Lifestyle

I Upgraded to the iPhone 12 | Was It Worth It? From a ‘Normal Person’s’ Opinion?

by katieemmabeauty

Disclaimer: I am not a tech person. And while I understand the basics of processors etc. I actually don’t know enough about it! But I use my iPhone as my everything! For instagram photos (though not blog photos), to record reels, to text and call (obvs), to answer work emails out of hours, to watch YouTube, to scroll through Instagram! Like not too unusual things in my opinion.

I had the iPhone 8 for just over three years and that phone has treated me very well! The battery still works in it perfectly (it says in the back end that it’s working to 88% of it’s capacity), there’s barely a scratch in the screen (which still looks crisp and sharp), and the camera has aged slightly, but is still really lovely! The front facing camera is a little pixilated (unless the lighting is PERFECT).

And I upgraded to the iPhone 12 Mini 64GB in Black. Mainly because I prefer the slightly smaller phone (which I know I’m alone in, but whatever) and it’s also the cheapest model at only £699. I’ve now had my new phone for about 3 weeks now, so I’m able to share my thoughts and feelings! And within this post I’ll share some comparisons on the cameras between the models (because I know this is what you care about most!)

Overall Look And Feel

I don’t know about you, but whenever I hold an iPhone out of its case I’m always struck by how light and small they are (as I’m that person who never has their phone out a case as I’m a clutz)! So when I first pulled it out the box, I thought it was smaller and lighter, but it’s actually a relatively similar size! Although, as the screen goes to the edge of the phone, the screen is slightly bigger (albiet a different dimension as it’s slightly slimmer). It’s also a smart phone, as in it looks smart and sleek, and I quite like that you don’t have this weird square around the outside of your phone!

The buttons on the side and bottom of the phone are all pretty similar (sound, lock screen, silent/loud notications toggle and the lightning plug at the bottom (for both the charger and earphones). As a note, the new iPhones comes with a USB C to lightening cable, and no earphones, and no lightening to aux adapter. But as I had all the cables and things already from my old phone, it didn’t bother me.

The BIGGEST change is there is no home button / thumb print scanner! It takes a little getting used to, but I adapted very fast. It unlocks via Face recognition (which is pretty quick unless you’re wearing a mask!) and you’ve basically replaced the home button with a swipe up function.

Battery Life & Speed

So I could tell you what processor each phone has, but if you’re reading this on my blog and not a techy website, I would guess you don’t really care about that stuff! In my own experience the phone is not noticeably quicker than the iPhone 8. Things are a little smoother in terms of apps opening and stuff, but nothing that I would say you NEED to jump to a higher phone model for. And the battery is a small upgrade, I use my phone a lot throughout the day, and I find my iPhone 8 needs a little top up while I’m watching TV in the evening, while my iPhone 12 can survive until I’m in bed, but other than that it’s not a massive difference.

The only thing that really goes grate my biscuit (is that a phrase? I don’t know), is that you can’t get the battery percentage on the top with the battery symbol. And while that might not bother you (as I know some people don’t like that number there) it really annoys me that I can’t get it there. However, you can swipe left from the home page, and the percentage is there. But that’s just something for me.

Camera

As you can see from the photos above (which are all taken on the standard camera settings), the front facing camera is so much sharper, and I’m really enjoying portrait mode (which for those of you who don’t know, massively blurs the background). The rear camera is so much better in low lighting, but in bright daylight (as most of my photos are taken) you can only really see the difference when they literally are side by side. One thing I do like about the new camera settings is you have a lot more flexibility in the exposure (as you don’t have to focus, and then shift the lighting, you can just shift the lighting full stop). However, the biggest difference is when you see photos in the dark or in artificial lighting, as it colour corrects so much better than my iPhone 8.

The video is so much crisper though and it focuses so much quicker- but I have to say I don’t use it for anything more than Reels (when instagram drops the quality anyway), so it’s not a massive thing for me.

Worth The Upgrade?

If you have any further questions, do feel free to ask me in the comments because I do reply to all of them anyway! But for me, it was definitely worth it! I’d had my iPhone 8 for a long old time, and apple had made a lot of improvements to things since I bought it. However, if you had an iPhone 10 (or X or whatever they called it), it might not feel like such a change as a lot of the upgrades for me came in between the 8 and 10. And if you’re weighing it up, I always think of is this way; I usually have my phones around 3 years. And they’re often around the £700 mark when I get them (as I don’t need much space), so spread that out it’s around £20 a month. Which for something I use EVERY SINGLE DAY, is like so beyond worth it for me! I haven’t been able to make the most of 5G yet, because I need to upgrade my sim card to a 5G simcard and also I don’t leave my house at the moment! But I do love that it’s future proof by being 5G ready.

Have you upgraded? Would you say it’s worth it?

