iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: main differences to expect
Intro
While traditionally Apple has made some pretty important changes to its most popular iPhone every year, the upcoming iPhone 14 actually shapes up as much less than previous upgrades: for starters, it is rumored to come with the very same chip used in the previous iPhone 13 model. Apple is preparing to debut a new chip, but it will only be used in the iPhone 14 Pro series devices.
So what is new in the iPhone 14 over the iPhone 13? And should you even consider upgrading?
In this article, we round up the leaks and rumors, and so far a short summary is that Apple is expected to upgrade the memory, as well as bring some improvements to the camera system on the iPhone 14. Before we dive deeper, though, let’s take a look at the…
iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13 differences in a nutshell:
- Same design, same processor
- More RAM in iPhone 14
- Improved ultra-wide and front cameras
- Possibly, brighter screen
Table of Contents:
Design and Display Quality
No major changes
Leaked dummy units and cases confirm that the iPhone 14 will look and feel practically identical to the current iPhone 13 model. The 6.1-inch form factor and the flat side design remain the same, and so does the dual camera system on the back.
The iPhone 14 is said to be made of glass on the back and front with an aluminum frame in the middle.
We do expect to see a slightly different selection of colors, though.
On the front, the iPhone 14, just like the iPhone 13 has a 6.1-inch OLED screen with the familiar notch (the new i-shaped cutout is only available on the iPhone 14 Pro series).
What matters here is what hasn’t changed: the iPhone 14 will still run at 60Hz, so you don’t have ProMotion 120Hz support like on the Pro models. We do, however, expect it to get a higher peak brightness for easier outdoor viewing.
We will be testing the display quality using specialized equipment once we get a hold of the new iPhone 14, so make sure to bookmark this article for future reference.
Nothing has changed on the biometrics front either: you have the familiar Face ID, and now that it works with masks, one of our major complaint against it is no longer a concern.
Performance and Software
The lack of a performance upgrade might be the biggest disappointment
The big news, or rather lack of, is Apple using the very same A15 Bionic chip on the iPhone 14, just like it did on the iPhone 13. It is, however, rumored to bump up the RAM from 4GB to 6GB RAM of the newer and faster LPDDR5 kind.
Still, expect mostly the same performance out of the iPhone 14, with the gains reserved for the iPhone 14 Pro models this year.
We are yet to see how this will affect software updates, but it is only logical to assume that the Pro models with their newer chip should get at least one extra year of software updates over the non-Pro.
Camera
Improved ultra-wide, big news for the front camera
First of all, let’s say that the iPhone 14, just like its predecessor will feature two cameras on the back, a main and an ultra-wide one, but no dedicated telephoto lens (again, a feature reserved for the Pros).
At the same time, rumors point to mostly the same 12-megapixel sensor used for the main camera with the big change coming to the ultra-wide camera that will see an improvement, and our guess is that it will simply adopt the ultra-wide camera from last year’s 13 Pro model with auto-focusing and macro capabilities.
An interesting rumors coming from various places insists that all iPhone 14 models are getting a new front facing camera that will costs up to 3X the price of the current 12MP front shooter. With auto focus, possible image stabilization and a quality that is rumored to nearly match that of the rear camera, it will be great for vloggers and just people who enjoy a good-looking selfie.
We expect more interesting camera details to unravel as we approach the launch date of the iPhone, but so far, that’s all we know.
Audio Quality and Haptics
One of the most underrated improvements in the iPhone 13 was without a doubt the boomier, richer loudspeakers that delivered sound quality better than most other phones on the market. Can Apple do it once again with the iPhone 14 and improve further upon that? We have no info yet, but that’s one area we will keep a close eye on.
Of course, expect no headphone jack on the iPhone 14, just like there hasn’t been one on iPhone in the past few years.
Haptics will be taken care of the Taptic Engine, which has been excellent, and we don’t expect to see any changes there.
Battery Life and Charging
Don’t expect huge changes
Apple made a significant jump in battery life in the iPhone 13, but so far we have no information whether it plans to once again increase the size of the battery inside the new iPhone 14.
Let us remind you that the iPhone 13 made the jump from a 2,815mAh battery on the iPhone 12 to a much larger 3,227mAh battery cell.
