The iPhone 14 is the most effective entry-level iPhone flagship ever made, however there’s nowhere close to sufficient new technology to encourage current iPhone 13 house owners to improve, nor to entice Android customers over the fence.
How do you enhance a traditional? That’s the conundrum dealing with the Apple iPhone 14 — maybe essentially the most acquainted iPhone launched to this point. Because the successor to the already well-established iPhone 13, can the brand new mannequin do sufficient otherwise to tempt you away from the menagerie of high-end handsets on the market? Discover out in Android Authority’s Apple iPhone 14 review.
What that you must know in regards to the Apple iPhone 14
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
- Apple iPhone 14 (6GB/128GB): $799 / £849 / €999
- Apple iPhone 14 (6GB/256GB): $899 / £959 / €1,129
- Apple iPhone 14 (6GB/512GB): $1,099 / £1,179 / €1,389
Apple’s iPhone 14 sits on the backside of a slightly expansive flagship smartphone portfolio this yr. With no Mini model in sight, it’s extra compact than the model new, super-sized Plus mannequin and the iPhone 14 Professional and Professional Max. It’s additionally significantly cheaper to select up than the Professional sequence, which begins at $999. As long as you keep on with the decrease reminiscence variants, that’s — even the entry-tier iPhone 14 turns into costly fairly shortly if you would like extra mounted storage. As such, there’s a rising divide throughout the vary, with Apple brandishing its cutting-edge technology within the Professional-tier fashions and reusing some older applied sciences, resembling last-gen processors, in its base and Plus handsets.
When you’ve seen any current iPhone, you recognize what to anticipate right here. That phrase is verging on a cliché in relation to speaking about Apple launches, but it’s by no means been extra relevant for the iPhone 14. The telephone’s aesthetics and most of the core specs stay unchanged from 2021’s iPhone 13 — a telephone Apple nonetheless makes and sells for $100 lower than the iPhone 14.
We’re wanting on the similar 6.1-inch 60Hz OLED Tremendous Retina show, the traditional chunky Apple notch full with Face ID biometrics, 15W MagSafe wi-fi charging, stereo audio system, and a equally sized 3,279mAh battery. Apple has sought to make some delicate modifications with the iPhone 14, nonetheless. There’s a barely bigger predominant camera and wider aperture selfie snapper, a five- slightly than four-core Apple GPU model of its A15 Bionic processor, twin eSIM assist within the US, and the promise of Emergency SOS messages now delivered through satellite tv for pc in North America (although it will solely be accessible following a scheduled replace in November 2022). The brand new iPhone vary additionally debuts its Crash Detection function to robotically join you to emergency providers. Hopefully you’ll by no means want it, but it surely’s good to see Apple on the identical web page as Google in relation to clever options like this.
On paper, that is one other era Apple has spent refining its entry-level flagship iPhone method slightly than providing prospects a wholesale revamp. The iPhone 14 affords a barely smaller colorway choice too; Midnight, Starlight, Blue (pictured), Product (Crimson), and White are your choices. You possibly can already seize the telephone from in all of Apple’s ordinary retail markets, together with North America, Europe, India, and past. The marginally bigger Plus variant doesn’t ship till October 7.
What’s good?
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
When you love Apple’s straight-edged, aluminum design and flat show (as a few of our colleagues do), then the iPhone 14 seems and feels pretty much as good as ever. It’s mainly unchanged, although it’s 0.1mm thicker and 2g lighter than its predecessor. At a really affordable 6.1 inches in measurement, it’s one of many extra usable telephones in a single hand. Apple has utterly redesigned the telephone’s internals, although, making it simpler to restore by permitting you to take away each the entrance and the again. Chalk that up as one other win for the rising right-to-repair motion.
Talking of internals, there’s dual-SIM (eSIM and bodily) assist onboard for a lot of the world, however we’re dual-eSIM just for fashions offered within the US. Relying in your provider, shifting from bodily to eSIM is perhaps painless, or it may very well be a headache — my US-based colleagues had combined outcomes on Verizon when trying the net course of however bought all of it sorted in a retailer. Both approach, this isn’t actually a professional or con for the handset, but it surely’s one space the place the iPhone 14 is definitely forward of the curve because the trade slowly strikes away from bodily SIMs.
