Apple iPhone 15 Review: Should You Upgrade? Full Features
If you’ve been holding off on buying a new iPhone for the last few years, I think the iPhone 15 is finally the one worth upgrading to. The previous couple of iPhones have honestly been lackluster, to say the least.
Last year’s iPhone 14 was especially disappointing. I mean, Apple hardly changed anything on that phone, so I don’t blame you if you skipped it. I gave it a pretty harsh review myself.
But this year’s iPhone 15 is a pretty significant upgrade in more ways than one. It’s sort of a catch-up year, with some Pro iPhone features coming to this regular iPhone, like the Dynamic Island notch and the 48-megapixel camera lens. Apple upgraded the processor too, so they can say the phone is faster and more powerful, unlike last year.
It’s also a major transition year for the entire iPhone lineup with the death of the Lightning port. That may or may not be a positive, depending on how invested you currently are in USB-C. Still, overall, just on the sheer number of changes, this iPhone 15 is finally different enough that it does feel like a major upgrade.
The iPhone 15 comes in at $799 or £799, which is the same price in the US, but it’s now slightly cheaper in the UK and still starts at 128GB, which I believe will be enough for most.
Apple iPhone 15 Specifications:
- Weight: 171 g
- Dimension: 147.6 x 71.6 x 7.8mm, 171 grams
- Connectivity: 5G (sub-6GHz and mmWave), WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3,
- Display: 6.1‑inch OLED, Super Retina XDR, 60Hz refresh rate
- Resolution: 1179 x 2556 pixels, 460PPI
- SIM: Dual SIM (nano + eSIM), dual eSIM
- Back Camera: Dual:
– 48MP f/1.6 primary camera, 2x optical zoom, sensor-shift OIS
– 12MP f/2.4 ultrawide camera, 120° field of view - Front Camera: 12MP front camera with f/1.9 aperture
- Chipset: A16 Bionic (4nm) processor, 6 CPU cores + 5 GPU cores, 16-core Neural Engine
- Operating System: iOS 17
- Storage: 128GB 6GB RAM, 256GB 6GB RAM, 512GB 6GB RAM
- Security: TrueDepth camera for FaceID facial recognition
- Other features: Water and dust resistance (IP68), Stereo speakers
- Battery: 3349 mAh, Up to 20 hours of video playback, 7.5W Qi Wireless Charging, 15W MagSafe Wireless Charger (No adapter included in the box)
- Color: Black, Blue, Green, Yellow, Pink
Apple iPhone 15 Desing
This year’s color collection is very light. But, of course, for those who want a more understated option, the 15 also comes in classic black. Compared to last year’s iPhone 14, the iPhone 15 brings some really neat design changes.
The back now uses a matte glass finish, which I think not only looks a lot better but also feels a lot better to the touch and does a much better job at resisting fingerprints, especially in these lighter colors.
But my favorite design change lies in the aluminum frame, which, unlike the sharp and angled frame that we’ve been used to for years, features a still flat but slightly rounded frame right by the edges. And this makes a world of difference.
One feature unfortunately not brought to the regular 15 and that is exclusive to the 15 Pros is the action button. Now, I’m currently testing the iPhone 15 Pro for my review, and already I can say I like this feature and do miss it on the regular 15, but still, the regular good old mute switch works fine.
The iPhone 15 is IPX86 water-resistant, so you can still comfortably use it out in the rain without any worries, though I still wouldn’t recommend going swimming with it. Another big change this year is the switch from Lightning over to USB-C, and this means you can basically use one charger for all of your tech and even use your friend’s Android charger to charge your iPhone.
Crazy, I know. In all seriousness, I welcome this change. It means that the iPhone finally uses a universal standard and goes a long way to future-proofing this phone.
Plus, you can plug in accessories like a keyboard, hard drive, or even a display now without any adapters. And a fun fact, you can now even charge your AirPods, your Apple Watch, or even another phone through this USB-C port. I think you’ll agree: these are bigger upgrades compared to previous years.
Apple iPhone 15 Display
Another Pro feature this regular iPhone received this year is a brighter display. The iPhone 15 has a 6.1-inch display. Now, I want to be clear here: the display on the iPhone 15 isn’t any better.
It’s the same resolution, the same type of Super Retina XDR OLED panel, and the same refresh rate—60Hz. The only different thing is its peak brightness levels: 1000 nits user-controlled and 2000 nits auto brightness. That’s still a noticeable change, though.
When I go outside, the iPhone always feels dim in direct sunlight, so a brighter display is a practical and useful change that you can experience regularly in everyday use.
But I know a ton of people will still criticize the fact that this is a 60Hz display, and rightfully so. $200 Android phones have 90Hz and even 120Hz high refresh rate screens, so the regular iPhone at $800-something having a 60Hz screen is kind of a joke.
And the argument can certainly be made that a lot of people still don’t care or maybe wouldn’t notice. But honestly, with so many high refresh rate smartphones, laptops, and even TV screens out there now, it’s hard not to notice. The regular iPhone feels sort of choppy and jittery with its scrolling and other animations.
And even non-techy folks have said that the Pro iPhones feel faster or look smoother, even if they don’t fully understand why. I can understand why Apple is reluctant to add their ProMotion displays to these regular iPhones. It would diminish the value of the Pro phones. But at some point, a high refresh rate screen should just be a standard feature on all smartphones.
Also, read:
Apple iPhone 15 Dynamic
The iPhone 15 now comes with Dynamic Island, a feature that was previously only available on the Pro model but has now made its way to the non-Pro model. You can use Dynamic Island to change a song, check how your Formula One race is going, or view the timer.
