Apple iPhone 14: everything you need to know
The new flagship iPhone is going to be launched later today. Here's what to expect from the iPhone 14 series
The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Max are official alongside the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone Pro Max. Also at the launch were the Apple Watch Series 8 and Watch Ultra. as well as the AirPods Pro 2.
In brief: iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max
The top-tier 6.1in iPhone 14 Pro and 6.7in 14 Pro Max have a a pill-shaped cut-out for Face ID and the selfie camera called the ‘Dynamic Island’ – so Apple. They also boast the new A16 platform and a 2000nit display which has always-on elements – namely the new homescreen widgets from iOS 16. The camera also have some improvements with a 48MP 24mm lens for the main camera while the Ultra Wide camera now has a 12MP sensor. Cinematic Mode now supports 4K at 30fps and 4K at 24fps. ProRAW is also improved. Apple claims there will be two times better low light performance from last year.
It’ll be available in Space Black, Starlight, Gold, and Deep Purple. Pre-orders for the devices starts this Friday 9 September, and devices will be shipping from 16 September. You can grab the iPhone 14 Pro from $999/£1099, and the 14 Pro Max from $1099/£1199. Storage goes up to 1TB.
In brief: iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Plus
The 6.1in iPhone 14 and 6.7in iPhone 14 Plus (yes, the Plus name is BACK) have last year’s A15 Bionic platform inside. The camera system is slightly improved – the wide sensor is now f/1.5 aperture and there’s auto-focus on the selfie cam. If you buy them in the US, there will be no SIM tray in favour of eSIM, but it looks like we’re keeping it in the UK. Apple also talked up satellite connectivity, which was predicted. In emergency situations with no cellular service, you’ll be able to point your iPhone towards a satellite if you’re outside – your iPhone will guide you to the satellite. This will be US and Canada only for now. After two years this will be a paid-for extra feature.
You can grab the iPhone 14 from $799/£849, and the 14 Plus from $899/£949. There’s Midnight, Starlight, a light blue, purple, and Product Red. You can pre-order this Friday 9 September and iPhone 14 will start shipping next Friday 16 September. The 14 Plus will ship later on 7 October.
Original feature continues below
It’s that time again… Apple will be holding a launch event today – Wednesday 7 September. That’s where we’re expecting the iPhone 14 to be announced and, as you’ll hear, it’s a little earlier than usual. Here’s everything we know about the iPhone 14 at the moment.
Last year brought us the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro, a typically powerful flagship duo, while earlier this year we’ve already been treated to one new Apple phone in the iPhone SE 3, which is the handset to consider if you’re looking for the best cheap iPhone right now.
However, an even bigger update is now just around the corner. Apple is rumoured to be introducing an all-new design with this year’s line-up, which will showcase the best new iOS 16 features as well as offering plenty of hardware upgrades. In fact, it may be that Apple gives us four new iPhone 14 models, if one bit of speculation is to be believed, with more hardware separation between the regular and Pro versions and the removal of the Mini from the range. Read on as we reveal all the latest iPhone 14 rumoured specs, price and release date.
- Related: Apple Watch Series 8 latest
Additional reporting by James Laird and Tom Morgan-Freelander
iPhone 14 specs and design rumours
According to rumours, Apple won’t be releasing an iPhone 14 mini. Instead, we expect to see an iPhone 14 and 14 Pro (both with 6.1in screens), along with a 6.7in iPhone 14 Max (which replaces the mini) and Pro Max. Arguably the single biggest iPhone 14 rumour is that this year’s line-up will also usher in a new design for the flagship models. We’ve heard noises about this since back in January, when the ‘dash dot’ camera cut out first reared its head, and we’ve since seen some pretty convincing images of an iPhone 14 Pro Max with no notch.
Rumours suggest only the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will be getting the new look cutout, with the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Max sticking with the now-familiar notch. We could also potentially see in-display fingerprint sensors make an appearance, similar to those found in most Android flagships.
New reports (2 September) suggest that the ‘dash dot’ non-notch coming to the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max will come alongside some new software tweaks, too, namely that the gap between the two cut-out bits will be shown as black on screen and the gap will house the camera and microphone privacy indicators when they pop up, too. 9to5Mac suggests that it will look like the below:
So the front snapper might look a little different. What might also happen is a major hardware change that gives the iPhone 14 a huge selfie cam upgrade. That’s according to supply chain whizz Ming-Chi Kuo of TF International Securities, whose latest prediction points to a device featuring a 6P lens instead of a 5P one (aka, an extra lens layer to further reduce distortion), while enjoying a brighter f/1.9 aperture to boot.