Katie x

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59 thoughts on “I Upgraded to the iPhone 12 | Was It Worth It? From a ‘Normal Person’s’ Opinion?”

  3. Thanks for sharing your opinion on this Katie! I’m actually thinking of getting the iPhone 12 for my birthday :’) upgrading from a 6s so I’m pretty sure it’ll be a big change. I’m mostly excited about a better camera!

    I’m happy to hear that it’s worth getting, I’m super excited to finally get one since my phone is so bad now haha 😆

    Reply

  4. I bought the iphone 11 at the end of 2019 after having a 6s for more than 3 years ( and 2 other models prior to that) so I’m a big fan of iphones. I think I likely gained more than you did by increasing the screen size substantially as well as the camera which I find amazing. I think when we wait years between upgrading we see a lot more difference then if we upgrade year to year. Thanks for providing your perspective and enjoy your new iphone!

    Reply

  6. I switched to Android with my last phone (Google Pixel 2XL) and recently upgraded to the Google Pixel 5. That being said, I am seeing a lot of similarities in the comparison between those two. I feel like, in most cases, the upgrades aren’t as massive these days. However, for those of us who use our phones constantly, even a small upgrade can make a big difference in our daily tasks. Right? Oh, and for the record, I am 110% excited that my phone is smaller than my last one too lol! I feel like phones have been getting far too large.

    Reply

  8. I have an iPhone 8 because it’s still working pretty well after 3 years, but the camera of this new iPhone is amazing. I will keep mine a bit more, but then surely I will change it for one of these newest!

    xx Dasynka
    http://dasynka.com

    Reply

  9. Nice review! My dad got the Iphone 12, and he used to have the iphone x. The biggest change there is really just the camera, and the look. My mom used to have the iphone 6 plus, and you can obviously see a big difference there. So, if you have a pretty old phone and thinking about upgrading I would wait until the iphone 13 gets released this year if you can wait.

    Reply

  10. Thank you so much for sharing this!! You should be sponsored by Apple because you nearly made me buy it lol!
    The difference in photos is crazy!! The quality looks great

    Reply

  15. Thanks for sharing! I have recently upgraded from a Samsung galaxy s9 to the iPhone 11 and I am in love with the camera quality! The difference a few years makes is crazy.

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  16. What an informative post! The camera quality on both phones looks good but you can certainly see the difference with the 12. I’m an iPhone fan too, I currently have a 6S Plus but it does the job so it’ll be a little while before I upgrade. I like having a headphone jack so will need to psych myself up when I upgrade and I’m guessing I’ll have to invest in AirPods… the no home button would take a while to get used to as well!

    Reply

  17. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, doll! It’s actually really helpful because I have an iPhone 8+ myself. My phone is not that old and it’s still working to 88% of its capacity just like yours. I’m fine with it for now. I might consider to get a new one when this one dies on me haha! Thanks for the informative review! xx

    Reply

  18. I’ve never had an iPhone, always a Samsung Galaxy, so this was an interesting read. I’m pretty loyal to Samsung but I do think my trusty S6 is overdue an upgrade so once we’re allowed out and about again I think I’ll look into it.

    Reply

    1. I feel like people are usually loyal to one or the other! haha. I tried having a Samsung (and has the S6 at uni), but I couldn’t get on with it and couldn’t really explain why! x

      Reply

  20. I love that you did a review and especially as a “Normal Person”, because you always see this YouTube channels and influencers doing reviews but when it’s real and raw and not super tech and fancy it is so much better! it helps people feel like you can truly relate and trust you and your review! Good Job! p.s. I LOVE my iPhone 12 I thought I would hate the design and feel because it’s changed (I Use to LOVE the iPhone 7) but this is AMAZING

    Reply

    1. Awwww thanks! And yeah I read so many reviews of the iPhone 12 I didn’t understand, so I thought I’d just do my own so that people like me (who just looks at a phone as a social media and camera tool) could understand it! ha x

      Reply

  21. I’ve been a Android user for years but I have to say I’m really tempted by the latest iphone, the pictures look so good! This post was so helpful, thank you! x

    Reply

  22. i got an Iphone 11 pro plus and it was honestly the best investment I had done after waiting quite long to change, I think I still had a 6. I really love the cameras and the battery is much better! Thank you for sharing your opinions on it xx

    Reply

  23. I’m terrible at updating my phone! I’ve got an iphone 7 on a sim only plan but I’ll definitely need to upgrade it before the end of this year I reckon so it’s really good to read a real humans review of the phone

    Reply

  27. I recently upgraded from the 8 to the 12 as well. I agree about the battery percentage. That really bugs me too, haha! Everything else wasn’t too hard to get used to and I really like the new camera features as well. 🙂

    Reply

  30. I love iPhones. Their cameras are so clear and could substitute for an actual camera. I feel like getting an iPhone 12 is actually not a bad investment and I love the fact that you gave an honest opinion about this.

    Reply

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