Apple iPhone 14 Series Hot Take| Reviews and Spec
Apple iPhone 14 Series Hot Take| Reviews and Spec Even non-techies tune in to watch Apple set trends and watch important new announcements like the one we had this week. As of this Friday, the iPhone 14 series is formally announced and available for pre-order. Next week, the first fortunate users will hold one in their hands.
We have in-depth coverage of the occasion and pertinent news that surfaced in the immediate aftermath (some of which revealed information Apple did not). Now that the dust has settled, we wanted to share some opinions about the new models.
Discreet and overt price increases
Apple has tinkered with iPhone prices before, and this year was no exception. The mini, which started at $700, was the least expensive iPhone (non-SE) in 2021; as of right now, the iPhone 14 is the least expensive model in the premium lineup.
iPhone 14 from Apple hot take
Yes, the iPhone 13 was also $800, and Apple is mentioning it in an effort to distract you from the fact that the price of admission increased when the mini disappeared. If you want to look at specific pricing information for the new models, contact us. The small itself was a part of a slight price increase; in 2019, the base iPhone 11 cost $700, and in 2020, the base iPhone 12 cost the same amount. The 6.1″ iPhone 12, which was the real successor to the basic iPhone 11, cost $800, but that was the recently released mini.
Apple iPhone 14 Series Hot Take| Reviews and Spec
Another lie was told at the event on Wednesday when Apple displayed the US prices for the iPhone 14 models, implying that they were the same as those for the 13 series. And it is, however, that there will soon be a “but.” In certain nations (such as the US, Canada, and China), the new models are priced the same as the old ones, but in Europe, some areas of Asia, and other places, the price has significantly increased.
- iPhone 14 Plus iPhone 14
- iPhone 14 Pro Max iPhone 14 Pro
US Dollars 799, 899, 999, 1,099
UK
849 GBP, 949 GBP, 1 099 GBP, and 199 GBP
Germany
999, 1,149, 1,299, 1,449 euros
India
79,900, 89, 129, 139, and 139,900 Indian Rupees
China
RMB 5,999 RMB 6,999 RMB 7,999 RMB 8,999
Japanese
Yen 119,800, Yen 134,800, Yen 149,800, and Yen 164,800
While we’re discussing costs, we also wanted to cover the previous models, so we’ll talk about the Plus and the small. Apple discontinues the outdated Pro series and continues to sell the basic devices at a discount as it does every year.
The iPhone 12, 13, and 13 mini are still offered at a discounted price, as it did this year as well. Well, not quite. The decrease is relative to the iPhone 14 series, and because those costs increased in some areas, the pricing of the older models remained stable in a number of other nations.
Even worse, the cost of the iPhone SE (2022) increased in several locations. We are aware that some of you waited for the new generation to debut in order to purchase an older model at a reduced price, but this year this plan didn’t quite pan out as smoothly as it normally does.
A nice addition to the family is The Plus.
For the new iPhone 14 Plus, Apple revived the “Plus” moniker. It claims the same 6.7″ screen diagonal as the 14 Pro Max and is the exact same size (within a few millimeters). It produces a great, sharp image and effectively has the same pixel density (458ppi) as well.
iPhone 14 from Apple hot take
The similarities between the Plus and Pro Max stop there, though. It is still a 60Hz panel, and it does not support Always On Display, to start (new on the Pros). Additionally, while the Plus and standard iPhone 14 maintain their regular brightness at 800 nits and peak at 1,200 nits, the Pro displays are brighter (vs. 1,000 nits typical and 2,000 nits peak for the 14 Pro duo).
iPhone 14 from Apple hot take
The cameras and chipset are two other significant distinctions between the Plus and the Max, but we’ll discuss those later.
The new member of the Apple family is the iPhone 14 Plus. Although not everyone wants the greatest cameras or the fastest performance these days, some do desire a larger screen and battery than what the 6.1″ basic iPhone gave. They now have the choice between the Plus at $900 and the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which was previously their only option and cost $1,100.
We believe the Plus model, which the iPhone lineup really needed, will be quite popular. But is the mini’s demise necessary for its birth? Most likely not, but it makes no difference. According to sales figures provided by analysts, the mini died on its own as a result of a decline in consumer interest.
There truly wasn’t a need for a new mini.
Before discussing the enhancements (and occasionally lack thereof) on the 14 series, we should address the remark above, which we are aware will raise some objections from some people.
In the shape of the iPhone 13 small, the mini is still available. A potential iPhone 14 small wouldn’t have been much that different given the base 14-series’ gradual improvements to the camera, CPU, and display. The 13 mini is still a wonderful option if you want a little phone (really small, not Android small) with a quality build and performance.
A compelling camera upgrade for professionals
Apple, like Google, over-optimized a camera configuration and was hesitant to make significant adjustments. For many years, it produced excellent images, but it was time to move past the 12MP resolution and conventional Bayer filter.
Apple did a fantastic job at outlining the advantages. The new 48MP sensor bridges the gap between the primary camera and the 3x telephoto camera by providing a high-quality image at a 2x zoom. In the daytime, it can capture 48MP RAW photographs with great quality, and at night, it uses pixel binning to lessen noise. Perhaps next year, but it could have also allowed for an 8K video recording.
iPhone 14 from Apple hot take
The new iPhone Pro camera is far more adaptable in any case. Less is seen on the stable’s other side. The main camera on the iPhone 14 and 14 Plus does include a bigger sensor and a brighter aperture, and they also gain from the new Photonic Engine. However, given that there have only been incremental advancements since 2019, they are beginning to feel rather antiquated now.
