iPhone 14/Plus Is iPhone 14 worth of purchasing in 2024?

[iHorseHead]

Hi!
I'm thinking of upgrading my phone from 12mini to iPhone 14, because I need more storage and better battery life and better camera would be great too.
It'd be awesome to start a new year with a new phone. Is it still worth it though? iPhone 12 mini has the same SIM card as the iPhone 14, right?
Is the battery life of iPhone 14 good? Because now I have to charge my phone at least twice a day (battery health is 78%). I assume the battery life on iPhone 14 is a lot better, right?

 

[stanza.richi]

Hi! Two years ago I upgraded from 12 mini to 14 pro max: better battery, larger and better screen, better cameras. After two years I’m still satisfied and I don’t plan to upgrade in the next two years at least. If you could afford it, I will consider a 15 or 15 pro for better camera than the 14.

 

[coffeemilktea]

If you can get a really good price for it, then yes... otherwise, you might as well just get something newer that will get OS updates for longer. 😬

 

[iHorseHead]

If you can get a really good price for it, then yes... otherwise, you might as well just get something newer that will get OS updates for longer. 😬

What do you mean by 'good price'? Is 650€ too expensive? iPhone 15 is 850€ but I'm planning to wait on Christmas discounts.
I mean even the new Mac mini is cheaper than the iPhone 14… and maybe iPhone SE will be even a better deal than the 14? Then again they sell iPhone 13 for 500€. Interestingly enough, iPhone 12 is no longer available anywhere but iPhone 11 is…

 

[iHorseHead]

If you could afford it, I will consider a 15 or 15 pro for better camera than the 14.

Unfortunately I can't… I mean the camera on iPhone 12 mini is great as well. Def. better than on iPhone 5s.

 

[FlyingDutch]

I would go for a 15, to have USB C.

 

[Jhonjhon236]

Any upgrade is a good upgrade. Even though it’s a few years old now, the 14 is a great phone. Sure, it’s not the best iPhone but it is better than the 12 mini.

 

[iHorseHead]

Any upgrade is a good upgrade. Even though it’s a few years old now, the 14 is a great phone. Sure, it’s not the best iPhone but it is better than the 12 mini.

What flaws does it have?

 

[iHorseHead]

I would go for a 15, to have USB C.

The price difference is a lot. For the price of iPhone 15 I could have Pixel 9 with 12GB of RAM and with all the Ai features in the EU, but no SIM card slot though and I need it…

 

[iHorseHead]

I bought iPhone 14 yesterday…
Umm, I watched some review before that and it mentioned that iPhone 14 has always on display.. Well, after purchasing it I found out that iPhone 14 doesn't have always on display and is like iPhone 13… I could've saved $150 by just going with iPhone 13.
Umm… I'm not sure if I made a mistake.

 

[Reverend Benny]

I bought iPhone 14 yesterday…
Umm, I watched some review before that and it mentioned that iPhone 14 has always on display.. Well, after purchasing it I found out that iPhone 14 doesn't have always on display and is like iPhone 13… I could've saved $150 by just going with iPhone 13.
Umm… I'm not sure if I made a mistake.

14 is a better choice, more RAM will make it supported longer than the 13 and prob have an impact on speed.
Theres some other features as well that differes if you compare them side by side.

 

[iHorseHead]

14 is a better choice, more RAM will make it supported longer than the 13 and prob have an impact on speed.
Theres some other features as well that differes if you compare them side by side.

I truly hope that it'll be supported for at least a year longer than iPhone 13. It was shocking to me that Apple dropped the support for iPhone 6s and for iPhone 7 at the same time, but we'll wait and see. I don't think it'll lose support any time soon, right? Anyway, the main reason why I bought a new iPhone was the battery life. I replaced the battery of my 12 mini for $100 and it's still horrible. I'm honestly getting tired of this, so the battery was the main reason for upgrading, but now that I watch reviews of the iPhone 14 they say it's the same as 13 and iPhone 13 is $150 cheaper.