Short history of iPhone battery sizes:
- iPhone 14: unknown
- iPhone 13: 3,227 mAh (+14.6% from previous gen)
- iPhone 12: 2,815 mAh (-9.4% from previous gen)
- iPhone 11: 3,110 mAh (+5.7% from previous gen)
- iPhone XR: 2,942 mAh
We will keep you posted as soon as new information about battery sizes appears.
What seems certain is that the iPhone 14 family is not getting faster charging speeds, and is instead keeping on with the same 20W charging we have on the iPhone 13 that works out to roughly 2 hours for a full top-up.
Both the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 also support MagSafe wireless charging at 15W speeds.
Specs Comparison
And if you just want a quick reference to the key specs, well, you have it right below. Don’t forget that we also have our iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13 specs page where you can find all the details.
Specs
iPhone 14
iPhone 13
Dimensions
expected to be the same at 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.65 mm
146.7 x 71.5 x 7.65 mm
Weight
expected to be the same at about 174g
174g
Screen
6.1″ OLED 60Hz
Notched Face ID
19.5:9
6.1″ OLED 60Hz
Notched Face ID
19.5:9
Processor
A15 Bionic
A15 Bionic
RAM
6GB LPDDR5
4GB LPDDR4X
Rear Cameras
12MP Main (1X), 26mm f/1.6
12MP Ultra (0.5X), 13mm f/2.2
12MP Main (1X), 26mm f/1.6
12MP Ultra (0.5X), 13mm f/2.2
Front Camera
12MP Front with AF, f/1.9
12MP Front with FF
Battery Size
3,227 mAh or larger
3,227 mAh
Charging speeds
20W wired charging
15W MagSafe wireless
20W wired charging
15W MagSafe wireless
Price
from $800 for 128GB
price expected to drop to $700 after iPhone 14 launch
Summary and Final Verdict
If we had to sum it all up, so far, rumors and leaks do more to convince us that the list of upgrades in the iPhone 14 is rather slim. If Apple drops the price on the current iPhone 13 by $100 as are expectations, that would be a perfect argument to actually get the older model cheaper rather than buying the new one.
Of course, it could just be that Apple is really good at keeping the new iPhone 14 features a secret and hitting us with something truly impressive in the fall. We will surely be keeping an eye for new and exciting leaks, but do let us know: what does Apple have to do to convince you to upgrade to the iPhone 14?
Intro
While traditionally Apple has made some pretty important changes to its most popular iPhone every year, the upcoming iPhone 14 actually shapes up as much less than previous upgrades: for starters, it is rumored to come with the very same chip used in the previous iPhone 13 model. Apple is preparing to debut a new chip, but it will only be used in the iPhone 14 Pro series devices.
In this article, we round up the leaks and rumors, and so far a short summary is that Apple is expected to upgrade the memory, as well as bring some improvements to the camera system on the iPhone 14. Before we dive deeper, though, let’s take a look at the…
iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13 differences in a nutshell:
- Same design, same processor
- More RAM in iPhone 14
- Improved ultra-wide and front cameras
- Possibly, brighter screen
Table of Contents:
Design and Display Quality
No major changes
Leaked dummy units and cases confirm that the iPhone 14 will look and feel practically identical to the current iPhone 13 model. The 6.1-inch form factor and the flat side design remain the same, and so does the dual camera system on the back.
The iPhone 14 is said to be made of glass on the back and front with an aluminum frame in the middle.
We do expect to see a slightly different selection of colors, though.
On the front, the iPhone 14, just like the iPhone 13 has a 6.1-inch OLED screen with the familiar notch (the new i-shaped cutout is only available on the iPhone 14 Pro series).
What matters here is what hasn’t changed: the iPhone 14 will still run at 60Hz, so you don’t have ProMotion 120Hz support like on the Pro models. We do, however, expect it to get a higher peak brightness for easier outdoor viewing.
We will be testing the display quality using specialized equipment once we get a hold of the new iPhone 14, so make sure to bookmark this article for future reference.
Performance and Software
The lack of a performance upgrade might be the biggest disappointment
The big news, or rather lack of, is Apple using the very same A15 Bionic chip on the iPhone 14, just like it did on the iPhone 13. It is, however, rumored to bump up the RAM from 4GB to 6GB RAM of the newer and faster LPDDR5 kind.
