The new iPhone 14 Pro is the third in the 14 series this year and it sits at the upper-tier range of the device line. Being a pro device, it came with some great options and hardware upgrades that make the device really valuable.
While this is a quick hands-on preview of the device, a lot was said on Wednesday during the launch event of the device alongside other products including the new AirPods Pro (2022), three Apple Watch smartwatches, and of course, four iPhone 14 models.
While not so much has changed regarding the design aesthetics of the new iPhone 14 Pro, Apple definitely made some tweaks to the display design of the device.
This means for the first time in about 5 years, Apple finally swapped out the notch for a pill-shaped hole-punch camera cut-out which it calls the “Dynamic Island”.
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It does a lot more than just being gimmicky (more on that later). The device also features the new A16 Bionic chipset which offers better efficiency, higher processing speed relative to the previous model, and a camera upgrade from the previous model.
In this post, I’ll be talking about all the interesting specifications of the new iPhone 14 Pro one after the other.
Hardware, Design, and Build
- Gorilla Glass (front and back)
- Stainless steel frame
- IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 6m for 30 mins)
- eSIM for US consumers
As mentioned above, the new iPhone 14 Pro comes with all the high-end hardware specifications you’d expect. While it’s not significantly different from the previous iPhone 13 Pro released last year, Apple swapped out a couple of things such as the notch and also the physical SIM tray for eSIM support (only available for US users)
Apple also made the iPhone 14 Pro (including the iPhone 14, 14 Plus, and 14 Pro max) to offer support for a direct to satellite connection which can be used to send information when you’re out of range of a cell tower.
The same boxy design aesthetics the company adopted since iPhone 12 still remained on the iPhone 14 Pro and the entire line.
There is no information about the kind of Gorilla Glass being used but it’s definitely going to be the Victus.
The device also has IP68 water and dust resistance- which is another big plus. One thing though is the fact that most users would rather put their phone in a case in order to protect the fingerprint-loving stainless steel frame of the device
Apple is still adamant about putting an external storage tray on its device so we’re left with storage options that range from 128GB of internal storage, 256GB storage, 512GB storage, and lastly, the bigger 1TB storage all with 6GB of RAM.
Compared to many Android-based smartphones that often have humongous RAM, iOS is designed to work as efficiently as possible with less RAM.
Combining the 6GB of RAM with the new A16 Bionic chipset, you’re getting a maxed-out performance in the same range as the 12GB of RAM and Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 found on the Galaxy S22 Ultra.
Display of the iPhone 14 Pro
- 6.1 inches, 91.7 cm2Â (~87.0% screen-to-body ratio)
- LTPO Panel with 2000 nits peak brightness
- Can switch between 120Hz and 1Hz to conserve battery
- Always-on display
Another interesting thing about the new iPhone 14 Pro is the fact that it has a better display. Ever since Apple switched to using OLED displays, it never looked back and it has therefore optimized its software to take advantage of every bit the OLED technology has to offer.
That is how the new Dynamic Island is being made possible. This year’s iPhone 14 Pro comes with the same 6.1-inch LTPO display with features such as HDR10, Dolby Vision, and 2000 nits of peak brightness.
The LTPO technology allows the Retina XDR to perform in the most efficient ways possible especially its ability to switch between 120Hz refresh rate to just 1Hz refresh rate depending on what is being done.
Also, did I mention this is the first iOS-based device to offer the always-on display? The integration of this feature into the iOS 16 software is so seamless that it performs much better in my opinion than the ones we have on Android-based devices.
Let’s face it, Apple isn’t always the first to adopt new features but when it does, it often makes things better. And that is significant with the implementation of the always-on display.
In Android phones, for example, the screen turns off first, and then the always-on display kicks in. But the seamless transition in the new iPhone 14 Pro is just amazing and I love it.
I think Apple might be able to sway Android users who are looking for new and exciting features with this new device.
