The 2020 lineup of iPhones is nothing short of choices. Whether you are an avid iPhone user, or is considering switching over from another operating system, there is bound to be something for you. But as we all know, buying an iPhone is anything but cheap and for most of us, spending an entire month's salary on an electronic rectangle is a big decision. So, here are 3 reasons why you should buy one of the latest iPhones, and 3 reasons why you should not even think about it.
BUY if you want a small but powerful phone. | Suggested: iPhone 12 Mini
These days, phone makers are busy competing on who can make the biggest piece of screen that can fit into your pockets (we do not need a folding phone!). There are definitely some people out there who prefer to have something that can be easily handled with one hand, but most smaller devices are either not produced by the big boys (Mr. Fruit and Mr. Korea) or they compromise too much on performance. Well, the iPhone 12 mini is a tiny 5.4 inch phone that packs the same punch as it's bigger counterpart, and when I say the same punch, I mean it is literally the exact same phone as the iPhone 12 in a smaller body with a (relatively) smaller price. It's perfectly suitable for one hand usage, can fit into your tiny handbags and still gives you the same iPhone experience.
BUY if you play plenty of mobile games. | Suggested: iPhone 12
The A14 bionic chip in all the new iPhones are one of the first 5nm chips ever to be placed in a smartphone. Translation: it's super super fast. iPhones have always been known to be smooth for general usage as most apps are fine tuned for iOS before hitting the app store, and while other phone makers are still catching up to iPhones' benchmark speeds, Apple just made another leap forward. A14 also includes a 4-core GPU which is specifically meant for heavier computing loads such as advanced gaming and machine learning.
Also, for most of you gamers out there, League of Legends: Wild Rift - a mobile version of the most popular game in the world plays perfectly on the iPhone as demonstrated during the Apple event.
BUY if you are an aspiring or professional videographer. | Suggested: iPhone 12 Pro Max
iPhone cameras have always been top tier, being the choice of many photographers, videographers, filmmakers, vloggers and YouTubers. While picture and video quality has always been good, the latest and greatest iPhones now has a few more tricks to compete with full on cameras. First up for photographers, Apple ProRAW now allows you to capture Raw format images, allowing for greater manipulation and editing after. As for videographers and filmmakers, you can now capture HDR videos at 60 fps with Dolby Vision. It might seem like a lot of mumble-jumble for most people, but those who are into photography and videography must be feeling quite excited. On top of all that, the LiDAR scanner allows for night mode portraits and better nighttime capture in general. All these are available in both Pro versions of the phone but the final icing on the cake is reserved for the most prestigious Pro Max - sensor-shift stabilization. This means that the stabilization system is done by the sensor in the body rather than digitally or through the lens, providing much more stabilized videos than ever.
DONT BUY if you are looking for a cheap phone.
It goes without saying that iPhones are expensive. That is a price that some are willing to pay while others are not. The smallest iPhone 12 Mini starts at a whopping RM 3399 for 64GB, and the regular iPhone 12 starts at RM 3899 for the same storage size. If you are looking for a larger screen, then prepare to fork out at least RM 4899 for the 12 Pro and RM 5299 for the 12 Pro Max, but a small consolation would be that they start at 128GB. Do keep in mind also that the wired earphones and charging brick are not included in the box so if you need those, you would have to budget for a little more.
DONT BUY if you are using a recent iPhone model.
This might be just my personal opinion, but there is not enough of a breakthrough in technology to justify an upgrade from the iPhone 11 lineup, maybe even the iPhone X lineup. Sure, it's a new boxier design so people can easily recognize your new phone, but that's no upgrade. Sure, it has MagSafe to magnetically clip on a wireless charger, casing, and/or wallet, but how often do you wirelessly charge your phone? Sure, it's a new and faster chip, but the A13 Bionic won't have much of a problem handling a few more iOS updates too. Unless you're coming from an older iPhone 8, 7 or even 6 (it's about time), I don't see why you shouldn't wait for the iPhone 13 which is rumored to have an in-display fingerprint reader.
DONT BUY if you want 5G.
If you make a toddler watch the entire Apple iPhone Event, they will most definitely learn to speak a new word. "5G" was mentioned more than 70 times (yes I counted) within the span of 1 hours and 10 minutes, that's an average of more than once a minute. Even if this were the future, I can assure you that we still have a long, long way to go before popular adaptation. Even in the United States, 5G networks are only available in major cities in certain hotspots and you would have to be in a close range to fully utilize the network. Plus, the practical applications aside from multiplayer gaming and high bandwidth streaming are still quite limited. So, it's not to say you should not be excited for the technology, but I would wait for a few years before buying any electronic device with 5G as their main selling point.
So, depending on who you are and what you're looking for, the iPhone 12 lineup might or might not be the perfect phone for you. For those of you that were on the fence or leaning towards one side but needed a little more convincing, we hope this has helped you make a better decision. After all, it's only a device that most of us spend the entire day on!
Cover image from YouTube: Apple.