The iPhone 14 might look the identical but it surely’s a lot simpler to restore.
Though the iPhone may not have the largest battery in a 6.1-inch telephone, the handset is optimized properly sufficient to final you a full day of use. I recorded over six hours of screen-on time with reasonable utilization, sufficient for a full day of emails, net searching, movies, and many others. Though 4 to 5 hours is a safer estimate if you wish to keep away from the nervousness of Apple’s low battery notifications.
iOS 16 has a couple of new tips up its sleeve. It’s nonetheless unintuitive in locations, and the setup is more and more cluttered with app icons, widgets, folders, and different choices, but it surely’s extra customizable than ever. Take the brand new lock display screen wallpaper and widget choices, as an example, which allow tweaking proper all the way down to the clock’s shade.
Focus, launched in iOS 15, now helps you to set a selected residence display screen and lock display screen setup to accompany your present focus. It is a welcome addition for creating completely distinctive layouts for work, play, and different eventualities, and it’s one function from iOS 16 that Google ought to be aware of — we’d like to see this on Android. Apple has spruced up a good few of its apps and providers as properly, tweaking Messages to allow enhancing, Safari tab teams, and even permitting the ever-reliable Face ID to work at off-angles.
In a nutshell, iOS 16 is larger and higher than ever, regardless that it’s more and more troublesome to seek out precisely what you’re after amongst all of the customization and muddle. And don’t overlook, Apple usually helps its telephones with at the least six years of iOS updates, making the iPhone 14 an incredible long-term funding.
Apple’s six plus years of OS assist remains to be the most effective within the enterprise.
Turning to efficiency, the telephone completely flew by each app we threw at it, as we’ve come to anticipate from Apple’s Bionic processors. The additional GPU core lifts graphics benchmarks by an affordable ~6%, however that’s hardly an improve for cell avid gamers to purchase a brand new telephone for. Nonetheless, the A15 Bionic sits close to the highest of our benchmark charts, making the iPhone 14 one of many speedier handsets available on the market.
What’s not so good?
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
As spectacular because the iPhone 14’s A15 Bionic is, in addition to the additional GPU core, there’s no enchancment to common app or system efficiency right here in comparison with the iPhone 13. Using a last-gen chip is a little bit of a blow to Apple’s customers who’ve turn out to be accustomed to the most effective. You’ll must fork out at the least an additional $200 to get your palms on the Apple A16 Bionic, marking a transparent divide between common and Professional iPhone customers.
The iPhone 14 benchmarks properly however feels sluggish in hand owing to the 60Hz show.
The 60Hz show is much extra legal than utilizing previous silicon although, and the comparatively low refresh fee takes the shine off the in any other case silky efficiency. Scrolling feels sluggish in comparison with the 90Hz and 120Hz rivals which can be readily discovered round and beneath the iPhone 14’s price ticket. It’s a serious disappointment that Apple nonetheless hasn’t caught up with 2019’s pattern in snappier panels.
One other space of stagnation is charging capabilities. Restricted to 20W charging with USB Energy Supply, the iPhone 14 takes about 12 minutes to 25%, 25 minutes to 50%, 48 minutes to 80%, however 100 minutes to full. That’s gradual, particularly for a 3,279mAh cell, and a quick-ish half-hour cost isn’t sufficient to take you thru the day.
Apple’s nonetheless hasn’t geared up its telephones with quick charging.
Sadly, 15W MagSafe and the paltry 7.5W Qi wi-fi charging choices are notably slower nonetheless. The Lightning port remains to be an annoyance too. Apple’s stubbornness means you’ll must deliver an additional cable alongside for no good motive when touring together with your different USB-C chargeable gadgets.
Though the iPhone 14 affords nice battery life from full, it nearly actually received’t take energy customers by a full day with out beginning at 100%. Except you’re a fan of in a single day charging, gradual charging causes us some concern about utilizing the telephone as a enterprise workhorse.
