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iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 15 Buyer's Guide: 20+ Upgrades Compared

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The iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus are Apple's latest standard iPhone models, sporting some bigger upgrades than seen in recent years, but how different really are the two successive iPhone generations?

iPhone-14-vs-15-Buyers-Guide.jpg

In 2022, Apple unveiled the iPhone 14 as the successor to the popular iPhone 13, offering 2GB more memory, longer battery life, the Photonic Engine, Action mode, Emergency SOS via satellite, Crash Detection, and more. As devices that are more affordable than the "Pro" models, but more full-featured than the low-cost iPhone SE, the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus will likely be the most popular option for many customers, starting at a price of $799 for the 128GB model. The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus continue to be available from Apple for $699 and $799, respectively.

As the iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 share the overwhelming majority of their features, should you consider buying or sticking with the iPhone 14 to save money? Our guide helps to answer the question of how to decide which of these two iPhone models is best for you, and serves as a way to clearly see the differences that the iPhone 15 brings to the table. This article focuses on the iPhone 14 and iPhone 15, Apple's standard iPhone models, but to understand the differences between the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro, see our other buyer's guide:


The iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 both feature the same display sizes, battery life, 12-megapixel ultra wide camera, and more. Nevertheless, the iPhone 15 still offers a number of substantial upgrades, such as the Dynamic Island, USB-C port, and 48-megapixel camera.

iPhone 14iPhone 15
Aluminum chassis with squared-off edgesAluminum chassis with contoured edges
Glossy glass backColor-infused frosted glass back
"Notch" TrueDepth camera arrayDynamic Island
800 nits max brightness (typical)1,000 nits max brightness (typical)
1,200 nits peak brightness (HDR)1,600 nits peak brightness (HDR)
2,000 nits peak brightness (outdoor)
A15 Bionic chipA16 Bionic chip
5-core GPU5-core GPU with 50% more memory bandwidth
12-megapixel main camera with ƒ/1.5 aperture48-megapixel main camera with ƒ/1.6 aperture
0.5x and 1x optical zoom options0.5x, 1x, and 2x optical zoom options
24- and 48-megapixel super-high-resolution photos
Smart HDR 4Smart HDR 5
Portrait mode with Focus and Depth ControlNext-generation portraits with Focus and Depth Control
Night mode and Night mode portraitsImproved Night mode and Night mode portraits
Improved audio quality on phone calls
First-generation Ultra Wideband chipSecond-generation Ultra Wideband chip (connects from 3x further away)
Precision Finding for Find My friends
Lightning portUSB-C port
Support for Qi wireless chargingSupport for Qi2 wireless charging
Setting to prevent charging above 80%
Battery manufacture date, first use, and cycle count information in Settings
Yellow, Blue, Purple, (PRODUCT)RED, Starlight, and Midnight color options Yellow, Blue, Pink, Green, and Black color options


The iPhone 15's upgrades over the iPhone 14 are fairly substantial, offering a more refined and appealing design with contoured edges, frosted back glass, and the Dynamic Island. Features like the brighter display and USB-C port are meaningful quality-of-life enhancements that all users will be able to take advantage of. The 48-megapixel main camera, 2x optical zoom option, next-generation portraits, Smart HDR 5, and improved Night mode also make for a significant overall camera improvement for average users. Iterative changes like the A16 Bionic and support for Qi2 are also welcome refinements.

Depending on what sort of user you are, it may not be worth upgrading from an iPhone 13 or iPhone 14 model to the iPhone 15 unless you actively want several of the new features, but the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus seem to be an unusually large upgrade for Apple's non-Pro iPhones. As a result, a large number of users with one of these older devices may be able to justify upgrading to an iPhone 15 model. Those with an iPhone 11 or older will definitely receive a major upgrade by purchasing an iPhone 15.

For everyday users, it is worth noting that the switch to USB-C on the iPhone 15 will make any Lightning cables and accessories you have redundant, meaning you'll need to purchase a... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 15 Buyer's Guide: 20+ Upgrades Compared
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/guide/iphone-14-vs-iphone-15/
Last edited:
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The '2,000 nits peak brightness (outdoor)' is a joke. I have the 13 Pro and the '2000 nits brightness' is only working for 5 seconds => then it gets overheated and dims to 1 nit. Same with my partner's iPhone 14 Pro max. Living in San Francisco, so you might think Apple tests devices outside of their offices.
 
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Mitsjke said:
The '2,000 nits peak brightness (outdoor)' is a joke. I have the 13 Pro and the '2000 nits brightness' is only working for 5 seconds => then it gets overheated and dims to 1 nit. Same with my partner's iPhone 14 Pro max. Living in San Francisco, so you might think Apple tests devices outside of their offices.
Click to expand...
From Apple for iPhone 13 and 13 Pro:
  • 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio (typical)
  • 1000 nits max brightness (typical); 1200 nits max brightness (HDR)
Your 13 is nowhere near 2,000 nits
 
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The real comparison that MR should do is 15 non-Pro vs 14 Pro.

