iPhone 13 rumored to have bigger batteries — but I’m conflicted

We’re months away from the iPhone 13 launch, but analyst Ming-Chi Kuo’s usually accurate investor notes are telling us a lot about what to expect from Apple’s upcoming devices.

We already know that this year’s iPhones will feature a smaller front notch and the Pro models will have a display with 120Hz refresh rate support. Now, in a recent investor note seen by MacRumors, Kuo has said that the new model will also feature larger batteries  — and this will make the iPhone 13 heavier than its predecessor.

This is possible to a design change that Kuo refers to as “space-saving design,” which includes integrating the SIM card slot with the main circuit board, and reducing the front camera module’s thickness.

Notably, the iPhone 12, 12 Pro, and 12 Pro Max had smaller batteries than their iPhone 11 series counterparts by 295mAh, 231 mAh, and 282 mAh respectively. However, that made the iPhone 12 lighter in comparison.

This is where my internal conflict lies. Over the years, if anyone said, “Do you want more juice?,” I’d say, “Pump it into my phone’s veins”. Bigger batteries have always been a welcome change for me, even if it makes the phone heavier.

The iPhone 12 is a different beast though. I love its design, and it’s 30 grams lighter than the iPhone 11 (164 grams v 194 grams) — almost 15% lighter. While the number might not seem huge independently, it makes a hell of a difference in daily usage, and how you hold the phone.

Plus, in my usage of more than four months, I haven’t seen a large difference between iPhone 12’s battery life as compared to the iPhone 11. And I utilize fast charging to top it up quickly if needed.

I understand why Apple might want to do this. A lot of people are using the early stage 5G network through iPhone, and there might be some extra battery drainage.

However, I’m not willing to give up this light and beautiful design so easily. So, as a trade-off, if the overall weight of the phone is increased by 10-12 grams with some extra battery life included, I wouldn’t mind that. But anything more than that is gonna make me grumpy.