iPhone 14 Plus Reviews: Multi-Day Battery Life, Large Display, and Upgraded Cameras Make for Worthwhile Upgrade

[syklee26]

No matter how you cut it, 3 day battery life is amazing.

 

[PlayUltimate]

I wish Apple used the telescope lens instead of Ultrawide on their base models. I rarely use ultrawide and don't understand why telescope is a premium feature.

Probably the main reason I've stuck with my 7+ for so long. Having a 2x optical zoom is nice. Don't know if I ever wished I had an ultra wide option.

 

[tomtad]

Apple's technology isnt just a 90 or 120hz display though. It adapts to content to go well below 60hz to preserve battery life, and this makes it feasible to deliver 120hz without killing the battery. On many Android handsets, you'll see reviewers advise turning off 120hz because it kills the battery. Apple's technology is smart enough to manage it for you without need to disable the super smooth scrolling.

This. It's also why the iPhone Pro gets better battery life than the regular iPhone while actually having a smaller battery.

 

[boak]

And that why Apple stated that low power mode disables pro-motion on Pro models? Why would they disable pro motion if it’s actually more efficient for the battery.

You understood it wrong. This is what Apple Support says:

Low Power Mode reduces or affects these features:

• Display refresh rate (limited up to 60 Hz) on iPhone and iPad models with ProMotion display

Adaptive refresh rate is not disabled. Only refresh rates above 60 Hz are disabled.

 

[JM]

Form factor and battery life are the two most important reasons for a smart phone.

I’m returning the standard Pro and getting the Plus. The pro has been awful for me. Camera shake, dynamic island getting stuck, and battery not making it through a full day with dual e-sim (significantly worse than the 13 pro).

Given the plus is lighter than the standard pro and at least doubles the battery life I was getting (verge said it lasted them 3 days) it’ll be an amazing device for my needs.

Nice.

It’s too bad, though, that Apple didn’t make more of an effort to tout the benefits of it being lighter, then.

If the Plus is so great, then they should have advertised it’s benefits more.

 

[bobjonesco]

Nice.

It’s too bad, though, that Apple didn’t make more of an effort to tout the benefits of it being lighter, then.

If the Plus is so great, then they should have advertised it’s benefits more.

Do you need commercials and ads to help you make up your own mind?

 

[joecomo]

6GB RAM and light weight aluminum makes this a great phone for parents and grandparents in my opinion

and much cheaper than the Pro Max - which before was the only valid option

 

[cliveren13]

Getting my wife this its a nice upgrade over her small iphone 12 which will go to my 13 yr old son so no waste there as she wanted a bigger phone.

 

[EugW]

and much cheaper than the Pro Max - which before was the only valid option

And much more cheap than one may think on first glance. I posted this before elsewhere, but I think it bears repeating.

My wife's carrier in Canada has the iPhone 14 Plus and iPhone 14 Pro Max on the same plan with the same monthly payments, for the same 24 month period. However, because there is a CA$300 difference in normal retail pricing - $1250 vs. $1550, there is also a $300 difference in the downpayment - $500 vs. $800.

What this means is that to jump up to the Pro Max means spending 60% more (!) on the downpayment. This will be very important for many people looking at these models. CA$300 can be quite significant when viewed in this context.

 

[xpxp2002]

False! In Apple terms "ProMotion" means 120hz refresh rate on the OLED panel, which consumes significantly more energy when compared to 60hz.
In fact, when you turn on "Power Saving Mode" on your iPhone 13/14 Pro models, it will turn off ProMotion (120hz) and locks the screen at 60hz to safe energy.

What may potentially safe power is the use of LTPO tech inside the 13/14 Pro models. This can change the refresh rate of the OLED panel depending on what is displayed on your screens and the frame-rate of the content in motion.

This is not correct. "ProMotion" means dynamically scaling refresh rate up to 120 Hz. When the image on the display is static, which is actually the majority of the time when people are using a phone or tablet for reading, messaging, or simply leave the display on/unlocked after using it; it will scale down to 1-10 Hz (the 13 Pros only support 10-120 Hz range).

Likewise, when you turn on Low Power Mode, it does not statically lock the display to 60 Hz. It sets the maximum refresh rate to 60 Hz. The iPad Pros work the exact same way. You still get the battery-saving benefits of ProMotion scaling 1-60 Hz. You just don't get refresh rates higher than that.

 

[jouster]

Nice.

It’s too bad, though, that Apple didn’t make more of an effort to tout the benefits of it being lighter, then.

If the Plus is so great, then they should have advertised it’s benefits more.

Perhaps they will now that it is available.

