Apple announced the iPhone 14 series at an event held in Cupertino in early September, which means we can dive into the various models available. There are four devices in the series, including iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max. Yes, that’s right, there is no iPhone 14 Mini this year. It’s more important to see which model is worth the investment: iPhone 14 or iPhone 14 Pro?
Design differences
Apple’s standard iPhone 14 models follow an identical design to the iPhone 13 models, retaining the notch at the top of the screen. The iPhone 14 Plus looks identical to the iPhone 14, but on a larger scale, as expected.
As with previous years, this means that for both sizes you will once again get double lenses, flat edges and an aluminum frame. They also offer IP68 water and dust resistance.
However, the iPhone 14 Pro models look different from the standard iPhone 14 models and, in fact, from any previous iPhone. As widely rumored, the notch has been replaced by what Apple calls Dynamic Island, a pill-shaped cutout that houses the camera and front-facing sensors, as well as widget-like animations and information. The dynamic island will show various alerts and adapt to what you are doing.
For example, if you use Apple Pay, Dynamic Island will turn into a square, while during a phone call it will expand to show call duration and sound waves if you open another app during the call. Overall, it’s a major departure from the design language Apple has used for years, and it looks quite different using the 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max than their regular counterparts, in a good way.
The iPhone 14 Pro models also feature a triple rear camera and are heavier than standard models, with a polished stainless steel frame instead of aluminum. The Apple iPhone 14 maintains the same screen size as the iPhone 13, which is a 6.1-inch display. Meanwhile, the iPhone 14 Plus has a 6.7-inch screen.
The iPhone 14 Pro also offers a 6.1-inch screen, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max has a 6.7-inch screen. All four offer an OLED panel, along with True Tone, Haptic Touch and HDR support, although the Pro models offer a number of additional features, including energy-efficient modes that can intelligently dim the screen.
iPhone 14 Pro models deliver again ProMotion adaptive refresh rate, although this time they have a lower minimum refresh rate than the iPhone 13 Pro models, with a minimum frequency of 1Hz. This is great for saving battery life.
Another big improvement over the Pro models comes in the brightness department, where they get a huge leap to 2000 nits of maximum brightness, which makes all the difference when using the phone in bright light or sunshine.
iPhone 14 Pro models also feature the Always On Display feature of most Android phones, which lets you view information without the screen being turned on and unlocked. This intelligently mirrors what you have on your lock screen in iOS 16.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 14 Pro specs
Apple’s iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus run on the same chipset as the iPhone 13 Pro, which is the A15 with a five-core GPU. For reference, the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini also run on the A15, but have a quad-core GPU.
However, the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max run on the A16 chip, which offers a performance boost over the A15 and thus over the standard iPhone 14 models. In fact, it’s the first time Apple has used different chips in its iPhone models. from the same series.
Storage options for the standard models are the same as for the iPhone 13 models. That means you can choose from 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB options. iPhone models 14 Pros start at 128GB and there are also 256GB, 512GB and 1TB models.
Battery capacity differs between the standard iPhone 14 and Pro models, as well as between the standard and Pro models themselves, with the Plus and Max variants offering larger batteries. Apple usually measures in hours, not mAh, and on its comparison pages, if you choose video playback as a comparison term, you can expect 20 hours for the standard iPhone 14 and 26 hours for the iPhone 14 Plus. iPhone 14 Pro will offer at least 23 hours, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max will have a battery life of around 29 hours.
iPhone 14 Plus ranks first in battery performance, followed by the iPhone 14 pro maximum. The iPhone 14 Plus excels in this department, so if you’re looking for a big screen and a big battery, it’s a great choice.
