Which iPhone 15 should i get? 15 or 15 Pro?

[Retro_R]

Hey, i'm indecisive and i want some opinions about which iPhone i should get, so wanted to get some input on what i should get. I was gonna get a new iPhone ever since my 12 Pro Max broke in the summer, and i knew they would make a new one in a couple months so i got a SE for around $150 and just waited it out. Now that they announced it, i'm kinda in between 2 worlds.

 

I'm kinda thinking of getting the more budget iPhone 15 (non Pro), since it really has everything i need, and not to much more and for cheaper than the pro. It has the dynamic island, and better cameras, and cute colors, and is $200 less for the non-plus 256gb pro version. Plus for the price of the 256gb pro, i can get a 512gb regular 15, or a 256gb plus. Although, i don't think i need all that (even though i would like it) since thats the same storage i had on my 12 Pro max, and that lasted me abt 3 years, even when i was downloading every tiktok i saw, which i don't do as much anymore. So i wouldn't mind sticking to 256gb (esp since it would be a 4x increase from what i have rn). I really don't care about the usb 2 speed, since i only used usb to transfer files like a handful of times ever since i got the iPhone X, and that was USB 2 anyway. However, i do wish it had the telephoto lens instead of the ultrawide lens, but I could live with it. And compared to my previous 12 Pro Max, it really wouldn't be that big of a downgrade, besides no Lidar, which i didn't use anyway and that telephoto lens, and added screen real estate, although the smaller se kinda has me on the smaller form factor.

 

Or, i could get that 15 Pro for a bit more and get a higher refresh rate and slightly smaller bezels. Although, the bezel change really doesn't seem that big, and i'd much rather save $200 for slightly bigger bezels. Plus, i kinda think I would get used to the higher refresh rate over, even though it is an improvement, especially since i've only used 60hz iPhones, and been fine with it, so again i wouldn't mind saving that $200 in exchange for that. But it does have that telephoto lens, and would be the more logical upgrade compared to my 12 Pro max, although now i'm having to pay for the phone myself, and not through a payment plan so like i have to take that into account. However, i do have that type of money saved up from when the iPhone 14 came out (around $1,200) so i could use it to that, but again, i wouldn't mind saving $200.

TL;DR: I could save $200 for less (but still agreeable) features, or spend $200 for extra features.

[bezza...]

if im being honist id get the iphone 14 or 14 pro as the 15 is basicly the 14 pro + usbc and the 14 and 15 are vry similer and you most likly dont need more. iphones have not been inovating at the moment

[Retro_R]

14 minutes ago, bezza... said:

if im being honist id get the iphone 14 or 14 pro as the 15 is basicly the 14 pro + usbc and the 14 and 15 are vry similer and you most likly dont need more. iphones have not been inovating at the moment

Oh shi, i looked at refurbed 14 pros, it would actually be (slightly) cheaper to get the 14 pro haha. Plus it has the extra refresh rate and extra cameras.

 

I kinda have to say, i'm a bit worried about buying it used, since it doesn't have like the full warrenty i could get included if i got one at best buy (I have the total subscription thing, so it would include apple care) which is kinda important to me bc both of my previous iphones cracked, my 12 not even making it half a year b4 it cracked. So that if this one also crackes, it'll be a lot cheaper to get it replaced. Plus, just about the condition of it, but the phone i use now is used so maybe i'm just trippin.

 

But now that you brought that option up, i'll probablt look into it haha. I really didn't even think of it, ig i just want the latest and shinest haha. thank u

[filpo]

13 hours ago, Retro_R said:

'm a bit worried about buying it used, since it doesn't have like the full warrenty i could get included if i got one at best buy (I have the total subscription thing, so it would include apple care) which is kinda important to me bc both of my previous iphones cracked, my 12 not even making it half a year b4 it cracked. So that if this one also crackes, it'll be a lot cheaper to get it replaced. Plus, just about the condition of it, but the phone i use now is used so maybe i'm just trippin.

tbh refurbed iphones aren't that bad. I got a refurbed iphone xr for like 300 pounds like 3 years and it's still going strong with no problems on the battery or the screen. I've even dropped it for a total of around 100 times with a screen protector and the only thing cracked is the screen protector. Back glass = pristine But i do have a pretty OP 5 pound case on the back

[Retro_R]

21 hours ago, bezza... said:

if im being honist id get the iphone 14 or 14 pro as the 15 is basicly the 14 pro + usbc and the 14 and 15 are vry similer and you most likly dont need more. iphones have not been inovating at the moment

I thought about it over last night and talked to some other people, I think it would be better to buy new. Because, my family has this Best Buy member ship, which includes AppleCare whenever you buy something there. This is pretty important to me bc both of my previous iPhone have had cracked screens, so having apple care would save me $250 on one screen repair alone. 
 

and the 14 pro would only be like $30 cheaper. Yeah it has more features, but I really don’t save that much in the short term compared to the long term, and I really don’t mind paying $20 to save $250. Even with the less features.

