It’s the month every iPhone user both loves and loathes — it’s when they see what new tech Apple has lined up, and how much they’ll have to pay to get their hands on it. On 14 September the company announced its latest in mobile tech with the iPhone 13 range which includes the base model, the iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13 Pro and the iPhone 13 Pro Max.
Local pre-orders open today, and that means we have pricing in rands. Both the iStore and Takealot have revealed their pricing, and we’re happy to see South Africans won’t need to take out another loan unless they’re keen on the iPhone 13 Pro Max with 1TB of storage, in which case they may have to.
iPhone 13 and 13 mini
While the new generation of iPhones resembles its predecessors a little too much for our liking — there are a few upgrades (mostly internally) that may sway you into making the upgrade this year.
The 13s feature a new diagonal camera setup, and with it comes a new video mode for iPhone 13. Apple calls it Cinematic mode but it’s basically a bulked-up autofocus. You can switch between two subjects at different focal points like they do in the movies. Okay, this feature is kinda cool — probably because we haven’t seen it yet.
Among the other incremental upgrades are a slightly better screen, 5G capability, a battery that “lasts longer” (oh really? Wow, thanks Apple!) and support for Apple’s MagSafe tech, which you still need to be careful around.
The adorable iPhone 13 Mini comes in as the cheapest of the bunch (obviously) and starts at R15,000 for the 128GB storage option. The iPhone 13 starts at R17,000 for the same storage size, while the 512GB variation will cost you R23,600.
iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max
If you’re lining up for the best Apple has to offer, you’d likely spend time deciding between the iPhone 13 Pro and the Pro Max — the difference is minute, but the latter surely costs more.
The new Pro phones are more powerful than last year’s iteration — mainly thanks to the new A15 Bionic chipset. Sure, there are all-new, speedier internals, but if you’re not keen on gaming performance and camera chops (or that new Super Retina XDR OLED display), then the standard iPhone 13 is all you need.
But if you’re keen on an OLED screen — either 6.1in on the iPhone 13 Pro or 6.7in for the iPhone 13 Pro Max — then there’s only one place to look. Apple’s also launching something called ProMotion, which is a fancy way of saying that the Pro series supports variable refresh rates — down as low as 10Hz and as high as 120Hz. Leave it to Apple to just rename something we’ve previously seen elsewhere.
If the above makes you foam at the mouth due to FOMO, here’s what you’ll pay for ‘em. The iPhone 13 Pro 128GB starts at R23,500, while the 1TB storage option will cost you R33,000. On to the big boy — that iPhone 13 Pro Max costs R23,700 for the 128GB variation, while the 1TB model costs R35,300.
