Patrick Holland/CNET
The iPhone 12 and 12 Pro are among the highest-rated phones CNET has ever reviewed. With features including 5G, a super-fast and powerful processor and fantastic rear cameras, the iPhone 12 line will likely be a top choice for anyone in need of a phone. But Apple released four iPhone 12 variants, including the iPhone 12 Pro Max and a whole new model called the iPhone 12 Mini. The company is splitting these devices into two distinct categories: the regular iPhone 12 line and the Pro models, aimed at people who love photography and have more money to spend.
To see which phone is best for you and your budget, I compared the iPhone 12 with the two Pro devices, the iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max, taking into account their design, cameras, performance and other features. Read on to see which one is right for you.
Read more: iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max vs. iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max: Apple's premium phones compared
Patrick Holland/CNET
Starting at $829 (£799, AU$1,349), the iPhone 12 isn't the cheapest of Apple's new iPhone 12 variants. That title would go to the iPhone 12 Mini, which costs $729 (£699, AU$1,1999). But the iPhone 12 has a bigger screen and is the most affordable of all three phones in this comparison. And while it still features the A14 Bionic processor and dual rear cameras, it doesn't have a telephoto lens. The device's base memory option starts lower, at 64GB instead of 128GB, as well.
Read our Apple iPhone 12 review.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Get the iPhone 12 Pro if you want nearly all of the hardware benefits of the iPhone 12 Pro Max, but in the smaller body of the iPhone 12. These goodies include the aforementioned telephoto camera, a brighter screen, lidar sensors and camera tools like ProRaw.
Read our Apple iPhone 12 Pro review.
Apple
The iPhone 12 Pro Max basically has all the latest and greatest features from Apple. Its 6.7-inch display means it's the biggest of all the new models and its camera setup, while similar to the iPhone 12 Pro, allows for more close-up zooming. Whether you like to binge-watch a lot of video on your phone or want to take the absolute best 3d modeling software photos and video, the Pro Max will satisfy. Unfortunately, this also means it's expensive. At its largest memory capacity, it costs a whopping $1,399 (£1,399, AU$2,369).
Read our Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max review.
Design: Polished, signature Apple look across the board
In general, all three iPhone 12 models look similar. All have OLED displays, are IP68 rated for water-resistance, have magnetic backings that work with new MagSafe chargers and accessories and they have more durable screens strengthened by ceramic. And like past iPhone models, they don't have headphone jacks.
But the most notable difference is that the iPhone 12 Pro Max has the biggest screen. Get the 6.7-inch Pro Max if you're sure you want to have the most immersive experience you can watching movies, playing graphic-intensive games and video conferencing with your friends and family.
If you'd rather get something smaller, the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro have 6.1-inch displays with the same resolution and pixel density, so images will look equally sharp no matter what device you choose. But the iPhone 12 Pro's display is brighter -- its screen features 800 nits of brightness compared to the iPhone 12's 625 nits. While I don't anticipate any issues with the iPhone 12's display, the iPhone 12 Pro's additional brightness is likely to come in handy when you're looking at your phone outdoors on a sunny day.
Though the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro are the same size, the 12 Pro is heavier thanks to its extra hardware and the fact that, like the iPhone 12 Pro Max, it's made of stainless steel. The iPhone 12, meanwhile, is made out of aluminum. It's strong in its own right and lighter than steel, but it's not as tough.
The iPhone 12 comes in five color variants: a deep blue, a minty green, red, white and black. Though the choices aren't as fun as the previous year's iPhone 11 pastels, it's more vibrant than the iPhone 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max, which have four colors. Apple offers the familiar grey, silver and gold as well as a grayish-blue it calls Pacific blue.
Read more: The best phone to buy for 2021