I switched from Android to iPhone last year. At the time, I said I’d keep my iPhone 13 Pro until it no longer supported the latest iOS updates or when iPhones got USB-C charging. An EU ruling forced Apple to adopt USB-C iPhone charging by the end of 2024, so I figured I’d have some time before I had to upgrade. I was wrong, as the new iPhone 15 now features USB-C charging.
Now, I don’t actually need to upgrade from iPhone 13 Pro to iPhone 15 Pro. The iPhone 13 Pro serves me well and I’m sure it can continue doing so for several years to come. However, using a lightning cable to charge my phone has always been my biggest gripe with the device. Yes, I can use MagSafe chargers for the same purpose, but in my opinion, I should be able to charge my iPhone the same way I do all of my electronics — with a USB-C cable.
So even though I don’t need an iPhone 15 Pro, I’m going to get one anyway because of USB-C charging. For me, USB-C charging alone is worth upgrading to the iPhone 15 Pro, but Apple’s latest phone also has other features that make it enticing. I’ll explain why below.
USB-C charging means less clutter
If you’ve seen my perfect desk setup, then you’ll notice I like keeping my workspace nice and streamlined. I have one USB-C cable to charge almost all of my devices, but I also have a lightning cable purely to charge my iPhone and AirPods Pro 2. Objectively, keeping an extra cable around isn't a big deal, but it’s the thing that bugs me most about my setup.
I have a similar situation in my dining area. I have a USB-C cable connected to a 140W UGreen charger which I use to keep an iPad Air 5 and MacBook Pro 16-inch 2021 charged. And guess what other type of cable I also have plugged into the charger? That’s right, a lightning cable for my phone. This also applies to my desk setup at work ... but I think I’ve made my point.
Again, I realize how silly I might sound to some of you, but I also know others can relate. USB-C on iPhones is a huge deal and it's a good enough reason for me to upgrade.
Lightweight titanium frame
Beyond USB-C, the iPhone 15 Pro features a titanium frame — which is a first for iPhones. I can’t speak to how durable the titanium casing makes the iPhone 15 Pro, but colleagues I’ve spoken with who attended the Apple event can testify to the phone’s lighter weight.
Thanks to the iPhone 15 Pro’s titanium frame, the new phone weighs 6.6 ounces — which is lighter than the 7.2-ounce iPhone 13 Pro. That might not sound like a big deal, but I’m certain it’ll make a difference if you carry a lot of things in your pockets.
Beyond durability and weight, the iPhone 15 Pro has curved edges which colleagues tell me makes the phone more comfortable to hold compared to the 13 Pro and 14 Pro’s sharper edges. The iPhone 15 Pro is also smaller overall than the 13 or 14 while retaining the same 6.1-inch display size.
A17 Pro chip
Another reason I want to get the iPhone 15 Pro over the vanilla iPhone 15 or iPhone 15 Plus is because it, like the iPhone 15 Pro Max, packs the new A17 Pro chip — which promises to be the most powerful chip yet for an iPhone.
We’ve yet to perform our own benchmarks, but according to alleged leaked benchmarks found by Revegnus and MySmartPrice, the new chip outperforms the A16 Bionic chip found in the iPhone 14 series and the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus.
Averaging out the results shown in the leaked screengrabs, and comparing them to the average Geekbench 6 results for other related and rival devices, we see the results are considerably better than the iPhone 14 Pro, though still behind the iPad Pro and its laptop-grade Apple M2 chip. Compared to major Android rivals, we see that even the impressively performing Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra can't match up to the alleged iPhone 15 Pro results, with the Google Pixel 7 Pro trailing even further behind.
Lastly, even though I’m not into mobile gaming, I’m curious to see how games run on the iPhone 15 Pro. Apple announced major titles like Resident Evil Village, and Assassin’s Creed Mirage are coming to iPhone — which is a big deal considering these are console and PC games. Even if I won’t play a full game on a phone, I want to see how well (or poorly) the iPhone 15 Pro handles graphically-demanding titles.
You got me, Apple
I wasn’t planning on upgrading my iPhone 13 Pro for a couple of years, but now that iPhones have USB-C charging, I’m accelerating my plans. Thankfully, I can get up to $480 off the $999 iPhone 15 Pro if I trade in my iPhone 13 Pro. Considering my phone is around a year and a half old and in pristine condition, I should get a pretty decent discount.
Barring any unforeseen advances I can’t live without, I shouldn’t need to upgrade to another phone for a few years. USB-C charging on iPhone 15 Pro is enough, but aspects like the titanium casing, A17 Pro chip, the action button, improved cameras and camera features, faster data transferring through USB-C and more just sweeten the deal.
I’ll be at the nearest Apple store on September 22 when the new iPhone line goes on sale. As for the AirPods Pro 2 with USB-C charging, I’ll wait until Black Friday for a potential sale. Then I’ll finally be rid of lightning cables from my life.
More from Tom's Guide