Dynamic Island
The feature marveled me so much that I needed to create an entire section dedicated just to it. The new Dynamic Island is certainly a feature I think Android OEMs need to copy using the hole-punch camera cut-out.
The pill-shaped cut-out isn’t new and Samsung started it back in 2019 with the Galaxy S10 Plus but the alignment was to the right. Huawei even did with its Mate 40 series with the alignment being on the left.
The fact that the iPhone 14 Pro has a flattened display makes the center alignment of the pill-shaped cut-out much more fascinating. But apart from the physical characteristics of the cut-out, the part also serves as a great multi-tasking tool for users.
Only time will tell when app developers begin to implement the Dynamic Island into their apps.
The part can be used to see the progress of any activity such as music player, audio recordings, maps, SIRI, and so much more.
It looks like Samsung’s Smart notification which creates a small window of an app on your current screen. But the fact that the Dynamic Island uses widget technology to simply monitor or control some actions makes it interesting. It also integrates well into the device’s software.
Camera capability of the iPhone 14 Pro
- Triple rear sensors
- 48MP Primary sensor
- TOF 3D LiDAR scanner (depth)
- Adaptive flash
The new cameras of the iPhone 14 Pro offer some interesting features that will put it head-to-head against the Galaxy S22 Ultra.
The device now has a bigger 48MP primary sensor with an f/1.8 aperture. The sensor has a wide-angle lens with sensor-shift OIS to give a gimbal-ish balance when recording videos on a motion.
The other two sensors are 12MP (telephoto and ultrawide). The telephoto lens also has OIS with 3x optical zoom.
Some might wish Apple can implement a periscope zoom lens to enhance the zoom capability of their devices.
Away from the lack of incredible zooming capability, the cameras of the iPhone 14 Pro can also record 4K@24/25/30/60fps, 1080p@25/30/60/120/240fps.
It has features such as 10-bit HDR, Dolby Vision HDR (up to 60fps), ProRes, Cinematic mode (4K@30fps), and stereo sound rec.
There is the adaptive flash which uses software to calculate the distance you are to the subject being captured in order to increase or reduce the intensity of the LED flash.
At the front of the device, you get an improved 12MP sensor with better capabilities. Apple is definitely taking into consideration that people often use their front-facing cameras nowadays to film content on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram.
Unlike other brands that often focus the majority of their budgets and technology on improving the back cameras, maybe enhancing the front camera too won’t be a bad idea. And Apple certainly considered that.
The front-facing camera on the iPhone 14 Pro can also record4K videos at up to 60 frames per second.
Performance, battery life, and more
- Li-Ion non-removable battery
- MagSafe support
- Four color options
Apple didn’t state the battery capacity of its smartphone this time around or maybe we’ll find out by ourselves later on. One thing though is that the device’s battery should perform much better this time around.
The company opted for a Lithium-Ion battery this time around while claiming it can be charged to 50% under 30 minutes. That shows the iPhone 14 Pro has an improved fast charging capability even though we can’t be specific about how many watts can be taken into the device through its power brick.
Another thing is that the device has MagSafe support with 15W fast charging while it can charge at 7.5W using Qi wireless charging.
In order areas, the device comes in four color options namely: Space Black, Silver, Gold, and Deep Purple.
The iPhone 14 Pro still has the Face ID technology despite switching from the notch to a Dynamic Island. Other sensors on the device include an accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, and barometer.
The device also has Ultra Wideband (UWB) support as well as the aforementioned Emergency SOS via satellite (SMS sending/receiving).
The price of the base iPhone 14 Pro starts at US$999 and pre-orders will start on Friday, Sept. 9th while the device is expected to be available by Sept. 16th.
All in all, this is still a pre-amble as there’s a lot to be talked about as far as the device is concerned. When I’m able to get my hands on one, I’ll write a detailed review of the iPhone 14 Pro explaining all its quirks and features and why you might want to consider upgrading to the new device.
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