Apple iPhone 15 Plus review: Feature-rich premium phone

Though the iPhone 15 and 15 Pro models look similar to the previous iteration, they come packed with big upgrades in terms of display, build quality, processing power and camera hardware. And also, there is meaningful change in terms of design and hand-feel experience.

I have already reviewed the iPhone 15 Pro Max. It is mean powerful beast of mobile. Now, I am ready with the iPhone 15 Plus. I have been using it for close to a month and here are my thoughts on Apple's latest mobile.

Design, build quality and display

As noted earlier, the new iPhone 15 series retains most of the design elements of the predecessor, but Apple has refined the looks of the device.

The new model features a colour-fused frosted glass back with a matte finish and does an excellent job of repelling sweaty fingerprint smudges also the colour scheme is visually appealing.

. When looked at from the back, Apple fans can instantly recognise the iPhone 15/15 Plus from an iPhone 14/14 Plus.

The pink variant looks stunning. It should be noted that Apple also offers iPhone 15/15 Plus in four other colours-- yellow, green, blue, and black.

When viewed from the front panel, there are more pronounced changes. Anybody on the street can tell that this is the iPhone 15 and there is an even possibility that they can confuse it for the Pro model.

. This year, both the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus feature dynamic island display design. The display has a super thin bezel and thanks to the reduction of the size of the notch, there is less obstruction.

And, thanks to software optimisation, the space around the pill-shaped camera module can dynamically change shape to deliver an interactive user interface. Several compatible apps such as timer, music player, taxi app or food delivery, can deliver real-time information around the module.

For instance, users can instantly know the status of the food delivery or cab arrival time just with a glimpse of the dynamic island of the iPhone.

. Another first we see in the iPhone 15 series is the Type-C port. Now, people with Apple iPads and MacBooks can leave a sigh of relief as they don't have to carry around the extra lightning cable during a trip.

As far as the build quality is concerned, it is made of aerospace-grade aluminium and the back is protected by Corning-made glass protection capable of warding off any scratches.

On the front, it is even better safeguarded by Ceramic Shield, which is jointly developed by Corning and Apple.

. Also, the device comes with an IP68 rating, meaning it can survive drop in a water body up to six metres for close to 30 minutes.

Thanks to thoughtful design techniques, the glass-fused on the back is repair-friendly. If accidently cracked, it can replaced without having to remove the entire back panel and not have to break the bank to fund the service charge.

To be safer side, I recommend prospective buyers invest on a cover case to maintain that new look of the iPhone longer. Apple's MagSafe silicone-based cases are beautiful and sturdy too. Also, they come with protrusion around the display. God forbid if the device accidentally falls flat on the surface with the screen facing down, it will protect the display from cracking.

Unlike others, Apple for a long time, has consciously made an effort to reduce the impact of its products on the planet. It has increased the use of recycled materials and this year, the Cupertino-based company has gone a level up.

. Apple has used 100 per cent recycled cobalt for the battery of the iPhone 15 Plus. Also, it has 100 percent recycled copper in the main logic board, copper wire in the Taptic Engine, and copper foil in the inductive charger in MagSafe, all this is a first for an iPhone.

Also, the sturdy aluminium-based rail around the screen is made of 75 per cent recycled material.

Even the rare earth metals used in the magnets of the iPhone 15 Plus are made of 100 per cent recycled materials.

It should be noted that 100 per cent recycled gold is used in the USB‑C connector as well as the gold plating and tin soldering in multiple printed circuit boards.

And, more than 99 per cent of the packaging is fibre-based. Apple has plans to eliminate all plastics from retail packaging by 2025. Add to that, Apple no longer offer animal leather-based products and accessories.

It has introduced an eco-friendly microtwilt-based FineWoven range of accessories such as phone cases and card wallets with a suede-like touch feel.

. On the front, it sports a big 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR display and supports up to 2,000nits peak brightness, the highest to date for a regular iPhone.

The screen is truly amazing and one can notice the quality and appreciate it when playing nature documentaries on insects, birds and animals in their vibrant rich colours.

. Even reading news on the giant display of the iPhone 15 Plus is a delightful experience.

. Performance

The iPhone 15 Plus runs on iOS 17 and is powered by A16 Bionic, a generation behind the A17 Pro we see in the iPhone 15 Pro models. But, having said that this iPhone model is no slouch; it works amazingly fast and performs efficiently.

For the uninitiated, the A16 Bionic chipset comes with two high-performance cores that use 20 per cent less power and four high-efficiency cores, the 6-core CPU is faster than the previous generation and can easily handle intensive tasks such as graphics-rich gaming.

With a 5-core GPU, it has 50 per cent more memory bandwidth to deliver smooth graphics when streaming videos and playing games. The 16-core Neural Engine is capable of performing nearly 17 trillion operations per second, enabling even faster machine learning computations for features like Live Voicemail transcriptions in iOS 17 and third-party app experiences.

. Even the thermal performance is amazingly good. The iPhone 15 Plus doesn't easily get warm, unlike the Pro models during the early days. FYI, it was fixed with software updates.