Apple iPhone 14 camera review
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
The shortage of main upgrades continues within the camera division. Whereas technically sporting a barely bigger 12MP predominant camera sensor and a wider aperture for selfies, it’s very troublesome to inform snaps taken with the iPhone 14 aside from its predecessor. That’s not strictly a nasty factor — the iPhone 13 already took stable pictures and movies, and the brand new mannequin palms in good- to great-looking outcomes loads of the time. Simply don’t look too intently, as there are nonetheless widespread indicators of oversharpening and noise.
Turning to low gentle, Apple’s Photonic Engine, constructing on its Deep Fusion tech, guarantees to enhance picture high quality in trickier lighting situations. The telephone handles low gentle moderately properly, significantly with Evening Mode enabled. However once more, there’s not an evening and day enchancment over the earlier era’s footage right here, and a few snaps nonetheless come out too darkish. General although, it’s arduous to complain about a lot of the telephone’s photographs.
That stated, these hoping that Apple could have lastly addressed its doubtful portrait edge detection, HDR, and lack of zoom capabilities will likely be disillusioned. You’ll usually discover tough or missed edges when utilizing portrait mode with each the rear and selfie cameras. In tricker HDR environments, the handset can even undergo from overly darkish shadows or clipped highlights. And overlook long-range zooming — the telephone caps its digital zoom to 5x, however it’s satisfactory out to about 3x in my expertise. Sadly, devoted telephoto lenses with optical zoom are nonetheless unique to the iPhone Professional vary.
Ultrawide
1x zoom
3x zoom
5x zoom
Selfies nonetheless look stable, regardless that the aforementioned edge-detection points are a constant concern. Apple’s implementation undoubtedly isn’t as strong as Samsung’s or Google’s. Pores and skin textures are additionally marginally harsh in shiny gentle and too tender in dim gentle, whereas pores and skin tone usually verges on slightly heat. Nonetheless, most selfie snaps are properly above common, and the brand new wider lens aperture actually helps out with gentle seize even in trickier environments.
The video high quality and options like Cinematic mode stay on the prime of the pack and properly forward of the Android competitors. Motion Mode for improved digital video stabilization is Apple’s newest headline videography function. It actually smooths out footage, nonetheless, the function is capped to 2.8K 60fps, closely crops the viewfinder, and leads to much more noise in something lower than shiny out of doors gentle, particularly when utilizing the ultrawide default lens. Sadly, the standard will not be fairly as much as scratch with Apple’s different excellent video capabilities.
General, the iPhone 14’s camera setup stays extremely competent. Apple’s shade science continues to be beautiful to take a look at, even when not strictly correct. The broader camera bundle has its limitations, nonetheless. Particularly, macro, portrait, HDR, and long-range zoom pictures fall behind the capabilities you’ll discover on rival handsets. On stability, the iPhone 14 is nearer in capabilities to the $599 Google Pixel 6 than the $799 Galaxy S22, so the intense photographer can discover higher {hardware} for his or her buck in the event that they don’t thoughts leaving Apple’s ecosystem.
Apple iPhone 14 specs
| Specs | Apple iPhone 14/iPhone 14 Plus |
|---|---|
|
Show |
6.1 inches/6.7 inches Tremendous Retina XDR show 2,532 x 1,170/ 2,778 x 1,284 1,200 nits peak brightness Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating |
|
Processor |
Apple A15 Bionic |
|
Storage |
128GB |
|
Battery |
3,279mAh/4,323mAh
Video playback: As much as 20 hours/As much as 26 hours Audio playback: As much as 80 hours/As much as 100 hours Quick-charge succesful: As much as 50% cost in round half-hour |
|
Cameras |
REAR 12MP Important: 26 mm, ƒ/1.5 aperture, sensor‑shift optical picture stabilization 12MP Ultrawide: 13 mm, ƒ/2.4 aperture and 120° area of view, 5‑component lens FRONT |
|
Connectivity |
5G (sub‑6 GHz and mmWave) with 4×4 MIMO8 |
|
Sensors |
Face ID |
|
Software program |
iOS 16 |
|
Sturdiness |
IP68 |
|
Dimensions and weight |
iPhone 14: 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.80mm, 172 grams |
|
Colours |
Midnight |
|
Security |
Emergency SOS through satellite tv for pc |
Apple iPhone 14 review: The decision
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
Exterior of Apple’s core following, the iPhone 14 is a tricky handset to suggest to a wider viewers. Whereas iOS 16 and a number of other small {hardware} enhancements make this the most effective vanilla iPhone flagship ever made, Apple is both oblivious to or just doesn’t care to compete with the broader smartphone market. Maybe the model merely is aware of the telephone will promote regardless, or perhaps it’s ready to make an even bigger leap subsequent yr? Both approach, that is undoubtedly essentially the most incremental improve to the already stale iPhone method to this point.
