Robert Triggs / Android Authority
$1,199 for the most recent iPhone 15 Professional Max is undoubtedly costly. Actually, it’s Apple’s priciest iPhone ever, however not less than you’re buying and selling that money in for the model’s newest and biggest cellular expertise. On the different finish of the portfolio lies the poor, uncared for iPhone 15. Whereas rather more inexpensive at $799, it lacks the cutting-edge enchantment of Apple’s Professional vary, usually left ready for older options to trickle down.
That trickle has slowed to a drip. As such, the common iPhone 15 compares fairly poorly on a spec-by-spec foundation in opposition to the perfect Android telephones in the identical value bracket. Whereas the Professional Max may be costly, it’s the iPhone 15 that’s truly overpriced for what it presents.
iPhone 15 specs are properly off the tempo
To get our bearings, let’s rapidly assessment the staple options you’ll discover throughout Android flagships within the $799 value bracket.
Beginning with the show, high-refresh-rate 120Hz OLED panels are the norm (more and more within the mid-tier too), and variable refresh charges to save lots of on battery life are additionally more and more frequent. The iPhone 15 is caught with a dated 60Hz mounted refresh price that appears and feels comparatively sluggish when scrolling by means of your favourite web sites. When you’ve sampled 120Hz, going again to 60Hz feels decidedly price range.
Likewise, Apple reserves its All the time-on Show (AOD) function for its Professional mannequin, whereas a number of Android producers, together with Google and Samsung, supply it on their extra inexpensive telephones. Apple is actually shortchanging its prospects in the case of show expertise.
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
Flip the most recent iPhone over, and also you’ll spot one other space that Apple is scrimping on. Sure, the iPhone 15 now boasts a bigger, high-resolution 48MP rear digicam (lastly closing an outdated hole with the perfect digicam telephones). Nevertheless, the mannequin is caught with an outdated ultrawide lens and nonetheless lacks any optical zoom capabilities. And no, Apple’s 2x telephoto fancy crop just isn’t actual competitors for a devoted 2x or 3x lens.
Android is flush with crisper digicam choices at this value, from the OnePlus 11’s 2x lens, the Galaxy S23 3x telephoto taking pictures choice, or the three.2x optical capabilities of the Xiaomi 13. Tangentially, the $899 dual-camera iPhone 15 Plus is not any match for the flexibleness of the $849 Pixel 7 Professional’s zoom setup both.
Whereas a lesser offense, Apple’s alternative to make use of older silicon can be a step down from its opponents. The A16 Bionic is actually no slouch after only a 12 months, however equally inexpensive Android flagships repeatedly tout the most recent and biggest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. Moreover, subsequent 12 months’s rival flagships are set for a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 improve, full with graphics chops that’ll blow Apple’s last-gen chip out of the water.
A sluggish show, older chip, and fewer versatile digicam {hardware} does not stand as much as the competitors.
Equally, battery life has by no means been notably stellar with the smaller iPhone, and the 15 mannequin doesn’t appear to be any bigger than its predecessor. Maybe worse, final 12 months’s iPhone fashions have been criticized for shedding peak capability faster than different manufacturers, suggesting that Apple is cheaping out on inferior cells. However there’s a first rate collection of compact smartphones that supply stable all-day battery life and typically much more.
Even what’s new is commonly outdated with Apple. The price range iPhone 15s don’t even assist quick information switch speeds, regardless of the lengthy overdue transfer to USB-C. They’re caught with the outdated USB 2.0 protocol, which is way slower than you’ll see in fashionable Android telephones.
Between the show, battery, USB-C tech, and middling digicam setup, the Apple iPhone 15 has lots of drawbacks and only a few {hardware} wins to lord over opponents in its value bracket.
One of the best Android alternate options to the iPhone 15
Ryan Haines / Android Authority
To Apple’s credit score, different key design elements examine properly in opposition to its Android rivals. NFC, Extremely-wideband, an IP68 score, Bluetooth 5.3, and long-term replace assist are accounted for. Nevertheless, you’ll nonetheless discover Android alternate options with sooner charging, the most recent Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 capabilities, and fan favorites like a headphone jack. Maybe these are much less essential to basic prospects, but it surely goes to indicate that there are many opponents price taking a look at.
Samsung’s Galaxy S23 ($799 at Amazon) is the Apple iPhone 15’s most direct competitor. It has a slicker, 120Hz Dynamic AMOLED show with AOD, a further digicam for distant zoom, sooner wired charging, and sooner USB 3.2 information speeds, for precisely the identical value as the most recent iPhone.
Android is not wanting extra highly effective {hardware} combos for iPhone 15 cash.
Spend only a fraction extra, and the superb Google Pixel 7 Professional ($589.98 at Amazon) nets you quicker wi-fi charging, a 10-120Hz LTPO show, 5x long-range zoom pictures, and an enormous 5,000mAh battery. In Europe, the Xiaomi 13 ($790.99 at eBay) is similar value and comes with a giant battery, good digicam setup with optical zoom, 120Hz show, 8K video recording, blazing quick wired charging, Wi-Fi 7 assist, and twice the storage of its opponents.
In fact, the iPhone 15 has an enchantment that transcends {hardware} options, similar to the brand new satellite-powered Roadside Help. These embedded in Apple’s software program ecosystem may want extra convincing to change sides, however these on the lookout for stable worth for cash ought to think about an alternative choice to the overpriced iPhone 15.