 

 

[Issac Zachary]

Wants vs. needs.

 

What do you take pictures of?

I once got a phone with one of the best cameras because I got caught up in all the hype. But after I got it and started looking through my photo album, I realized I'm not a photographer, and having a better camera didn't really make anything I take pictures of any better. In reality, I don't take a lot of photos or videos anyway.

 

If you take photos or videos that can be considered true art (the kind you can either sell or you'd want to hang in picture frames all around your home) then get the Pro. If not, why spend more money on something you don't really benefit from? Seeing how you've been fine with 64GB in the past and feel 256GB is going to be plenty, it seems pretty apparent that you probably don't take a lot of photos. But I could be wrong.

 

Everything else you've pretty much covered.

• Seems like bezels aren't that important, and I would agree. Would you really notice? Would every time you pull out your phone say, "Ah man! Why are my bezels so big?! I should have gotten the PRO!" I highly doubt you would.
• Refresh rate probably doesn't matter. Personally, I only see refresh rate as being helpful in gaming, and only if the game supports it. If gaming is very important to you, then consider it. Otherwise, how is it helpful? All your online videos are all 60Hz or less.
• USB speed would be most important if you did use your phone for taking photos and videos and had big storage (e.g. 1TB) and needed to transfer all that to a computer so you could keep taking photos and videos the next day and fill up that 1TB again.

[Issac Zachary]

If you are looking at one of the bigger models, on JerryRigEverything, Jerry was able to break the rear glass with the pressure of his thumbs on the iPhone 15 Pro Max, but not on the iPhone 15 Pro. So, that's something to consider if you want your phone to last.

[saintlouisbagels]

I have an iPhone 12 for work, and currently an iPhone 14 Pro.
I've previously owned the 13 Pro Max, 13 Mini, and regular 11.

 

I don't understand the hype over the ProMotion screen at all. I barely notice the increased refresh rate and I would consider myself addicted to my phone - always scrolling on Reddit and Instagram. The telephoto lens gets very occasional use - I like the flattering images of 3x optical zoom over 1x. The 48MP camera has been helpful a few times in the last 12 months. Overall, it's hardly worth own the Pro series - ESPECIALLY now that the regular series has the 48MP main sensor. The only reason I'm not upgrading is that I think I can manage to wait another year for the 16-whatever.

 

If I were upgrading now, I would get either the 15 or 15 Plus.

USB3 speeds would be nice (on the Pro) but I rarely plug in my phone to update my iTunes library. I don't like the massive camera bump on the Pro series - it makes a lot of cases incompatible due to how close the bump is to the MagSafe ring on the regular sized Pro. And the extra weight is annoying.

[Retro_R]

16 hours ago, Issac Zachary said:

If you are looking at one of the bigger models, on JerryRigEverything, Jerry was able to break the rear glass with the pressure of his thumbs on the iPhone 15 Pro Max, but not on the iPhone 15 Pro. So, that's something to consider if you want your phone to last.

well, i'm planning on getting it at BBY with a warrenty, so it shouldn't be that big of an issue. Plus i'm gonna be putting a case on it so. I prob aint even gon get the max anyway. I had one and liked it, but switching back to a "normal" phone, it just seems a bit overkill.

 

4 hours ago, saintlouisbagels said:

I rarely plug in my phone to update my iTunes library

What is this? 2005? nah jk. I use Apple Music and dont even transfer my photos anyway.

[Issac Zachary]

2 hours ago, Retro_R said:

well, i'm planning on getting it at BBY with a warrenty, so it shouldn't be that big of an issue.

I would still see it as an issue.  Warranties are ok for factory defects that hopefully are fixed for the rest of the phone's life. Once the warranty is over, you're phone is only good as long as it doesn't break.

 

For an example: you're iPhone 12 Pro Max broke. If it hadn't broke, you wouldn't be having to be looking for a phone. And even if you wanted a new iPhone 15, you could have sold your iPhone 12 Pro Max for more if it weren't broken, getting the iPhone 15 for essentially less.

