The Apple iPhone 14 is slated to be unveiled in the coming months, with less than three months left until Apple’s typical early September launch timeline. The iPhone 14 is tipped with a host of new design cues, especially with an overhaul of the front camera and facial recognition settings.
In this note, we’ll take a look at whether the upcoming iPhone 14 is worth the wait, or if you should just buy an iPhone 13 series smartphone, at a discounted price that may be in the checkout.
Display, notch and front camera: major changes
Apple is reportedly ready to finally switch to a full OLED screen lineup with the new iPhones. According to reports, there will be four variants of the iPhone this year, but the ‘mini’ version will be permanently discontinued. Instead, we’ll see a standard version, an iPhone 14 Max or iPhone 14 Plus, and iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.
Of these, the iPhone 14 and 14 Max/Plus are tipped to get LTPS OLED displays with refresh rates up to 90 Hz. However, these devices would not receive a variable refresh rate and therefore would not achieve the expected Always-on display (AoD) function in them. These two variants are also expected to retain the same wide notch design seen in the current generation of iPhones.
However, the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max are tipped to get LTPO OLED displays with 120Hz variable refresh rate displays, with AoD support. These two are also expected to introduce a new notched design, featuring a single borehole slot for the front camera and an elongated pill-like slot to house the Face ID device.
The front camera is expected to get lenses with a wider f/1.9 aperture, instead of the f/2.2 lens seen so far. This can be combined with autofocus on the front cameras to make selfies and video calls uniformly better across all iPhone 14 variants.
Practically speaking, while the notch design change may not make much of a difference, the screen upgrade could be an important factor. The standard iPhone 13 still uses a 60Hz LCD display, which is outdated by today’s flagship smartphone standards. Even if you upgrade to a standard iPhone 14 with a 90Hz OLED screen, you could get a richer screen that’s smoother and saves significantly more battery than current iPhones.
reversing camera
While the standard iPhone 14 and 14 Max/Plus could get the same dual-camera setup on the back with two 12MP cameras taking standard and wide-angle photos and videos, the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max could finally get a 48MP high-speed main camera. resolution along with the additional telephoto and ultra-wide angle lens.
Battery and Connectivity
There hasn’t been much noise about the battery capacities of the new iPhones, suggesting there may not be too many changes in this area. However, using OLED screens on the stock iPhone variants means Apple can extend battery life, particularly on the iPhone 14. While the iPhone 14 Max will likely also get an OLED screen, it will replace the frugal iPhone 13. mini in the lineup – so differences in battery life may not really be apparent.
In terms of connectivity, Apple has largely been tipped to keep its Lightning port this year and not switch to USB-C. While that’s somewhat disappointing to hear, Apple is reportedly offering satellite-based emergency connection to contact emergency contacts via standard messages, if you are in danger for hours or in an area with no network. Overall, the iPhone 14 series will likely keep the same battery and connectivity offerings as the iPhone 13 series.
General specifications
The only change that is essentially certain is the use of the A16 Bionic SoC, which will bring performance and GPU upgrades over the A15 onboard the iPhone 13 series. It’s important to note that while the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max are tipped to get the A16 Bionic SoC, the standard iPhone 14 and 14 Max are still expected to use the A15 chip. So if you’re looking at either of the latter two, there won’t be a huge performance difference compared to what the iPhone 13 series already offers.
iPhone 14 price in India (expected)
A market report suggested that the iPhone 14 Max could cost $899 for its base variant, with 128GB of storage. Therefore, if Apple’s current prices are indicative, the standard iPhone 14 can start at $799, or Rs 79,900 in India, for its 128GB version – the same as the current iPhone 13. While there is no word on the price of the Pro models, Apple can choose to keep prices the same for them – starting at $999 or Rs 1,19,900 for the 14 Pro.
iPhone 13 discounts
For interested users, the iPhone 13 series already has some discounts as part of Apple’s inventory clearing efforts. on Amazon India, the iPhone 13 is currently discounted by 9 percent on the MRP, bringing the price down to Rs 72,990. This can be clubbed further with exchange offers up to Rs 9,150. Further discounts are expected on the iPhone 13 as we get closer to launch and the holiday season. If you’re looking for a bargain on an iPhone, buying the iPhone 13 at a discount is the way to go. We will keep you informed about this.