I'm a long time Android user, iPhone 3GS, but then, Galaxy S2, Moto X, Galaxy S8+, One Plus 7 Pro, Galaxy S22 Ultra - I've now temporarily switched to an iPhone SE2 as an experiment to see how well I can live with iOS vs Android.
In a nutshell, the differences that I recall from back in the early 2010s, I'd say both operating systems have bridged to gap quite a lot, and I want to give iOS a longer go with a bigger phone with a full set of cameras, larger OLED screen, all of the things the flagship phones I've used more recently have, but from Apple.
So I'm now considering a big investment into one of the upcoming iPhones, probably a 16 Pro Max unless it doesn't move the needle forward compared to the 15 Pro Max, enough for the investment.
The battery shielding being metal, larger battery capacity, and 16/Pro 'exclusive' Apple Intelligence features are about all that I'm really interested in, maybe better bluetooth and wifi, and if the "main" camera is a major step up, or the zoom is substantially improved, I'm otherwise not really phased.
Problem is, or, the FOMO is, if you're buying in soon after launch for that full rrp, in my region $2200AUD perhaps more, starting to wonder if I should wait to go to the 'latest' iPhone until after the 17 or 18, if there are going to be much larger changes.
The 15 features I like would be the Dynamic island, 5x optical zoom, action button, USB-C (not that big of a deal for me I have lightning cables now), and of course upcoming Apple Intelligence features, aside from that, a full battery iPhone 13 Pro Max would probably be a phone I'd really enjoy.
So my question is, this will be after the 16 Pro Max releases so all of the used market prices will adjust down, presumably, which phone would you suggest or would you pick yourself?
16PM - We have a decent idea what it'll be at this point, it's 2 months away, I think I can limp along on the SE2 until then - estimated price $2300 AUD
15PM - Given the added features of the 16PM aren't really to my preference, getting a 15PM once it drops 40-50% in price in September/October will give me 95% of the above phone (that I want), and I can justify upgrading again in 3 or 4 years - estimated price $1400 AUD
13PM - Loss on the main camera, 3 instead of 5x zoom, but will likely have major iOS support for another 3 years, still have incredible battery life and be ~50% of the 15PM after the next price drops - estimated price $700 AUD
GS22 Ultra - I can just switch back to that phone, it's perfectly functional, and I can take the pros and cons from Android vs iOs, without spending any money. - $0 AUD
SE2 - It's at 79% battery, but my usage so far that doesn't matter, I'm charging it 3-4 times a day (overnight, in the car to and from work), it runs all the apps I need it to, it's perfectly functional and I've already bought it. - Also $0 AUD.
Others? What about the 14PM? Will depend on pricing but the action button, usb-c and 5x optical aren't there, while at the same time it won't have as good a battery life as the 15PM or 13PM, it kind of places it in a weird position, It's currently around $1200 AUD, maybe at $900 AUD, but leaving it out of the major choices for now.
What about non-Max phones? Using a 4.7" display on the SE2 is comical to me, it's the smallest screen I've had in 10 years, I occasionally watch YT on my phone, but otherwise I just prefer larger screens, moreover, the loss in battery life vs the PM phones is quite significant, which compounds over time.
What about non-Pro phones? I wish the 15 Plus had 120Hz and was getting Apple Intelligence, that would be on the radar despite no zoom, but without those I don't see the point, oh and no AOD? Even to me the 90Hz on my OnePlus 7 Pro, immediate improvement over the 60Hz Galaxy S8+ I had been using, and while iOS is probably the best 60Hz OS/package, I think that's a pass for me.
12PM don't think has the battery life I'd want, 11PM is getting on and not sure if it'll get support much past iOS 18.
In a nutshell, the differences that I recall from back in the early 2010s, I'd say both operating systems have bridged to gap quite a lot, and I want to give iOS a longer go with a bigger phone with a full set of cameras, larger OLED screen, all of the things the flagship phones I've used more recently have, but from Apple.
So I'm now considering a big investment into one of the upcoming iPhones, probably a 16 Pro Max unless it doesn't move the needle forward compared to the 15 Pro Max, enough for the investment.
The battery shielding being metal, larger battery capacity, and 16/Pro 'exclusive' Apple Intelligence features are about all that I'm really interested in, maybe better bluetooth and wifi, and if the "main" camera is a major step up, or the zoom is substantially improved, I'm otherwise not really phased.
Problem is, or, the FOMO is, if you're buying in soon after launch for that full rrp, in my region $2200AUD perhaps more, starting to wonder if I should wait to go to the 'latest' iPhone until after the 17 or 18, if there are going to be much larger changes.
The 15 features I like would be the Dynamic island, 5x optical zoom, action button, USB-C (not that big of a deal for me I have lightning cables now), and of course upcoming Apple Intelligence features, aside from that, a full battery iPhone 13 Pro Max would probably be a phone I'd really enjoy.
So my question is, this will be after the 16 Pro Max releases so all of the used market prices will adjust down, presumably, which phone would you suggest or would you pick yourself?
16PM - We have a decent idea what it'll be at this point, it's 2 months away, I think I can limp along on the SE2 until then - estimated price $2300 AUD
15PM - Given the added features of the 16PM aren't really to my preference, getting a 15PM once it drops 40-50% in price in September/October will give me 95% of the above phone (that I want), and I can justify upgrading again in 3 or 4 years - estimated price $1400 AUD
13PM - Loss on the main camera, 3 instead of 5x zoom, but will likely have major iOS support for another 3 years, still have incredible battery life and be ~50% of the 15PM after the next price drops - estimated price $700 AUD
GS22 Ultra - I can just switch back to that phone, it's perfectly functional, and I can take the pros and cons from Android vs iOs, without spending any money. - $0 AUD
SE2 - It's at 79% battery, but my usage so far that doesn't matter, I'm charging it 3-4 times a day (overnight, in the car to and from work), it runs all the apps I need it to, it's perfectly functional and I've already bought it. - Also $0 AUD.
Others? What about the 14PM? Will depend on pricing but the action button, usb-c and 5x optical aren't there, while at the same time it won't have as good a battery life as the 15PM or 13PM, it kind of places it in a weird position, It's currently around $1200 AUD, maybe at $900 AUD, but leaving it out of the major choices for now.
What about non-Max phones? Using a 4.7" display on the SE2 is comical to me, it's the smallest screen I've had in 10 years, I occasionally watch YT on my phone, but otherwise I just prefer larger screens, moreover, the loss in battery life vs the PM phones is quite significant, which compounds over time.
What about non-Pro phones? I wish the 15 Plus had 120Hz and was getting Apple Intelligence, that would be on the radar despite no zoom, but without those I don't see the point, oh and no AOD? Even to me the 90Hz on my OnePlus 7 Pro, immediate improvement over the 60Hz Galaxy S8+ I had been using, and while iOS is probably the best 60Hz OS/package, I think that's a pass for me.
12PM don't think has the battery life I'd want, 11PM is getting on and not sure if it'll get support much past iOS 18.