 

[GMShadow]

I truly hope that it'll be supported for at least a year longer than iPhone 13. It was shocking to me that Apple dropped the support for iPhone 6s and for iPhone 7 at the same time, but we'll wait and see. I don't think it'll lose support any time soon, right? Anyway, the main reason why I bought a new iPhone was the battery life. I replaced the battery of my 12 mini for $100 and it's still horrible. I'm honestly getting tired of this, so the battery was the main reason for upgrading, but now that I watch reviews of the iPhone 14 they say it's the same as 13 and iPhone 13 is $150 cheaper.

They're not exactly the same. As another poster already noted you get 6GB of RAM vs 4GB in the 13's. You will have a better experience for the life of the phone by paying a little extra.

The iPhone 14 Pro models had the always-on display, not the regulars.

 

[iHorseHead]

They're not exactly the same. As another poster already noted you get 6GB of RAM vs 4GB in the 13's. You will have a better experience for the life of the phone by paying a little extra.

The iPhone 14 Pro models had the always-on display, not the regulars.

Yeah, I misunderstood something, anyway, it's not that important, to be fair. I just hope my Apple Watch SE 1st gen will work with it. So far from what I've seen the battery life is also better, so I do hope to use it for years and I hope I'll finally get a phone that I can use whole day, because now when I go to the store have AirPods connected and on 5G I lose like 50% of battery life during my two hour walk. Even more if I dare to do something else on my phone and if I have to use Google Maps or something then it's pretty much game over.

Replacing the battery didn't really help and I've also restored my phone on factory settings. The battery life was the main reason for the upgrade and unfortunately iPhone 15 or even iPhone 14 Plus etc were out of my budget. For the price of iPhone 15 I could get a new MacBook Air or a new Mac mini.

 

[Reverend Benny]

Yeah, I misunderstood something, anyway, it's not that important, to be fair. I just hope my Apple Watch SE 1st gen will work with it. So far from what I've seen the battery life is also better, so I do hope to use it for years and I hope I'll finally get a phone that I can use whole day, because now when I go to the store have AirPods connected and on 5G I lose like 50% of battery life during my two hour walk. Even more if I dare to do something else on my phone and if I have to use Google Maps or something then it's pretty much game over.

Replacing the battery didn't really help and I've also restored my phone on factory settings. The battery life was the main reason for the upgrade and unfortunately iPhone 15 or even iPhone 14 Plus etc were out of my budget. For the price of iPhone 15 I could get a new MacBook Air or a new Mac mini.

SOS via satellite, fall/crash detection, better 5G modem (see below), more GPU power, better battery performance is a few other things.

Another difference between 12,13 and 14 is the Qualcomm modem which might mean more efficient (higher speeds, better coverage using less power) network connectivity.

The 12 has the X55 chipset
The 13 has the X60 chipset
The 14 has the X65 chipset

For more info check out

Current Cellular Industry Guidance: 5G is Increasingly Worthwhile For RV & Boat Mobile Internet Solutions

In our 5G industry update in early 2022, we advised our RVing and boating audience "to keep their expectations in check" around the potential for 5G as the core of their mobile internet setup -

www.rvmobileinternet.com

 

[FlyingDutch]

I truly hope that it'll be supported for at least a year longer than iPhone 13. It was shocking to me that Apple dropped the support for iPhone 6s and for iPhone 7 at the same time, but we'll wait and see. I don't think it'll lose support any time soon, right? Anyway, the main reason why I bought a new iPhone was the battery life. I replaced the battery of my 12 mini for $100 and it's still horrible. I'm honestly getting tired of this, so the battery was the main reason for upgrading, but now that I watch reviews of the iPhone 14 they say it's the same as 13 and iPhone 13 is $150 cheaper.

You clearly confused it with the Pro version, but I think you made a right choice: 13 and 14 share the same SoC, but 6 GB of RAM will help in the long period in terms of user experience. Also the camera is slightly better.

