That’s an odd takeaway from the article. You can trivially switch between 12MP and 48MP. Why not just… switch to 48MP when you want the extra resolution, and otherwise stick to 12MP. Perhaps switch to 48MP when you would otherwise use your DSLR…?
Because looking at the 12MP pictures I would NEVER want it, and I don't want to sacrifice the battery / storage with 48MP pictures the time. I expected the lower resolutions to be a leap compared to the current gen (I have a 13 non-pro) but there's basically no difference.
Those 12MP photos aren't representative because he's using a third party camera app that hasn't been tuned for this phone yet and for some reason is using this as a review of the official camera.
They look fine to me though. If you're worried about beating "a DSLR", a medium format film camera from 1920 beats it in every aspect anyway. Read your Ken Rockwell!