Whereas gradual and regular is par for the course at loads of telephone manufacturers, there’s lengthy been room for enchancment with sure points of the usual iPhone. Apple’s lack of engagement with these points lastly sees the handset slip far sufficient behind the competitors that it shouldn’t be neglected. Mediocre charging capabilities, lack of pixel-binning camera upgrades, and a 60Hz show should not simply last-gen, they’re two and even three generations behind the competitors. The iPhone 14 additionally misses out on a lot of Apple’s newest options you’ll discover on the iPhone 14 Professional ($999 at Greatest Purchase), together with Dynamic Island, always-on show performance, and the extra highly effective A16 Bionic processor, organising a serious division between Professional fashions and the remaining.
Apple has squeezed each final drop of refinement out of this previous design, leaving the iPhone 14 with little new to supply.
Wrapped up in a nonetheless important $799 beginning worth, there’s not so much to entice Android customers over the fence. The iPhone 14 seems slightly outdated in comparison with the Samsung Galaxy S22 ($799.99 at Amazon), which boasts a nippy 120Hz show with always-on capabilities, 3x telephoto camera, and sooner charging. There’s additionally the looming prospect of Google’s Pixel 7 sequence, which is about to construct on the wonderful pictures and software program capabilities of the Pixel 6 Professional ($677 at Amazon) and inexpensive Pixel 6 ($449.52 at Amazon).
When you’ve delay shopping for an iPhone 12 or 13, the brand new 14 mannequin is clearly an enchancment and would make a positive buy. That stated, the iPhone 13 ($699) remains to be on sale and price contemplating with its newly lowered MSRP; it’s $100 much less for a really, very comparable telephone.
Apple has squeezed each final drop of refinement out of this previous design, leaving the iPhone 14 with little new to supply. We are able to solely hope that Cupertino has one thing extra attention-grabbing in retailer for subsequent yr.
Apple iPhone 14
All-day battery life • Good construct high quality • Simpler to restore
The iPhone 14 affords a couple of delicate enhancements over its predecessor.
With the iPhone 14, Apple redesigned the telephone’s internals, making it simpler to restore. It completely helps eSIM within the US, and iOS 16 is extra customizable than its predecessors.
Prime iPhone 14 incessantly requested questions
Is the iPhone 14 waterproof?
The iPhone 14 is IP68 rated for cover towards the results of lengthy durations of immersion in water underneath stress. Often 1.5 meters (4.9 ft) of immersion for as much as half-hour.
Does the iPhone 14 assist 5G?Does the iPhone 14 include a charger?
No, the iPhone 14 doesn’t have a charger within the field. Take a look at our information for the most effective choices should you want Energy Supply charger.
Do that you must put a case on the iPhone 14?
We’d at all times suggest defending your telephone with a case. You possibly can see our picks for the most effective iPhone 14 instances on the hyperlink.
Are the iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 the identical measurement?
The iPhone 14 is 0.1mm thicker and 2g lighter than the iPhone 13. Nevertheless, most iPhone 13 instances will nonetheless match the iPhone 14 because of the fractional distinction.
Is it price upgrading from the iPhone 13 to the iPhone 14?
Completely not. The minimal upgrades imply you shouldn’t improve from the iPhone 13 to the iPhone 14.
When did the iPhone 14 come out?
The iPhone 14 was introduced alongside the iPhone 14 Professional and different Apple units at an occasion on September 7, 2022. It went on sale on September 16, 2022.
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