 

[iHorseHead]

You clearly confused it with the Pro version, but I think you made a right choice: 13 and 14 share the same SoC, but 6 GB of RAM will help in the long period in terms of user experience. Also the camera is slightly better.

Yeah, but some reviewers didnt mention that it was only pro version, but it doesn't bother me.To be honest, I haven't noticed any difference speed wise. It's just the battery is still at 73% and when I took it out of the box it was 80% and it's been on for at least 4 hours.

I like that I can choose optimise charging immediately, on my 12 mini I couldn't. Haven't gotten used to the size yet, but I hope it'll last me for a long time. I don't think Apple will drop iOS support in 2-3 years and it might be supported for a year longer than iPhone 13. I haven't tested out the camera yet, but when I opened the camera app it asked me what kind of style do I like the best and I just chose natural. It's all very new to me.😅

Also, I'm happy I don't have to take my case off to use MagSafe charger.

 

[iHorseHead]

SOS via satellite, fall/crash detection, better 5G modem (see below), more GPU power, better battery performance is a few other things.

Another difference between 12,13 and 14 is the Qualcomm modem which might mean more efficient (higher speeds, better coverage using less power) network connectivity.

The 12 has the X55 chipset
The 13 has the X60 chipset
The 14 has the X65 chipset

For more info check out

Current Cellular Industry Guidance: 5G is Increasingly Worthwhile For RV & Boat Mobile Internet Solutions

In our 5G industry update in early 2022, we advised our RVing and boating audience "to keep their expectations in check" around the potential for 5G as the core of their mobile internet setup -

www.rvmobileinternet.com

Unfortunately my region doesn't support SOS via satellite but it could be a useful feature.

 

[stikle]

I bought iPhone 14 yesterday…
Umm, I watched some review before that and it mentioned that iPhone 14 has always on display.. Well, after purchasing it I found out that iPhone 14 doesn't have always on display and is like iPhone 13…

The iPhone 14 Pro has always on display, the regular 14 does not.

 

[iHorseHead]

The iPhone 14 Pro has always on display, the regular 14 does not.

Yes, that's what I said, but I misunderstood till I watched another review.

 

[Reverend Benny]

Yeah, but some reviewers didnt mention that it was only pro version, but it doesn't bother me.To be honest, I haven't noticed any difference speed wise. It's just the battery is still at 73% and when I took it out of the box it was 80% and it's been on for at least 4 hours.

I like that I can choose optimise charging immediately, on my 12 mini I couldn't. Haven't gotten used to the size yet, but I hope it'll last me for a long time. I don't think Apple will drop iOS support in 2-3 years and it might be supported for a year longer than iPhone 13. I haven't tested out the camera yet, but when I opened the camera app it asked me what kind of style do I like the best and I just chose natural. It's all very new to me.😅

Also, I'm happy I don't have to take my case off to use MagSafe charger.

I thought all supported iPhones could set optimize charging? What iOS version were you running on your 12 mini?
I know it differs some where the 15 and above has added functionality when it comes to set how you want it to charge.

 

[iHorseHead]

I thought all supported iPhones could set optimize charging? What iOS version were you running on your 12 mini?
I know it differs some where the 15 and above has added functionality when it comes to set how you want it to charge.

iOS 18.2
On iPhone 14 I can toggle it on and off but on iPhone 12 mini at least, I can't.

I am noticing the battery life difference, but not really the speed difference (yet). It's as fast as my iPhone 12 for what I was doing. But no, the battery is really great. I was on a WhatsApp video call for an hour and the battery dropped only 6%.

I am worried I'll ruin my battery somehow

 

[Reverend Benny]

iOS 18.2
On iPhone 14 I can toggle it on and off but on iPhone 12 mini at least, I can't.

I am noticing the battery life difference, but not really the speed difference (yet). It's as fast as my iPhone 12 for what I was doing. But no, the battery is really great. I was on a WhatsApp video call for an hour and the battery dropped only 6%.