And to be honest, as an iPhone 14 Pro user myself, I never found Dynamic Island that useful. As a notification widget, it was sometimes a less intrusive way to deliver information, but not every notification is shown in Dynamic Island.
What’s great about it, though, is that Apple has opened up Dynamic Island to third-party apps. So there are a bunch of third-party apps, like Flighty, that you can use to check how your flight is going.
I hope that with this feature on the regular iPhone now, more app developers will be willing to get creative with it and figure out ways to make it useful.
Apple iPhone 15 USB-C
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but the feature the world and the universe have been waiting for — one I honestly didn’t think would ever come to the iPhone. USB-C, yes. USB-C is finally on the iPhone, which means one cable for all technology: my iPad, my Mac, my iPhone, my GoPro, my Sony, my remotes—everything has a USB-C charging cable.
I seriously never thought this was going to happen. Say goodbye to Lightning because USB-C is here to stay. It feels so weird plugging in a USB-C cable, but what’s cool about having a USB-C cable on an iPhone is that you can also charge your AirPods on the go with your iPhone.
There are already a billion different USB-C cables on the market, and they’ll all work with the iPhone now. You can borrow your friend’s Samsung cable if your phone dies during a night out, and you can buy any of those smartphone accessories you’ve seen that may have only been for other devices. In a sense, there’s no such thing anymore as “made for iPhone.”
But in the end, I think the pivot to USB-C is an overwhelmingly positive change. What’s a little disappointing, though, is that even though there’s a new charging port, charging speeds didn’t improve on the new iPhone. Apple hasn’t improved charging speeds in years, actually, and they’ve never really emphasized it either.
It’s never been an iPhone feature to charge up quickly, and so many people still use a 5-watt USB-A brick to charge their phones, which is just so sad. Please stop doing that. If you want the fastest possible charge speeds, the current USB-C bricks will at least get you to 50% in about 30 minutes, but when Android phones juice up to 100% in less than 30 minutes, it’s easy to get a little jealous.
Apple iPhone 15 Camera
One aspect Apple has consistently and significantly developed on every iPhone year after year is the camera setup. And this year, the iPhone 15 has some new hardware and power again. The rear lens has a 48-megapixel shooter, like a Pro iPhone, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide lens, and a 12-megapixel selfie camera in front.
Inside the camera app, there aren’t any immediate new features. The quick select focal length change is exclusive to the Pros, and the crazy zoom is reserved for the Pro Max, though the 2x zoom on the regular iPhone 15 is arguably a little better this year.
Most of the changes to the camera become apparent when you start snapping pictures and videos.
Apple iPhone 15 photo
The new 48-megapixel lens can capture much more detail in every shot, and the upgraded processor utilizes that detail and image information to produce visually better-looking results. You can now take advantage of 24 and 48-megapixel super high-resolution image files, which, yes, take up a lot of space on your phone, but allow for professional results that can be further refined using your favorite photo editing software.
Low-light and night time shooting are also improved. You should see even more detail in every shot with less noise. Portrait photos are improved across the board as well.
Low-light & night time
These are the kinds of universal camera improvements that allow Apple to say, “Yes, the camera is better.” But I guess there still isn’t enough here for the regular iPhone to sit at the top of the camera leaderboards alongside the iPhone Pros, the Pixel, or the S23 Ultra. At the end of the day, though, I’m still of the opinion that most people don’t fully utilize all the camera features these phones offer.
Apple iPhone 15 Performance
The iPhone 15 did get a newer processor, the A16 Bionic chip. And while it’s not as advanced as the A17 in the Pros, Apple has now set a precedent for differentiating the two iPhones on a performance basis. It’s at least an upgrade. I know it’s really hard to discern any speed or performance difference on an iPhone year over year, but it’s the principle of the thing.
It’s the fact that it’s a new iPhone, so it shouldn’t have last year’s components. If it did, there’d be no reason to introduce a new phone. And I know some people may make that argument too. Don’t get me wrong, I think the bigger value proposition with iPhones is still the software support.
Apple launched iOS 17 for devices starting with the iPhone XR, which is great if you have an older iPhone. You get most of the new software features to make the phone feel new or at least current, but buying a new iPhone today means you’ll get updates for at least five or six more years, perhaps even longer. That, I think, is also one of the main reasons why people don’t upgrade their devices as often anymore. And that could mean this iPhone 15, if you do choose to buy it, is the last phone you’ll buy for half a decade or more.
Should You Upgrade?
Now, for that big ultimate question: should you upgrade? Is the iPhone 15 balanced? I think so. Even though the iPhone 15 is a significant upgrade over the iPhone 14, if you’re already on the iPhone 14, you probably shouldn’t upgrade to the 15.
What’s more important is if, say, you’re on an iPhone 8, X, or 11. The question then becomes: do you save roughly $100 and get the iPhone 14, which is now a little more affordable, or do you spend a bit extra and get the iPhone 15? The answer here is easy. I think you should spend the extra $100 and get the iPhone 15.
With its new design, better display, improved cameras, faster performance, increased longevity, and of course, USB-C, the iPhone 15 is an upgrade in some of the most important areas of any smartphone. If you’re due for an upgrade, I think this is one of the best times to do so.
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Alvi Hosain
I am a tech enthusiast with over 1.5 years of experience in phone reviews and gadgets. Passionate about making technology easier for everyone, I focus on creating smartphone reviews and detailed tech guides. Whether exploring the latest devices or providing tips on how to get the most out of your gadgets, I love helping others navigate the world of technology. Known among my friends for solving phone-related problems, I enjoy discussing technology and staying up-to-date with the latest industry trends.
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