Should You Upgrade To An iPhone 14?
Updated: Oct 15, 2022
The iPhone 14 is already out in Singapore stores right now and if you're considering picking one up, the first question that comes to mind will most likely be, "should I upgrade to the iPhone 14?" Well, should you? Long story short, if you are an Android user looking for an opportunity to come back to iOS? Yes. If you are a non-pro iPhone user looking to try out the pro variant for the first time? Yes. If you are a non-pro 13 user looking at the 14? Well...read on.
Intro and Circles.Life
Before we dive right into it, we would like to give a shout-out to the folk at Circles.Life, who helped make this possible. They have a winning combo plan for iPhone 14 users with 20GB of data for S$18 a month. Not only that, for a limited time only, you’ll get 3 months of unlimited data free if you purchase the new iPhone 14 along with it.
They also offer flexible payment plans where you can pay in full through zero-interest instalments or pay later with Atome. This combo is also contract-free! This means you can easily hop onto another plan if you change your mind. How’s that for a more fun, fuss-free way to buy an iPhone 14 - all delivered to you at zero cost!
iPhone 14 Series
Now, the iPhone 14 series comes in four variants, the 14 and 14 Plus for the regular lineup along with the 14 Pro and Pro Max for the pro lineup. This year, Apple has decided to switch out the 'mini' variant with the larger screen 'plus' variant. Aside from that, the Pro lineup of the 14 sports unique features that are not on the regular 14 such as Dynamic Island, Always-on Display and 120Hz ProMotion. There are also substantial hardware differences between the pro and non-pro lineup which we'll get to in a bit.
Design
Design-wise, not much has changed from the 13 except for the larger camera bump and yes, you can tell it's bigger. As mentioned earlier, the 14 now comes in a plus variant which has a beefy 6.7" display, which means both pro and non-pro have both 6.1” and 6.7" models within their lineup.
Specification
The non-pro 14s are powered by the A15 Bionic chip while the pro 14s are powered by the upgraded A16 Bionic. Now if you're thinking there's something familiar about that A15 chip, yes, it's the same chip that's powering the iPhone 13; not a good sign for those looking to upgrade as it kinda feels like Apple is nudging all the buyers towards the pro lineup instead, but just a quick hop over to the Apple website and you can see that the 13 and 14 are almost, spec for spec, the same model.
| iPhone 13 | iPhone 14 | iPhone 14 Pro | iPhone 14 Pro Max |
GeekBench (Single) | 1,734 | 1,749 | 1,880 | 1,896 |
GeekBench (Multi) | 4,611 | 4,777 | 5,236 | 4,950 |
3DMark (Wild Life Ex) | - | 2,445 | 2,886 | 2,989 |
3DMark (Wild Life) | - | 11,044 | 12,365 | 12,350 |
Oh wait, you do get one extra GPU core but the benchmarks number doesn't really show any improvements that are worth taking into consideration. Gaming-wise, the pro variants would be the better choice as not only do they perform better in terms of 3DMark numbers, but it has a 120hz ProMotion display as well.
Camera
The camera department is also one of the few areas which have been upgraded for the pro lineup. It's now equipped with a triple camera setup consisting of a 48MP main, a 12MP ultrawide and a 12MP telephoto. Meanwhile, the regular 14 has the same dual 12MP camera setup as the 13.
Battery
All variants of the 14 also have an enhanced stabilisation feature called the 'Action Mode'. If you would like to know more about how the camera performs in terms of photography and videography, we'll have upcoming videos on that so do remember to stay tuned!
iPhone 13 | iPhone 14 | iPhone 13 Pro | iPhone 14 Pro | iPhone 13 Pro Max | iPhone 14 Pro Max |
3240mAh | 3279mAh | 3095mAh | 3200mAh | 4352mAh | 4323mAh |
Battery-wise all 14 models saw a minor increase in capacity except for the 14 Pro Max. However, a bigger battery doesn't necessarily equate to better battery life as all 14 models seem to suffer from battery drains. A quick Google search will reveal this to be an issue from iOS 16's poor optimisation of the battery.
On a positive note, following Apple's pattern of iOS releases, they'll usually resolve it within the next few patches.
Network
The 14 also supports 5G networks and eSIM. With more virtual networks in Singapore gradually starting to implement support for it, you’ll be ready to tap on that fast 5G network whenever it’s accessible.
To set up the eSIM, make sure your phone and service provider supports that feature. There are two ways you can switch to an eSIM with Circles.Life:
Get an eSIM → Activate → Purchase the iPhone 14 via Circles.Life app
Get a physical SIM + Phone → Activate → Change to eSIM via Circles.Life app
If you are signing up through the Circles.Life website, simply select eSim when signing up for your new line and you will be provided with an eSim QR code, scan that code with your iPhone under mobile data settings, follow the on-screen prompts and voila! Your eSim is all set up, without needing to wait for the physical SIM to arrive!
Thankfully, non-US carriers of the iPhone 14 still support physical SIM so there's really no rush in making the transition unless, of course, the next iPhone removes physical SIM completely. In US, the iPhone 14 series phones only come with eSIM slots!
Final Thoughts
The iPhone 14 starts from S$1,299 for the base 128GB storage and with that, the conclusion
But before that, another quick thank you to our partners at Circles.Life, where you can grab a winning combo plan for iPhone 14 users with 20GB of data for S$18 a month with eSIM or physical SIM support.
For a limited time only, you also get 3 months of unlimited data free with your new iPhone 14, which you may pay with flexible payment plans, or pay in full. Truly a fun, fuss-free way to buy an iPhone 14.....oh we didn't mention the free delivery part? Yes, Circles.Life delivers your iPhone 14 to you for free.
So…is the 14 series worth buying? In contrast to the 14 Pro which boasts way more features and better hardware, the regular 14 may seem like the lacklustre option. If you can afford the hefty price tag of the 14 Pro, you won't be disappointed. As for the 14, if you like to keep it simple without all the additional features and costs from the Pro lineup, the iPhone 14 is still an option worth considering!
This year's iPhone 14 lineup still certainly packs a bunch of hardware and software improvements and we've just barely scratched the surface of what it has to offer.
So if you are interested in our detailed breakdown do check out our full review here.
This content is brought to you in collaboration with Circles.Life