iPhone 14 Pro review

They arrived!

The new iPhone 14 lineup – iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are in stores.

But what do they look like and should you rush to buy one or cool your heels until next year?

I asked this question in a story a few weeks ago, but now, after putting the iPhone 14 Pro and a 14 Pro Max to the test, I’m able to share a more informed opinion.

So how are they?

The space black 14 Pro and a silver Pro Max on the desk in front of me look great. At first glance, there isn’t a big change in how the new iPhone 14s looks compared to my iPhone 13 Pro. The familiar bezel that surrounds the display gives them that reassuring solidity that iPhones are well known for. The rear camera arrays also look familiar with three main lenses protruding slightly from the rear of the phone.

As usual, when a new line of phones hits the market, it’s the cameras that are the biggest selling point and the main reason people upgrade.

Cameras

Apple upped the ante with more megapixels and better low-light performance. The new 48MP sensor in the main rear camera is 65% bigger and significantly better than the 12MP one in my 13 Pro. The other sensors are also larger but still 12MP.

The main sensor and the new photonic engine produce fantastic results. This is especially noticeable in low light. I like that I can capture high resolution photos using ProRaw if I want to. The 48MP sensor also allowed Apple to effectively add an additional 2x lens using the 12MP center of the sensor. The 2x lens bridges the gap between 1x and 3x without losing quality and that must be a good thing. You can never have enough lentils.

There are also significant improvements to the video capabilities of the new phones. Cinematic mode can now shoot 4K vision at 30fps and there’s a new action mode, which gives steady shots when shooting moving action.

Other New Features

The first thing I notice is the always-on display that lets me choose widgets with on-screen information like date, time, and calendar while the phone is locked. . . pleasant!

When I activate the screen, it’s noticeably brighter and crisper than my iPhone 13 Pro.

In my previous story, I thought about why I would need or even want a dynamic island on my phone. . . but after seeing it in “real life” and using its features, it’s actually a pretty cool and handy feature. Whether I actually need it is debatable.

The new Pro and Pro Max feature a new A16 processor that Apple says improves performance by up to 40%. I can’t say I noticed a real difference from my iPhone 13 Pro, but I guess gamers and other heavy data users are more likely to notice the increased performance of the new processor. The speed is always good.

Despite the always-on display and brighter screen, Apple managed to improve battery life. As you can imagine in the process of testing the phones I used them a lot on a daily basis, taking photos, browsing websites and social media as well as steaming video content and never came close to being out of charge.

iPhone 14 Pro models can detect if you’ve been in a car accident and automatically call emergency services unless you answer and tell them not to.

Satellite connectivity is not yet enabled but will allow users to contact emergency services with their GPS coordinates in the event of an emergency. The feature will roll out to various countries over the next year. The US and Canada will be the first to get it and hopefully Australia won’t be too far behind as it can be a handy feature in our vast outback where there is often little phone coverage .

The verdict

If you have a phone that’s three or four years old, there are plenty of good reasons to upgrade to a new iPhone 14. You’ll get all the latest features plus fantastic cameras, a much brighter screen, a much faster processor fast and a battery that will last longer.

If you already own an iPhone 12 or 13, you’ll still see significant improvements. Whether they’re enough to warrant an upgrade is up to you. If you are satisfied with the performance of your iPhone 12 or 13. . . stick around for another year and see what they think of the next one.

For me the new features are enough to warrant an upgrade, I like the new 48MP camera, the added 2x telephoto option, the better low light performance and the improved video features.

This dynamic and sophisticated island and always-on display are useful bonuses over last year’s models and the new security features are welcome.

The new iPhones are a bit lacking in the megapixel race compared to some rivals, but it’s not all about the amount of megapixels. . . it’s the quality and size of the pixels and what the processor is capable of doing with them that matters and in that department it’s hard to fault Apple.

I wish Apple changed the Lightning port to USB-C so I could use the same charger as my Macbook Pro, but other than that I find it hard to criticize the new iPhone 14 range.

How many?

The iPhone 14 with a 6.1-inch screen and 256GB of storage costs $1,579 but starts at $1,399 for the model with 128GB of storage.

The iPhone 14 Pro with a 6.1-inch screen and 1TB of storage costs $2,599, but the 128GB version costs $1,749.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max with a 6.7-inch screen and 1TB of storage costs $2,769, but if you can do with less storage, you can get one for $1,899 with 128GB.

For more information go to Apple.