phones
Ting Tested: iPhone 13 Pro review
Ting Staff • February 17, 2022
I’ve been using iPhone 13 Pro as my daily phone for a few weeks. I’m a long-time iPhone user but I’ve never had the latest model (let alone one of the greatest) in my 10+ years with iPhone. My last model was an iPhone XR. Although it still works just fine, I’ve been pretty jealous of the photos that my partner takes on her iPhone 12 Pro Max. I just don’t have pockets big enough for that larger phone.
So does iPhone 13 Pro take amazing pictures? Is iPhone 13 Pro right for you? And perhaps most importantly, do I need to invest in jeans with bigger pockets? Read on to find out!
Camera
The #1 reason I was excited to try iPhone 13 Pro was to get better photos (ideally on vacation, but realistically at home with the dogs). The Pro camera system features three lenses (telephoto, wide and ultra wide), optical zoom (3x in, 2x out) and some fancy optical image stabilization.
Here are my initial thoughts when just pointing and shooting using the default settings:
- Portraits: It’s super easy to take fantastic portraits, especially outdoors in natural light
- Low light: I’ve never had a phone that could take decent photos in low light. I’m amazed at the detail in all areas of my nighttime outdoor shot.
- Zoom: The telephoto lens grabs a clear shot from a long ways away and ultra wide captures way more of the scene. Check out these 3 photos, all from standing in the same spot!
Display
This is a stunning 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR display. If you’re into streaming video and/ or gaming, you’ll love this screen.
Netflix looks (and sounds) great. At first, I played “Saving Private Ryan” and then switched to “Spider-Man: Far from Home” after remembering cinematography is likely to have advanced over the past 20 years. Both looked incredible.
I didn’t have many complaints about my iPhone XR display. The biggest improvement that I noticed? ProMotion (adaptive refresh rates up to 120Hz) makes scrolling buttery smooth on the home screen and in apps. I’m not much of a gamer, but I signed up for Apple Arcade to put the display through its paces. “Star Wars Castaways” offers an explorable world with gorgeous graphics. The phone kept up beautifully with no lag whatsoever. (Side note: I’m now hooked on the game “Mini Motorways.”)
Performance
Everyday tasks feel faster with the A15 Bionic chip. Apps load quickly, scrolling is zippy and the speed with which the camera app launches, focuses and takes pictures may result in fewer missed shots.
Of course, iPhone 13 Pro works on Ting Mobile’s 5G network. Once you’re in an area where 5G is available, you’ll be able to stream and download considerably faster than with your last LTE phone.
Battery life easily met my needs. Battery test day involved a chilly 2 hours outdoors on the move and what I would call typical Wi-Fi usage for the remainder of the day. I made a few quick calls, sent and received a number of pictures, and took a few videos. Then there was the regular messaging and some gaming. When I started, battery life was at 85%. 12 hours later, there was still 25% remaining.
Final thoughts
iPhone 13 Pro is the right iPhone for me primarily due to the photos I can take with the Pro camera system. It also has that big, fluid display that I can still use one-handed. Plus, I expect the A15 Bionic chip and 5G will give me years of top-notch performance. Oh, and guess what? iPhone 13 Pro fit just fine in my regular jean pockets. Looks like I can hold on to that new-jeans money for now. (Our editor astutely pointed out that women’s pockets tend to be considerably smaller than men’s. If you’re interested in an iPhone that is more likely to fit in a truly wee pocket, check out our iPhone 13 mini review.)
You can find iPhone 13 Pro in the Ting Shop.
If you think I have missed any important aspects in my review, drop a comment below and I can always add more details. Also, check out my colleagues’ Ting Tested reviews of iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro Max.