In terms of rumoured raw camera specs, the Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max are both likely to have a triple rear camera array, made up of a main wide sensor, ultra-wide sensor, and a telephoto sensor. There have also been whispers that the iPhone 14 Pro models would feature a wide-angle camera with an 1/1.3-inch 48MP CMOS image sensor with support for 8K video recording but it is still very early days.
Under the hood, Apple typically unveils a new chip to power its flagship each year, which in 2022 would mean the advent of the Apple A16. That processor will come to pass this autumn, though how many new iPhones it features in is up for debate. The latest gossip suggests that only the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will get an Apple A16 chip, with the more entry-level iPhone 14 and 14 Max sticking with an upgraded version of the A15 from 2021.
Ming-Chi Kuo doubled down on this view in early July, suggesting the move would see Apple ship significantly more Pro models than it did with the iPhone 13 line-up.
Initial rumours suggested there could also be room for up to 8GB of RAM in some iPhone 14 Pro models, but a subsequent report from Digitimes Asia says it’ll be 6GB of RAM across the board. The difference will apparently be speed: while the iPhone 14 will get LPDDR4X memory, the more powerful Pro models will get faster LPDDR5 instead. This would make a change from the current two-tier line-up, with the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Mini using 4GB of DDR4 RAM, and the iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max getting 6GB of DDR4.
Connectivity-wise, Apple is expected to use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X65 modem from 2021 – the first 10 Gigabit 5G modem and antenna system for smartphones, for improved performance. This clever bit of kit also unlocks the possibility of potential satellite-based emergency features that could let users send texts in emergency situations where there’s no signal. Wi-Fi 6E, the latest and greatest version of Wi-Fi, would also be included.
Elsewhere, Android fans will no doubt smirk at the idea that the next iPhone is being linked with an always-on display. This is a smartphone feature that’s proved to be hugely popular on devices powered by the Google-designed mobile operating system. The always-on display may include the recently-announced iOS 16 lock screen widgets.
In terms of storage space, anyone hoping for an end to the minimum 128GB option might be disappointed. According to Haitong International analyst Jeff Pu, the upcoming iPhone 14 Pro models will continue to start with 128GB of storage.
Today is the confirmed iPhone 14 launch date
Apple has stuck to an early September launch for its flagship each year pretty religiously. It has settled on today, Wednesday 7 September for its reveal event, with devices going up for pre-order shortly after. So as a result we think the iPhone 14 release date will be 16 September. Again, this follows the pattern from previous years of around 10 days after the initial announcement.
- Also see: iPhone 14 launch date full details
That’s a week earlier than usual on both counts. If we take a look at the last handful of iPhone release dates, the only real outlier is 2020’s October launch during peak Covid. Depending on the device, Apple might not start shipping it until October or November, but the Cupertino-based tech giant has historically revealed its new iPhones on the first or second Tuesday of September.
Take a look and see for yourself:
- iPhone 13 release date: September 24, 2021 (launched September 14)
- iPhone 12 release date: October 23, 2020 (launched October 13)
- iPhone 11 release date: September 20, 2019 (launched September 10)
- iPhone XR release date: October 26, 2018 (launched September 12)
- iPhone XS release date: September 21, 2018 (launched September 12)
- iPhone X release date: November 3, 2017 (launched September 12)
- iPhone 8 release date: September 22, 2017 (launched September 12)
- iPhone 7 release date: September 16, 2016 (launched September 7)
Here’s how much we think the iPhone 14 will cost
The price of the iPhone 14 will depend on which model you opt for, with the standard iPhone 14 model being considerably cheaper than a top-of-the-line iPhone 14 Pro Max. Pricing also invariably depends on how much storage you want on your handset. To give an example of the discrepancy, the iPhone 13 can cost as ‘little’ as £779 for the cheapest 128GB model – or set you back an eye-watering £1549 if you go for a 1TB iPhone 13 Pro Max.
Unfortunately, that doesn’t look likely to change with the iPhone 14 family. The next Apple flagship could be its most expensive yet, if anything. According to one analyst, Apple is considering an iPhone price hike outside of the US as it looks to balance the books in an uncertain economic climate.
This is further bolstered by a more recent take by TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who believes that we could see a price rise as high as 15 per cent.
Whatever the case, the best indication we have of starting iPhone 14 price points is the last generation. An extra hundred bucks or so may get slapped on, but it’s likely to stay in the same ballpark, as Apple might say out in California.
- iPhone 13 price: from $799/£779
- iPhone 13 Pro price: from $999/£949
- iPhone 13 Pro Max price: from $1099/£1049
If the iPhone 14 price does go north, it’s worth remembering that Apple hasn’t increased the price of the iPhone for a few years, and typically does so when it introduces a design overhaul or major new feature set – both of which could be on the cards with the iPhone 14.
