Which iPhone 13 is the best audiovisually? ?

4 new iPhone 13 series launched

The iPhone 13 series has improved battery life!

The iPhone 13 series is equipped with the latest system IC chip "A15 Bionic," originally developed by Apple. Please read the detailed report by Mr. Iso of the editorial department about how this high performance is utilized in the new camera.

A15 Bionic contributes greatly to the power management of the entire iPhone. At the presentation held earlier, Apple introduced that the four models of the iPhone 13 series had better battery life for about an hour and a half to two and a half hours compared to the iPhone 12 series released last year. Even if you actually compare the old and new models and play movies and music content, you can feel that the battery life of the iPhone 13 series has improved.

I prepared iPhone 13 Pro Max and iPhone 12 Pro Max, removed the SIM card, adjusted the conditions, and played Apple Music high resolution lossless content for 1 hour. As a result, the iPhone 13 Pro Max consumed "2%" of the battery, compared to "4%" for the iPhone 12 Pro Max.

Next, I played an HDR compatible movie for 2 hours with the Apple TV app. Both display brightness is set to maximum. The battery of the iPhone 12 Pro Max decreased by "16%", but the battery of the iPhone 13 Pro Max was also consumed by half, "8%".

I think there is a great advantage in being able to relax and enjoy movies and music without worrying about the battery level even in situations where it is difficult to charge the iPhone, such as when traveling for a long time by public transportation.

iPhone 13 mini where you can comfortably enjoy music playback

Out of the four new iPhone 13s, the one that I found most attractive as a "music player" is the "iPhone 13 mini". Compact and easy to handle, I felt that it was a highly complete portable music player that allows you to easily enjoy music streaming services such as Apple Music and Amazon Music anytime, anywhere while using 5G compatible mobile phone communication and Wi-Fi.

It goes without saying that Apple Music, Apple's music distribution service, works well with the iPhone. In iOS 15, two major updates related to Apple Music were implemented. Both are new features related to "spatial audio with Dolby Atmos" that allow you to enjoy a rich stereoscopic music experience, and both make listening to music on the iPhone 13 mini more enjoyable.

First, when listening to content that supports spatial audio with a combination of an iPhone with iOS 15 and AirPods Pro/AirPods Max, the "dynamic head tracking" function can now be used.

Dynamic head tracking is a function that tracks the direction in which the user's face and body are facing in real time, while localizing the sounds heard from the front and surroundings to the appropriate position to reproduce a realistic sense of presence. is. Spatial audio-compatible music gives you a richer expanse, just like listening to it at a live venue or concert hall.

Another is the addition of an up-mix function that converts the original music produced as a left and right channel stereo sound source or the sound of video content into "spatial audio". This can be effective not only for songs distributed on Apple Music, but also for Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube audio, etc. This function is enabled when an iPhone with iOS 15 is combined with AirPods Pro/AirPods Max.

iPhone 13 mini can also be a palm-sized high-resolution music player

Apple Music has added content that supports lossless and high-resolution lossless high-quality streaming since June of this year. By using accessories that connect to the Lightning port of the iPhone 13 mini, you can listen to each song in the best possible condition.

For songs with CD quality (44.1kHz/16bit) or up to 48kHz/24bit, which is defined as lossless in Apple Music, earphones with a built-in DAC headphone amplifier that can be directly connected to the Lightning terminal are recommended. It is recommended because it can be handled simply. Apple's genuine EarPods with Lightning are also good earphones, but RHA's "MA650i with Lightning", which provides a high sealing sensation with silicon ear tips, can also be recommended as a good earphone that connects directly to Lightning.

When you connect a headphone amplifier with a built-in high-resolution compatible USB-DAC to the Lightning-USB camera adapter and earphones/headphones that also support high-resolution, you can listen to high-resolution lossless sound sources up to 192kHz/24bit distributed on Apple Music. You can draw out your strength.