 

[Abazigal]

This feels like the iPhone 11 all over again. Seemingly lacklustre specs on paper, but they somehow come together to offer a great user experience. Larger screen, great battery life, decent price, good choice of colours. I guess it just sits in a weird place because Apple seems to be using screen size to justify higher prices, and here you have a product that's cheaper than the 14 pro, yet has a larger screen.

 

[jarman92]

I might be in a minority here, but I honestly don't notice the 120Hz display on my 14 Pro Max. I forgot it was a feature until I was going through the specs with a friend 😂

You'll notice it next time you're using a phone without it.

 

[Pezimak]

This is false. ProMotion improves battery life.

Not with an always on display it doesn’t, if you use that feature the battery life is worst. It was confirmed by several tech You Tubers who have tested it.

On a side not I think the Plus is great, a lot of people highlighting how much lighter it is over the Pro Max as well as the battery life. I think this is going to sell well.

 

[mattopotamus]

I can’t remember the last time I went multiple days without - you know - sleeping, while my phone could charge

Would be nice for a weekend trip. If I go to my parents, I power off my Apple Watch at night and get through the weekend because my charger is an entire dock I never really feel like unplugging.

 

[Pezimak]

let's see how this sells ...

I bet better then you think it will.

 

[Chidoro]

Why is anyone surprised about the screen? It’s been in the news for, literally, months that apple was having trouble securing the LTPO screens that passed inspection to even cover the amount of pro models they are selling.

 

[darngooddesign]

Not with an always on display it doesn’t, if you use that feature the battery life is worst. It was confirmed by several tech You Tubers who have tested it.

Apple made the feature consume as little battery life as possible by dropping the refresh rate to 1Hz, but yeah leaving your screen on all the time will use more battery life than not. Luckily ProMotion doesn't require AOD.

On a side not I think the Plus is great, a lot of people highlighting how much lighter it is over the Pro Max as well as the battery life. I think this is going to sell well.

I agree.

 

[boak]

Not with an always on display it doesn’t, if you use that feature the battery life is worst. It was confirmed by several tech You Tubers who have tested it.

On a side not I think the Plus is great, a lot of people highlighting how much lighter it is over the Pro Max as well as the battery life. I think this is going to sell well.

Completely separate features. Irrelevant to argument.

 

[jouster]

I can’t remember the last time I went multiple days without - you know - sleeping, while my phone could charge

This is a good point, and it applies to most of us most of the time. But I don't think the extra battery life is most useful because it allows you to go two days without charging, just to prove that you can. It's useful because it allows for unforeseen circumstances like a power outage, or a long day involving travel, map usage (especially in a "new" place), multiple meetings, and so on, when opportunities to recharge are limited.

 

[snipr125]

This feels like the iPhone 11 all over again. Seemingly lacklustre specs on paper, but they somehow come together to offer a great user experience. Larger screen, great battery life, decent price, good choice of colours. I guess it just sits in a weird place because Apple seems to be using screen size to justify higher prices, and here you have a product that's cheaper than the 14 pro, yet has a larger screen.

Hmm in the US maybe, but not the rest of the world. In the UK for example, the 14 Plus is £950 which is a massive price hike, when you consider last year the 13 Pro was sold in the UK for £950 RRP on launch.

 

[EugW]

This is a good point, and it applies to most of us most of the time. But I don't think the extra battery life is most useful because it allows you to go two days without charging, just to prove that you can. It's useful because it allows for unforeseen circumstances like a power outage, or a long day involving travel, map usage (especially in a "new" place), multiple meetings, and so on, when opportunities to recharge are limited.

It's also great for tethering your kids' iPad, or your MacBook, etc. Tethering is a huge battery suck.

 

[darngooddesign]

This feels like the iPhone 11 all over again. Seemingly lacklustre specs on paper, but they somehow come together to offer a great user experience. Larger screen, great battery life, decent price, good choice of colours. I guess it just sits in a weird place because Apple seems to be using screen size to justify higher prices, and here you have a product that's cheaper than the 14 pro, yet has a larger screen.

Your use of 'seems' is curious since Macs (think 14 & 16" M1 MBPs), tablets (11" and 13" iPad Pros), and iPhones (ever since the iPhone 6 and Pro/ProMax) with larger screens have always been more expensive than the equivalent device with a smaller screen.

 

[Pezimak]

Completely separate features. Irrelevant to argument.

No it isn’t, it’s a feature being used to sell the ‘Pro’ range, and it used up the battery faster.

 

[boak]

No it isn’t, it’s a feature being used to sell the ‘Pro’ range, and it used up the battery faster.

I think you lost track of what the original point was, which is that ProMotion improves battery life. AOD was never the point of contention.