 

On the flip side, if you plan on selling the phone by the end of the warranty period, then yes, I'd say it doesn't matter. Right now I'm on my third smartphone, and I started in 2012 after 6 years with a "dumb phone". So 4 phones if you include the "dumb phone".

[rikitikitavi]

If you want the current gen, then... 14 Pro, but if you can't find one, then 15 (which is 14 Pro that lost some features).

 

Check your storage usage on your previous phone, then subtract all the bloat that you don't need.

Extra 120hz is a nicety but I doubt its worth for browsing tiktok and ltt forum, same with the better camera and extra GB... unless it will make the difference of course.

 

As always, if you don't need a new cell and just want one cause 'shiny', then you can skip this gen 

 

On 9/15/2023 at 9:12 AM, Retro_R said:

the 14 pro would only be like $30 cheaper. Yeah it has more features, but I really don’t save that much in the short term compared to the long term, and I really don’t mind paying $20 to save $250. Even with the less features.

What do you mean by short/long term? Apple will drop support for 14 Pro and 15 at the same time.

[Retro_R]

Ok so update ig. I talked to my parents about it, my dad wants me to put it on a payment plan, and then ill give him the money for it. In that case, i'm probably gonna get a regular pro 512. Although, i'm kinda having second thoughts about being locked into a payment plan and not being able to upgrade for 3 years. Although it's not like i haven't done it before. I don't know, still kinda on the edge.

 

On 9/26/2023 at 2:07 PM, Issac Zachary said:

Warranties are ok for factory defects that hopefully are fixed for the rest of the phone's life.

The reason i'm saying the warrenty isn't a big deal is because the main damage i'm worried about is the screen breaking. The warranty won't cover that completely, but it'll make it alot cheaper to replace it. Plus those other damages.

 

On 9/26/2023 at 2:07 PM, Issac Zachary said:

you could have sold your iPhone 12 Pro Max for more if it weren't broken, getting the iPhone 15 for essentially less.

Yeah, but i still have a cracked screen. So i would need to get that replaced before i can really get any value from it. So, since i didn't have apple care, it would be around $280 at apple, and around the same price at other places when i checked (a long time ago). So i would spend almost $300 to sell it on ebay for $600, or trade in for $830-1000 which would be better, but at that point i would save only like $550-720, plus the small upcharge (abt $100-200) for the new one. If i had the apple care, it would only be $30, which is a lot more reasonable than $280. u feel me?

 

On 9/26/2023 at 2:07 PM, Issac Zachary said:

On the flip side, if you plan on selling the phone by the end of the warranty period, then yes, I'd say it doesn't matter.

Well, if it is on a payment plan, then i would have to keep it for 3 years. the apple care would last 2 years iirc. It is one year of no coverage, but that's better than none, at least to me. But if i pay it out right, i could be able to upgrade next year if i really wanted to, and then i would have an extra year i didnt even use.

 

 

On 9/27/2023 at 1:48 AM, rikitikitavi said:

If you want the current gen, then... 14 Pro

Yeah, again, i would have to pay extra for a warrenty in that case. I just don't think it would be a good decision for me. If my parents didnt have this total tech subscription, i would probably do that, but they do soooo.

 

On 9/27/2023 at 1:48 AM, rikitikitavi said:

if you don't need a new cell and just want one cause 'shiny',

Nah, i kinda need a new phone blud. My older one broke like 3 months ago, and ever since then, i planned on getting a new one. So i kinda have to get one. Although, i would lie if it wasn't all because its the new phone. But i agree w that statement generally, i just really need one.

 

On 9/27/2023 at 1:48 AM, rikitikitavi said:

What do you mean by short/long term? Apple will drop support for 14 Pro and 15 at the same time

I'm saying when i get the 15 thru best buy, i'll get applecare included. So if/when i break my screen again or something like that, it will be a lot cheaper to get it fixed at Apple (thanks for the shady repair stuff apple :)) for no real added cost. But if i were to get the used 14 pro on amazon, i'll have to buy the applecare separately (at about $140) if i wanted that protection. I'd much rather be safe than sorry, since my last 2 phones have cracked

[Issac Zachary]

2 hours ago, Retro_R said:

The reason i'm saying the warrenty isn't a big deal is because the main damage i'm worried about is the screen breaking. The warranty won't cover that completely, but it'll make it alot cheaper to replace it. Plus those other damages.

Big deal is subjective.

 

Buy the phone that makes the most sense to you.

 

Just don't count the current price as the only cost. How durable the phone is can cause it to be more expensive or less expensive to own in the long run, and can affect your return when some day you go to sell it.