I did not face any such issues with the iPhone 15 Plus. It has been super cool during the entire review period. While gaming, it gets warm, but not overwhelming enough to complain about. If you happen to put the cover case, you don't even feel any warmth at all.

Recently, Apple rolled out the ne iOS 17.2 update. It brought lot of improvements to performance and also introduced mental wellness-centric Journal app.

.Apple rolls out iOS 17.2 with Journal app, security fixes and more. The battery life of the iPhone 15 Plus is amazing. Under normal usage, it can easily last two full days. If you are an extreme user and depend on cellular data all day, it can still be able to deliver a whole day.

I repeat in every iPhone review that Apple does wonder with full control over hardware and software. Most premium Android phones even with bigger cell capacity still can't match up to the iPhone Plus and Pro Max versions in terms of battery life.

.Journal app: Key aspects you should know about wellbeing app on iPhone. Another interesting thing about the latest iPhone 15 series is that all four models come with a second-generation Ultra Wide Band chip. With this, the devices can be traced 3X more precisely than ever before. This comes in handy when tracing a lost family member or friend in a carnival or in a big crowded street at an exotic location. However, the iPhone 15 owner has to permit to share the location on the Find My app with a loved one.

. Like the previous iteration, the iPhone 15 Plus supports SOS emergency safety features, but it is available in a few select regions including the US, UK and New Zealand. There is no official word on when Apple plans to bring this security support in India.

On the bright side, crash detection is available on iPhone 15 Plus. It is on by default. If users don't want it, he/she can go to Settings > Emergency SOS, then turn off Call After Severe Crash.

The device can sense that the owner is driving a car. And, if it senses sudden stoppage along noise, the iPhone will start a countdown and sound an alarm. If the user doesn't turn it off, the device will automatically call an emergency contact person.

The iPhone 15 Plus supports one slot for physical SIM in addition to multiple e-SIM options. It should be noted that only one e-SIM can be active along with a physical SIM at a time (dual SIM standby). Also, supports 5G service offered by Airtel and Jio in India.

. Photography

The new iPhone 15 Plus comes with an all-new 48MP main camera. It supports shift-sensor OIS (Optical Image Stabiliser), f/1.6 aperture, and 26mm focal length. The primary sensor is supported by a 12MP telephoto lens with f/1.6 aperture, up to 52mm focal length and support 2X zoom, a first for regular iPhone models to date.

On the front, it features a 12MP TrueDepth camera with autofocus capabilities.

. There are definite improvements in terms of photography on the iPhone 15 Plus over the predecessor. The native camera app ensures there is no overprocessing or warm-up colours on pretty objects such as flowers. Human faces look natural.

. Even under the shades with less light, the iPhone 15 Plus does a fine job of capturing details well.

. In the controlled light conditions indoors, iPhone 15 Plus takes brilliant photos with natural colours.

. The ultra-wide angle manages to get vast area of the landscape in to the frame perfectly without any artificial bending technique as such.

. Also, with 2X Zoom, it offers loss-less quality photos. The colours and the details are sharp and crispy.

. Even at 10X zoom, there is less loss of quality. The star at the top of the Christmas looks fine with less noise.

. Even without the portrait mode, the iPhone 15 Plus does an amazing job of naturally blurring the background. And, with portrait mode on, it goes next level with a visually brilliant bokeh effect.

. When taken with the front camera, the portrait photos are stunning, and surely turn people addicted and make them change their DP on social media platforms more often than not.

. At night, the iPhone 15 Plus excels here too. It allows the right amount of light to brighten the scene but does not go overboard. Unlike night mode on other phones, which can turn a night into an evening, the iPhone ensures the darkness of the sky is maintained and looks natural.

. As you can see in the sample photo, the neon lights on storefronts do not get overblown much.

. Another first coming with the iPhone 15 Plus is the option to alter focus on the subject even after taking the photo. Earlier this was exclusive to Pro models. Now, users just have to tap on the photo to adjust focus point between two subjects. This is a great value addition to the photography experience on a regular iPhone.

. And, video recording continues to be the gold standard among phones in the industry.

. Yes, it is a step below the Pro models, but the iPhone 15 Plus can beat any Android phone in terms of stable and clear video quality with a shaky hand.

. Final thoughts

The last time Apple introduced a regular iPhone more appealing than the Pro model was with the iPhone 11 in 2019. The latter had all the right features and people wouldn't miss much compared to the more expensive iPhone 11 Pro.

This year, the iPhone 15 Plus is giving a similar vibe. It has a similar design language as the Pro model and it is more compelling than the latter.

It has the fun Dynamic Island feature, the camera is awesome and the battery too, can keep the phone running for two days easily.

. If you have been waiting long to make the switch to the Apple ecosystem, the latest iPhone 15 Plus is your gateway to that high-walled garden.

The iPhone 15 Plus is available in three storage options— 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB— for Rs 89,900, Rs 99,900 and Rs 1,19,900 respectively.

The company is offering the iPhone 15 in three storage options— 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB— for Rs 79,900, Rs 89,900, and Rs 1,09,900 respectively.

. Get the latest news on new launches, gadget reviews, apps, cybersecurity, and more on personal technology only on DH Tech .

Apple iPhone 15 Plus review: Feature-rich premium phone

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