The main camera’s sensor is larger than the standard variants (1.9 mm vs. 1.7 mm). The selfie cameras on all four have AF. The standard models receive a larger sensor (1.9 mm vs. 1.7 mm). All four of the selfie cameras have autofocus.
The addition of focusing to the selfie camera is one modification we welcome; it can (and frequently does) significantly improve the quality of selfies. But how long before iPhone under-display cameras emerge will we have to put up with notches and pill-shaped punch holes?
Dynamic Island and AOD
The displays on the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max are among the best on the market with their 1-120Hz LTPO, sharpness, brightness, HDR10 and Dolby Vision support, durable glass, and now Always On mode. Finding an issue with the displays themselves is challenging.
iPhone 14 from Apple hot take
The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus, on the other hand, provide essentially no improvements over the 13-series and aren’t all that different from what the iPhone 12 has.
To examine the TrueDepth camera’s initial significant makeover, we’re returning to the pros. Although it has the biggest punch hole we’ve yet seen, Apple adorned it with the alleged Dynamic Island.
Apple iPhone 14 Series Hot Take| Reviews and Spec
Dynamic Island can even extend to display a new notification. It pops up icons from apps that require your attention and displays indicators (such as indicating that the camera or microphone is on).
Apple deserves credit for the flawless animations and slick marketing, but Dynamic Island provides nothing that a standard status bar can’t already do. Of course, there isn’t space for a proper status bar on a pill this huge.
Apple’s constant advancement in chipsets is sluggish.
Even the iPhone SE (2022) has an Apple A15 chip, making Apple stand out for using the best mobile chipsets across all smartphone generations. The A15 featured two levels, one with a 4-core GPU (used in the iPhone 13, 13 mini, and SE) and one with a 5-core GPU. This created a slight gap (used in the Pros).
Since the iPhone 14 and 14 Plus continues to use the A15 chipset, the difference between the vanilla and Pro models is now significantly wider. Although Apple claims that the more potent 5-core GPU would give 18% higher GPU performance, we’re not sure it will make much of a difference when the target is 60 frames per second.
iPhone 14 from Apple hot take
All iPhone 14 versions include 6GB of RAM, which is a change that Apple didn’t mention but which is likely to have a greater positive impact (no change for the Pros, but the 13 and 13 mini had only 4GB). Even light multitaskers should experience improvements.
The new Apple A16 chipset was compared to a three-year-old A13 by Apple, although it was largely done to demonstrate how quickly it is (the company claimed that the A13 is faster than the best Android chipset of 2022, but that could only be true with a lot of fine print). According to early reports, Apple increased the maximum CPU clock speed; at 3.43GHz, it has the fastest smartphone core, but actual performance gains are minimal.
Apple may have the quickest mobile chipset, but the competition isn’t far behind, and the A16 is about to face up against the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, which will be released in a few months.
SpaceX and T-Mobile snatched Apple’s satellite market share.
A compact, portable phone that can fit in your pocket and connect to a satellite without an extra antenna to send out an SOS strikes me as somewhat science fiction. There is no denying that it will be extremely helpful if the worst occurs and you end up in distress and a long way from help.
Apple did, however, exclude certain information. Customers who purchase an iPhone 14 will receive a free 2-year subscription, but only in the US and Canada, where the beta testing is starting. But after that, how much would it cost? Will it be a recurring monthly fee or pay-per-use? Additionally, you may need search and rescue insurance in some areas. Even if you don’t, you will still be saved; it will simply be very expensive.
Apple’s SOS emergency service and satellite-based location sharing Apple’s SOS emergency service and satellite-based location sharing Apple’s SOS emergency service and satellite-based location sharing Apple’s SOS emergency service and satellite-based location sharing
Apple’s SOS emergency service and satellite-based location sharing
And how does Find My’s location sharing function if a user must carefully point their iPhone at a satellite in order to connect to it (with on-screen instructions)?
Regardless, the alliance between T-Mobile and SpaceX was announced at a curious time. They started a few weeks ago that smartphones will connect to satellites by the end of the following year.
This will function with current phones, unlike Apple’s solution, and it will be accessible for all types of chatting—not just SOS and location sharing—including SMS, MMS, and even some third-party chat apps. Google is already developing Android 14 satellite support. A year after its debut, Apple’s new emergency SOS feature will seem dated if T-Mobile and SpaceX can pull it off. Of course, this will also help iPhone users on T-Mobile, even those with older devices, but Apple won’t make any money off of that.
Lessons from CDMA weren’t applied.
The new iPhone 14 versions going on sale in the US won’t have a SIM card slot; instead, they’ll only support eSIM. While eSIM is unquestionably useful, carriers have complete control over it.
This was the case with CDMA phones, however changing carriers at the time required receiving a new number. Since then, things have significantly improved, and users are now allowed to switch phones without the carrier becoming involved.
This is a step back with little apparent benefit because iPhones already supported eSIM and are among the best waterproof smartphones available. What are the advantages for consumers of removing the physical SIM tray?