and more.

But the 15 Pro and Pro Max stand out with the most powerful camera systems. And in a change this year, the 15 Pro Max gets the most capable camera with the telephoto lens getting a 5x optical zoom (3x for 15 Pro like the 14 Pro).

The 15 Pro and Pro Max main cameras besides have more powerful sensors even though all iPhone 15 devices have 48MP sensors. And all the fresh models support shooting 24 and 48MP “super-high-resolution photos.”

More fresh features for the Pro models include the option to rapidly change (and set a default) for different focal lengths for the main camera – 24, 28, and 35 mm.

And capabilities like macro photography and Apple ProRAW support stay exclusive for the Pro models.

Video recording

While improvements in inactive photography are more plentiful, there are any improvements in videography for the iPhone 15 Pro devices.

USB-C 3 support on the Pro models means the ability to shoot ProRes straight to external drives – now at 4K60.

And there’s now support for log video recording, the Academy colour Encoding strategy (ACES), plus the ability to capture Spatial video that can be viewed on Apple imagination Pro.

Selfie camera

Apple’s TrueDepth front camera on the iPhone 15 devices gets a scope of upgrades found on the main rear camera. truly the only feature missing from the iPhone 15 is ProRes support.

iPhone 15 vs 15 Pro I/O

The major change for iPhone 15 I/O is the control from Lightning to USB-C. All 4 models feature the universal connector, but the Pro and Pro Max offer much faster transfer speeds with USB 3 support at up to 10Gbps.

USB 3 on the Pro models enables any neat fresh capabilities like shooting video consecutive to an external SSD and more.

More differences between the iPhone 15 vs 15 Pro include WiFi and Thread.

iPhone 15 vs 15 Pro colors

iPhone 15 and 15 Plus come in these 5 colors:

• Black
• Blue
• Green
• Yellow
• Pink

And iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max are available in:

• Natural titanium
• Blue titanium
• White titanium
• Black titanium

Storage and pricing

iPhone 15/15 Plus comes in these retention options:

• 128GB – $799 / $899
• 256GB – $899 / $999
• 512GB – $1,099 / $1,199

iPhone 15 Pro/15 Pro Max comes in:

• 128GB – $999 (only 15 Pro available in 128GB)
• 256GB – $1,099 / $1,199
• 512GB – $1,299 / $1,399
• 1TB – $1,499 / $1,599

What’s in the box?

All of the iPhone 15 devices just come with the iPhone and a USB-C cable in the box.

If you request a power adapter, go with at least a 20W so you get fast charging for your iPhone. Good options include:

iPhone 15 vs 15 Pro: Which should you buy?

All of the fresh iPhones are powerful and capable devices, but which 1 is best for you will come down to how you want to usage your iPhone and what features you see as meaningful.

Reasons to buy iPhone 15 Pro or Pro Max

• Most powerful and capable cameras for photos and video
• Titanium build with very slim bezels
• USB-C with 10Gbps speeds, WiFi 6E support
• Fastest chip, most powerful GPU for mobile gaming
• Always-On display and ProMotion refresh rates up to 120Hz
• Storage up to 1TB

Reasons to buy iPhone 15 or 15 Plus

• If the six features above aren’t compelling for you, save any money and catch the iPhone 15, which includes large fresh cameras, USB-C, the Dynamic Island, A16 chip, and more
• And if USB-C isn’t that crucial to you, you could besides consider grabbing an iPhone 14 Pro or 14 if you presently have an iPhone 13 or older (14 Pro is no longer available at Apple, but can be found elsewhere)

Thanks for reading our guide on iPhone 15 vs 15 Pro!