Major domestic mobile communication carriers will support 5G communication using the Sub-6 method from this spring, and have started a low-priced plan that allows you to use 20GB of data per month. When enjoying Apple Music music streaming outdoors, go into the settings of the "Music" app and set the listening setting for mobile communication streaming from "Audio Quality" to "High Sound Quality" at AAC 256kbps or "High Efficiency". If you keep it, you can enjoy listening to music comfortably without worrying about data consumption. If you set the setting to lossless, listening to an album for one hour will consume about 720MB, and if it is high resolution lossless, it will consume about 2.9GB, so even if you are using a large capacity plan, you should be careful.

iPhone 13 Pro Max, where you can enjoy powerful video playback

For video playback, the iPhone 13 Pro Max with a 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR display, the largest in the series, is the best choice. I think it will. As mentioned above, it's a powerful iPhone that allows you to watch bright, colorful videos without worrying about battery life, even if you continue to watch HDR-compatible mobile movie content.

The new iPhone 13 series was not limited to the largest size Max, but the sound quality of the built-in speaker was improved. For all four models, the shape and placement of the opening of the front top speaker has changed as the notch design has changed. Probably, the localization of the sound image has become clearer by retuning the optimization accompanying this design change in various places. When listening to music with Apple Music, the balance between left and right sounds is more natural. Spatial audio compatible music content has a clear view in the depth and height directions. The immersive feeling of music videos distributed on Apple Music is also enhanced.

What is the effect of ProMotion technology installed in the Pro series?

The high-end iPhone 13 Pro series has a refresh rate (frequency of rewriting the screen) from 10Hz to 120Hz according to the content displayed on the display. For the first time, ProMotion technology automatically varies between

Because there are still few mobile video contents and games that support 120Hz, there are limited scenes where you can experience "smooth video display", which is one of the major advantages of 120Hz drive, but you can still benefit from ProMotion technology. There are other scenes that are transmitted.

For example, you can suppress the flickering of characters when scrolling quickly on a web page with a large amount of characters or an e-book page. It reduces eye fatigue, so if you often read news content or e-books on your iPhone, we recommend that you try the 13 Pro series.

In addition, when there is little movement on the display, the refresh rate is reduced to a minimum of 10Hz, which reduces battery consumption. It seems that ProMotion technology contributes to the improvement of the battery life of the 13 Pro series.

I tried using the new MagSafe compatible leather wallet that is compatible with the "Search" app

Finally, changing the topic a little, the new MagSafe compatible iPhone released by Apple at the same time as the iPhone 13 series I would like to introduce the leather wallet.

New MagSafe-enabled leather wallets now have the ability to be discovered using Apple's Find My network.

When you attach the leather wallet to your iPhone for the first time, an animation will start. If you proceed with the setup according to the guidance, it will be registered as the user's "device" in the iOS "Find My" network.

When you open the Find My app, the leather wallet will appear in the list of devices alongside the user's iPhone or iPad. Tap to open the menu details, and set "Notify when removed" to ON. Then, when the leather wallet is removed from the iPhone for more than 1 minute, a notification will be sent to the iPhone and will notify you immediately. This is a useful feature when you accidentally lose your leather wallet.

If you also turn on the "Show phone number" function in the settings, you can wait for the contact from the person who picked you up. The AirTag, a loss prevention tracker that went on sale in the spring, employs a mechanism that transmits phone numbers and e-mail addresses when the person who picks it up holds an NFC-enabled smartphone over the AirTag. In the case of a new leather wallet, the registered phone number will be displayed when the person who picks it up attaches the wallet to their iPhone. Since you need an iPhone 12 series or later device that supports MagSafe, the threshold may be a little higher. Of course, it is also possible to find the current location of the lost wallet on the app's map and find it on your own.

A growing range of MagSafe-enabled accessories, including non-Apple third-party products such as cases and battery packs. The iPhone 13 series is slightly different from the iPhone 12 series in the position of the side buttons and silent switch, so the old and new cases are not compatible. Also, since the size of the camera unit on the back is slightly larger, it may not be possible to use accessories that occupy a large area on the back.

I would like to expect the birth of new MagSafe accessories that can be devised to enjoy audio-visual content.

Author: Atsushi Yamamoto

Journalist and writer. After working as a web editor and reporter for an audiovisual magazine, he became a freelancer. Since he has been covering the electronics show "IFA" held in Berlin, Germany every year, he is familiar with the latest developments related to smart home appliances and IoT in Europe. He is well versed in the audiovisual field, and covers a wide range from high resolution to music distribution, 4K and VOD. Utilizing his fluency in English and French, he covers events both in Japan and overseas, and conducts many interviews with developers.