iPhone 15 Pro Intro
Apple has just unveiled the iPhone 15 Pro and this year, we have some big upgrades.
It all starts with a brand new A17 Bionic chip that runs the show. It's the world's first 3nm mobile chip, way ahead of the competition, and then we have advances all around with a better camera, refined design and quite a few subtle but significant upgrades. Apple has also added two important quality of life improvements: first one is a brand new programmable Action Button, and second is the switch to a USB-C port, the same port as most of your other gadgets use!
And best of all, the iPhone 15 Pro remains a compact 6.1-inch phone, which is now also considerably lighter than before.
Come to think of it, the one feature that you don't get on this new iPhone 15 Pro is a longer range zoom camera. That one is only available on the larger Pro Max model, and you can learn more about it in our iPhone 15 Pro Max preview.
But apart from that, Apple has really refined the iPhone 15 Pro experience, and spoiler alert: while the changes might not be so profound for iPhone 14 Pro users to upgrade, those with even a slightly older model should seriously consider the new Pro!
What’s new about iPhone 15 Pro
- USB-C port instead of Lightning
- New A17 chip, same storage options
- Same screen size, smaller bezels
- Lighter titanium body
- New Action Button instead of Mute switch
- Same battery life
- Same charging speeds
- New colors
Table of Contents:
iPhone 15 Pro Specs
The main highlights include the 3nm A17 chip and the new USB-C port
Let's start with an overview of the iPhone 15 Pro specs:
| Specs | iPhone 15 Pro |
|---|---|
| Size and Weight | 146.6 x 70.6 x 8.25mm 188 grams |
| Display | 6.1" OLED 120Hz ProMotion Smaller bezel |
| Processor | A17 Bionic 3nm |
| RAM, Storage and Price | 8/128GB 8/256GB 8/512GB 8/1TB LPDDR5 |
| Software | iOS 17 |
| Cameras | 48MP main 12MP ultra 12MP 3X zoom 12MP front |
| Battery Size | 3,274 mAh |
| Charging Speeds | 23W wired 15W MagSafe |
iPhone 15 Pro Design & Colors
Subtle changes add up, but the big news are the reduced weight and the more durable titanium frame
The four new colors of the iPhone 15 Pro
The iPhone 15 Pro keeps the familiar compact 6.1-inch form factor, but while the overall shape and size remain similar, it won't be quite the same as before.
The first and most notable change Apple makes is a switch to titanium, a new, more durable and also lighter-weight material for the frame of the phone. It replaces the shiny stainless steel rails that we had on Pro iPhones before, and it seems like a great choice as it should be able to resist scratches better and it won't be such a terrible fingerprint magnet.
| Camera Specs | iPhone 15 Pro | iPhone 14 Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Main (Wide) | 8.25 mm | 7.85 mm |
| Telephoto | 146.6 mm | 147.5 mm |
| Ultra-wide | 70.6 mm | 71.5 mm |
| Front | 188 grams | 206 grams |
The other big change is the new USB-C port on the bottom. To that we say: finally!
Apple has already been using USB-C for years on Macbooks and iPads, and most Android phones also use a USB-C port in the last five years or more, so this will definitely make our lives easier and we won't need to pack a bunch of different cables for every trip. You also get faster transfer rates with this port at 10Gbps speeds, an improvement of 20X. Keep in mind though that while there will also be one USB-C cable included in the box with when you buy the iPhone 15 Pro, that cable will not support the faster transfer rates, and you would need to purchase separately a pricier one that does.
It is programmable and here are the functions you will be able to assign to it:
- Silence the phone
- Switch on a Focus mode
- Start the flashlight
- Start the camera
- Initiate a voice recording
- Open Siri shortcuts
- Start the digital magnifying glass feature
- Open accessibility settings
iPhone 15 Pro Display
The iPhone 15 Pro sticks with a 6.1-inch screen size just as previous models, but the screen now has borders that are a third thinner. It's a more modern, edge-to-edge look and we really like this subtle change.
The screen technology has not changed much: it's OLED, it's Retina, and it supports 120Hz ProMotion for buttery smooth scrolling. And yes, the Always-On feature from the previous model is of course also available.
We will have in-depth display measurements once the phone launches, so make sure to check back here in a couple of weeks if you're interested.
And for biometrics, no change: we still have Face ID built in the Dynamic Island.
iPhone 15 Pro Camera
A familiar triple camera system with tweaks and tune-ups!
The iPhone 15 Pro comes with a very familiar looking triple rear camera system. And yes, it looks a lot like the cameras on the iPhone 14 Pro.
The 15 Pro now supports optical-grade 1.2X and 1.5X levels, aka 28mm and 35mm focal lengths. These are great for everyday photography and give it a much needed variety and a change from the very wide and limiting 24mm 1X camera.
In addition to that, you get improved portrait mode, new Smart HDR 5 and a bunch of other little improvements.
On the video front, the most notable feature is Spatial Video, which is captured with both the ultra-wide and main cameras shooting simultaneously to capture depth. You can then re-live those video moments in a very immersive way on the Apple Vision Pro headset.
iPhone 15 Pro Performance & Benchmarks
World's first and finest 3nm chip inside!