I am worried I'll ruin my battery somehow

very strange, was it a proper OEM battery in your iPhone 12 replaced by an Apple Store or authorised dealer?

Batteries degrade, it's how they work. Just swap it when it's time.
My 13 pro is 3 years old and still at 85% and has a lot of life left.

 

[sublunar]

Hi!
I'm thinking of upgrading my phone from 12mini to iPhone 14, because I need more storage and better battery life and better camera would be great too.
It'd be awesome to start a new year with a new phone. Is it still worth it though? iPhone 12 mini has the same SIM card as the iPhone 14, right?
Is the battery life of iPhone 14 good? Because now I have to charge my phone at least twice a day (battery health is 78%). I assume the battery life on iPhone 14 is a lot better, right?

We could be less than 6 months away from the iPhone SE which could be better in many ways than the standard iPhone 14 and 15.

That’ll have a better chipset - A18 has been mooted but I’d reckon A17pro at least like the iPad mini 7 and with it a longer period of support. It’ll also have usb c port whereas the 14 is the last phone with lightning. There’s obviously going to be a stack of other features between the SE4 and 14 and 15 but the cpu and chipset is the big one once the screen sizes are equalised.

My reading of the smaller battery on the 12 mini means that it needs more recharges due to uniquely shorter time time - even the 13 mini was better in terms of battery which I suppose means it’s not as good for heavy users. I’d previously have loved a mini phone but have come to appreciate the better battery life of the bigger iPhones.

I have deliberated all year about the iPhone 14 Plus which has been on deals for £599 at third party retailers - same price as the standard 14 - but since then the SE4 spec has landed and those deals have gone in the uk.

I’m in a similar situation to you with a relatively ancient iPhone and I have decided to wait it out, SE4 might be as little as 3 months away or as many as 6 months away and at that point you might see third party prices for 15 and 16 softening and potentially the 14 discontinued.

 

[iHorseHead]

We could be less than 6 months away from the iPhone SE which could be better in many ways than the standard iPhone 14 and 15.

That’ll have a better chipset - A18 has been mooted but I’d reckon A17pro at least like the iPad mini 7 and with it a longer period of support. It’ll also have usb c port whereas the 14 is the last phone with lightning. There’s obviously going to be a stack of other features between the SE4 and 14 and 15 but the cpu and chipset is the big one once the screen sizes are equalised.

My reading of the smaller battery on the 12 mini means that it needs more recharges due to uniquely shorter time time - even the 13 mini was better in terms of battery which I suppose means it’s not as good for heavy users. I’d previously have loved a mini phone but have come to appreciate the better battery life of the bigger iPhones.

I have deliberated all year about the iPhone 14 Plus which has been on deals for £599 at third party retailers - same price as the standard 14 - but since then the SE4 spec has landed and those deals have gone in the uk.

I’m in a similar situation to you with a relatively ancient iPhone and I have decided to wait it out, SE4 might be as little as 3 months away or as many as 6 months away and at that point you might see third party prices for 15 and 16 softening and potentially the 14 discontinued.

I was thinking the same way, but um… I bought the iPhone 14 yesterday and received it today.
Lighting was one of the reasons why I bought iPhone 14, to be honest. The main reason I bought / needed a new phone was because I was getting tired of the battery, I mean for real. I am pleased with my iPhone 14 battery. I don't notice that much of a difference in performance. (I mainly text on my phone and listen to the music and scroll on Instagram and occasionally surf the web and buy tickets), so I guess it's no surprise that I havent noticed any difference in performance.


I mean Christmas and my birthday is coming up, so why shouldn't I have something nice to myself once a year? But yeah… That's what I'd advise to others as well, but I guess I really wanted / needed a new phone. I think the regular 12 would've been a better purchase than mini… But yeah. Thank you for your advice.

iPhone SE will definitely be better than iPhone 14. There's no doubt about it.