What I quickly see is:

14 Pro:
3x zoom vs 2x
23 hours vs 20
Promotion
AoD
206g vs 171
Adaptive True Tone flash
Night mode portraits
ProRes (if you have 256gb)

15:
USB-C
Smart hdr5 vs 4
Second-generation Ultra Wideband chip
 
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‌iPhone 15‌
Aluminum chassis with contoured edges
Nothing fancy.
Color-infused frosted glass back
Expensive to repair as before.
‌Dynamic Island‌
Gimmick, just a weirdo Notchland.
1,000 nits max brightness (typical)
Nobody uses the brightness permanently at 100% anyway.
1,600 nits peak brightness (HDR)
Nobody uses the brightness permanently at 100% anyway, and for the few cases just quick block the light source with your hand.
2,000 nits peak brightness (outdoor)
Nobody uses the brightness permanently at 100% anyway, and for the few cases just quick block the sun light with your hand.
A16 Bionic chip
Clap Clap Clap Apple Arcade will rock with so much POWER! /s
5-core GPU with 50% more memory bandwidth
Totally matters for all the Apple Arcade AAA titles. /s
48-megapixel main camera with ƒ/1.6 aperture
Simply use your feet for the few times you need to zoom in.
0.5x, 1x, and 2x optical zoom options
Most of the time 1x is used, just batch check the exif data of your photos.
24- and 48-megapixel super-high-resolution photos
Yeah totally worth, won't make the over-processed photos better.
Smart HDR 5
Still a photo destroyer!
Next-generation portraits with Focus and Depth Control
Meh!
Improved Night mode and Night mode portraits
Great for destroying the atmosphere night photos usually have.
Improved audio quality on phone calls
Who make phone calls now a days anyway.
Second-generation Ultra Wideband chip (connects from 3x further away)
Twitter/X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Tinder will rock now. /s
Precision Finding for Find My friends
Friends? I mean look at those people sitting in a restaurant, who mainly fingers on their iPhone's instead of having a nice talk with their "friends".
USB-C port
My ass, Thanks EU for forcing Apple to innovate again!
Support for Qi2 wireless charging
Still not wireless when you need a cable.
Yellow, Blue, Pink, Green, and Black color options
At least not boring as the colors from iPhone 15 Pro
 
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The 15 plus(in black)is going to be a nice back up phone to my 15 Pro Max(Natural Titanium)

Trading in my iPhone 14 Pro Max and IPhone 13
 
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sviato said:
The comparison tool on Apple’s website is much better than these articles, why not just direct people there

www.apple.com

iPhone - Compare Models

Compare features and technical specifications for iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone SE, and many more.
www.apple.com
Click to expand...
Apple's comparison tool doesn't include all features, such as improved audio during calls or Qi2 for the iPhone 15. For other comparisons, it doesn't include vital things like amounts of memory. For Apple Watch, it no longer shows any older models. Even then, it's not always easy to see which features are new since so much is identical model to model, so that's why we only list the changes.
 
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Mitsjke said:
The '2,000 nits peak brightness (outdoor)' is a joke. I have the 13 Pro and the '2000 nits brightness' is only working for 5 seconds => then it gets overheated and dims to 1 nit. Same with my partner's iPhone 14 Pro max. Living in San Francisco, so you might think Apple tests devices outside of their offices.
Click to expand...
I agree, though maybe a bit more than 5 seconds. Depends on ambient temp and workload. I've had it stay bright for maybe up to a minute or two. Not long enough for ongoing work, but good enough to show someone a few pictures or drawings on a job site, so it has been quite a useful spec for me.

Anyway I agree with others that the 15 is a solid upgrade. Honestly the only thing keeping me on the Pro this year is 120Hz. It's so hard to go back once you make that switch. I really didn't think they would use the dynamic island with 60Hz after talking last year about how they had to fine tune the DI animations (which are indeed a delight) to look as smooth as possible.
 
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Is there an editor for this article/marketing material? Do these two first lines of adjacent paragraphs make sense?

“The iPhone 15's upgrades over the iPhone 14 are fairly substantial…”

“It may not be worth upgrading from an iPhone 13 or iPhone 14 model to the iPhone 15…”
 
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antnythr said:
The real comparison that MR should do is 15 non-Pro vs 14 Pro.

What I quickly see is:

14 Pro:
3x zoom vs 2x
23 hours vs 20
Promotion
AoD
206g vs 171
Adaptive True Tone flash
Night mode portraits
ProRes (if you have 256gb)

15:
USB-C
Smart hdr5 vs 4
Second-generation Ultra Wideband chip
Click to expand...
Yes, this what I’m interested in. Need to decide between one or the other, currently swaying towards 14 Pro
 
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Mitsjke said:
The '2,000 nits peak brightness (outdoor)' is a joke. I have the 13 Pro and the '2000 nits brightness' is only working for 5 seconds => then it gets overheated and dims to 1 nit. Same with my partner's iPhone 14 Pro max. Living in San Francisco, so you might think Apple tests devices outside of their offices.
Click to expand...
Exactly it always does it at Dorney Park. It doesn't even do any good to take the case off. I though we were supposed to get better heat dissipation this time. How much better is Titanium for it? Although that is only Pro anyhow,
 
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Wildkraut said:
Hmmm nah, you got it wrong.
It's more I "won't" get a new iPhone 15 nor Pro for private use, because it offers almost zero innovations.
Click to expand...
Everyone's wants are not the same. What would you look for as an innovation?
 
hybrid_x said:
This is the first Apple phone launch in how long that did not include a (PRODUCT)RED option. Kind of disappointed. The anodized red looks just amazing.
Click to expand...

Agreed, they also skipped a white variant for the first time since iPhone 4. I mean both blue and yellow are very subtle, so get quite close to it, but still. 🤷🏻‍♂️
 
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hybrid_x said:
This is the first Apple phone launch in how long that did not include a (PRODUCT)RED option. Kind of disappointed. The anodized red looks just amazing.
Click to expand...
They might still bring it out mid-year to boost sales between model upgrades.

They've done that in the past with random colors added to product line.
 
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