Apple launches new chips with every iPhone release, but this year is special: the new Apple A17 Bionic processor inside the iPhone 15 Pro makes the jump to a more advanced 3nm technology, which is a bigger leap than your average yearly upgrade.
Better yet: Apple has booked practically the full manufacturing capacity of TSMC, the only foundry capable of making these super advanced chips, so it has a big advantage over the competition.
This new manufacturing technology is cutting edge, and here are the exact improvements that Apple says we get:
- 10% faster performance cores, fastest mobile CPU
- 4-efficiency cores with unmatched with three times the performance per watt compared to competition
- Neural engine 2X faster with 35 trillion ops per second
- Dedicated engines for Pro features - ProRes codec, Pro Display engine, AV1 decoder for more efficient video experience
While Apple is not officially saying how much RAM you have in the new iPhone 15 Pro, leaks suggest we get 8GB RAM, more than the 6GB RAM used in previous models, but the same LPDDR5 technology.
And here are the iPhone 15 Pro storage options:
128GB — $999
256GB — $1,099
512GB — $1,299
1TB — $1,499
Apple is not saying much about connectivity, but an earlier Qualcomm release pretty much confirms that we have a Qualcomm modem inside the iPhone 15 Pro, and it is extremely likely that it uses the newer Qualcomm's X70 modem. This new modem should help get better and more consistent signal.
iPhone 15 Pro Software: iOS 17
The iPhone 15 Pro launches with the new iOS 17 software, which all previous supported iPhones get as well.
And remember, iOS 17 is making its way to even older models, going back to the iPhone XR.
iOS 17 brings significant improvements to the Phone, Messages and FaceTime apps, plus a few smaller quality of life changes including better autocorrect (finally!), as well as a new way to trigger Siri by just saying “Siri” instead of “Hey Siri”.
The changes to the Phone app will probably end up most noticeable as you can now now set a Contact Poster for yourself which will be displayed full-screen on other iPhones when they receive a call from you. NameDrop is another new trick where you just bring your iPhone close to another one to exchange contact info. And in the messages app, you will be able to reply with animated stickers created from your Live Photos, a nice personal touch to the experience.
We also love the new Standby Mode where your phone will act like a mini home hub displaying useful information while it’s charging.
Other new features include interactive widgets, mood tracking in the Health app, as well as a brand new journaling app.
The changes to the Phone app will probably end up most noticeable as you can now now set a Contact Poster for yourself which will be displayed full-screen on other iPhones when they receive a call from you. NameDrop is another new trick where you just bring your iPhone close to another one to exchange contact info. And in the messages app, you will be able to reply with animated stickers created from your Live Photos, a nice personal touch to the experience.
We also love the new Standby Mode where your phone will act like a mini home hub displaying useful information while it’s charging.
Other new features include interactive widgets, mood tracking in the Health app, as well as a brand new journaling app.
The best part of owning an iPhone is the software update support. Apple typically deliver five or even six years of software updates, so this means an iPhone 15 Pro will get the following:
- iOS 18 — 2024
- iOS 19 — 2025
- iOS 20 — 2026
- iOS 21 — 2027
- iOS 22 — 2028
iPhone 15 Pro Battery
If improvements come, they will mostly be because of the more efficient chip
The iPhone 15 Pro comes with a 3,274 mAh battery, which is ever so slightly larger (+2.3% larger) than on the previous model.
However, the actual iPhone 15 Pro battery life remains the same as on the previous model. Here are the official iPhone 15 Pro battery life numbers by Apple:
| Specs | iPhone 15 Pro | iPhone 14 Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Video Playback | Up to 23 hours | Up to 23 hours |
| Video Playback (Streamed) | Up to 20 hours | Up to 20 hours |
| Audio Playback | Up to 75 hours | Up to 75 hours |
Yep, same numbers all around, so no changes in battery life this year, contrary to all hopes and expectations.
iPhone 15 Pro Charging Speeds
Speaking of the charging situation... USB-C is in!
This is a bigger deal than it may sound. USB-C on iPhones means we get closer to that one-cable-for-everything future, and we get far less cable clutter. But it also opens a world of possibilities. You will be able to easier connect an external drive directly to your iPhone or an SD card reader to transfer pictures from your DSLR or mirrorless camera to name just a few prospects.
The iPhone 15 Pro unfortunately does NOT support faster charging speeds.
One bright spot however are the faster USB 3 transfer rates that go up to 10Gbps, nearly 20 times faster than before. Keep in mind, though, that you need a special cable for that and that cable is not included in the box.
iPhone 15 Pro Audio Quality and Haptics
Apple tweaks the loudspeaker quality of iPhones a little bit every year, and the last bigger change happened with the iPhone 13 Pro. We did not get anything specific about better loudspeakers at the official event, but we will have to test that in detail in a couple of weeks so stay tuned for that.
For haptics, for years Apple has treated us to the Taptic Engine, which has been a gold standard with its nice and tight vibration feedback. No changes on that front in the iPhone 15 Pro.
iPhone 15 Pro Summary
The iPhone 15 Pro is a bigger change than it might seem on the surface.
The big technological breakthrough is the A17 Bionic chip, being the first 3nm chip and all, but it drives big improvements to the camera, the gaming experience, and so on. Other changes like the new USB-C port will make life easier, and so will the new Action button. All of that also comes at the same starting price (thankfully).