Still, expect mostly the same performance out of the iPhone 14, with the gains reserved for the iPhone 14 Pro models this year.
We are yet to see how this will affect software updates, but it is only logical to assume that the Pro models with their newer chip should get at least one extra year of software updates over the non-Pro.
Camera
Improved ultra-wide, big news for the front camera
First of all, let’s say that the iPhone 14, just like its predecessor will feature two cameras on the back, a main and an ultra-wide one, but no dedicated telephoto lens (again, a feature reserved for the Pros).
At the same time, rumors point to mostly the same 12-megapixel sensor used for the main camera with the big change coming to the ultra-wide camera that will see an improvement, and our guess is that it will simply adopt the ultra-wide camera from last year’s 13 Pro model with auto-focusing and macro capabilities.
An interesting rumors coming from various places insists that all iPhone 14 models are getting a new front facing camera that will costs up to 3X the price of the current 12MP front shooter. With auto focus, possible image stabilization and a quality that is rumored to nearly match that of the rear camera, it will be great for vloggers and just people who enjoy a good-looking selfie.
Audio Quality and Haptics
One of the most underrated improvements in the iPhone 13 was without a doubt the boomier, richer loudspeakers that delivered sound quality better than most other phones on the market. Can Apple do it once again with the iPhone 14 and improve further upon that? We have no info yet, but that’s one area we will keep a close eye on.
Of course, expect no headphone jack on the iPhone 14, just like there hasn’t been one on iPhone in the past few years.
Haptics will be taken care of the Taptic Engine, which has been excellent, and we don’t expect to see any changes there.
Battery Life and Charging
Don’t expect huge changes
Apple made a significant jump in battery life in the iPhone 13, but so far we have no information whether it plans to once again increase the size of the battery inside the new iPhone 14.
Let us remind you that the iPhone 13 made the jump from a 2,815mAh battery on the iPhone 12 to a much larger 3,227mAh battery cell.
Short history of iPhone battery sizes:
- iPhone 14: unknown
- iPhone 13: 3,227 mAh (+14.6% from previous gen)
- iPhone 12: 2,815 mAh (-9.4% from previous gen)
- iPhone 11: 3,110 mAh (+5.7% from previous gen)
- iPhone XR: 2,942 mAh
We will keep you posted as soon as new information about battery sizes appears.
What seems certain is that the iPhone 14 family is not getting faster charging speeds, and is instead keeping on with the same 20W charging we have on the iPhone 13 that works out to roughly 2 hours for a full top-up.
Specs Comparison
Specs | iPhone 14 | iPhone 13 |
---|---|---|
Dimensions | expected to be the same at 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.65 mm | 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.65 mm |
Weight | expected to be the same at about 174g | 174g |
Screen | 6.1″ OLED 60Hz Notched Face ID 19.5:9 |
6.1″ OLED 60Hz Notched Face ID 19.5:9 |
Processor | A15 Bionic | A15 Bionic |
RAM | 6GB LPDDR5 | 4GB LPDDR4X |
Rear Cameras | 12MP Main (1X), 26mm f/1.6 12MP Ultra (0.5X), 13mm f/2.2 |
12MP Main (1X), 26mm f/1.6 12MP Ultra (0.5X), 13mm f/2.2 |
Front Camera | 12MP Front with AF, f/1.9 | 12MP Front with FF |
Battery Size | 3,227 mAh or larger | 3,227 mAh |
Charging speeds | 20W wired charging 15W MagSafe wireless |
20W wired charging 15W MagSafe wireless |
Price | from $800 for 128GB | price expected to drop to $700 after iPhone 14 launch |
Summary and Final Verdict
If we had to sum it all up, so far, rumors and leaks do more to convince us that the list of upgrades in the iPhone 14 is rather slim. If Apple drops the price on the current iPhone 13 by $100 as are expectations, that would be a perfect argument to actually get the older model cheaper rather than buying the new one.
Of course, it could just be that Apple is really good at keeping the new iPhone 14 features a secret and hitting us with something truly impressive in the fall. We will surely be keeping an eye for new and exciting leaks, but do let us know: what does Apple have to do to convince you to upgrade to the iPhone 14?