Purple iPhone: Here's How Apple's New iPhone Color Stacks Up

Illustration for article titled Here's the Purple iPhone 12 Next to Other Purple Things — Photo: Caitlin McGarry/Gizmodo

The iPhone 12 and 12 mini have been on sale for months now, but today’s the day you can buy one in purple. I’ve had the purple iPhone 12 for a little while, and I must say: It’s adorable. However, it’s not the exact shade of purple I thought it was—for some reason, in person, it’s more of a candy-coated Easter vibe than I expected. That’s not a bad thing unless you hate pastels. Gizmodo reporter Catie Keck would have preferred Apple launch a matte black shade, or perhaps a muted grey just to spice things up, so clearly purple is not for everyone.

I’ve already reviewed the $799 iPhone 12 (great!) and $699 iPhone 12 Mini (perfect size, terrible battery life, would skip), so since the only thing new here is the hue, I photographed the newly available purple phone next to other purple things so you can really get the full Purple Experience.

But first, some glamour shots.

Caitlin McGarry

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Senior editor, consumer tech @ Gizmodo

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Oooh

undefined — Photo: Caitlin McGarry/Gizmodo

The purple iPhone looks like any other iPhone from the front, especially if you stick a case on it.

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Ahhh

From the back, though? It’s definitely purple. I haven’t decided what shade. Lilac? No. Lavender? Perhaps.

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Subtle

Even the iPhone’s aluminum frame is lavender. Or is it violet?

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More Details

All of these detail shots were captured in natural light with no retouching so you can get a more accurate sense of the color.

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Purple Port

Purple all the way around, baby.

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She Cute

Now you know what the purple iPhone 12 looks like, let’s compare it to other purple things now, shall we?

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Definitely Not Lilac

The purple iPhone, when viewed next to lilacs, is clearly not lilac. It has a bluer tone.

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Nope

For those of you who like to match your manicure to your phone, I regret to inform you that Essie’s Baguette Me Not, which I plucked from the recesses of my bathroom cabinet, is decidedly not it.

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Also Not It

The iPhone 12 gives me shopping-for-crystals-in-Palm-Springs vibes, but the amethyst I procured at an L.A. crystal shop is clearly a much darker purple.

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Now We’re Onto Something

The iPhone 12 is a perfect match for Purple Peonies (seen bottom left), a paint color from the HGTV Home x Sherwin-Williams collection available at Lowe’s. While I did not purchase this particular paint—I just raided the swatches—I will rest easier knowing the exact shade should I ever want to bring the purple iPhone’s energy into my home in a more dramatic way.

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The Purple One

I’d be remiss not to include a photo of the purple iPhone with the Purple One himself. Prince’s iconic Purple Rain album is definitely more badass than this phone, but that’s OK—the rest of us can only aspire to be so legendary.

Here's the Purple iPhone 12 Next to Other Purple Things

Here's the Purple iPhone 12 Next to Other Purple Things

Oooh

Oooh

Ahhh

Ahhh

Subtle

Subtle

More Details

More Details

Purple Port

Purple Port

She Cute

She Cute

Definitely Not Lilac

Definitely Not Lilac

Nope

Nope

Also Not It

Also Not It

Now We’re Onto Something

Now We’re Onto Something

The Purple One

The Purple One

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