At a press event in the prestigious Steve Jobs Theatre in Cupertino, California, Apple announce the new iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro phones. The new devices feature a brand new A16 Bionic chip, brand new quad-pixel 48MP camera, Dynamic Island feature and gorgeous Super Retina XDR Displays with ProMotion and new emergency features like Crash detection.
“Phone 14 Pro introduces a camera system that empowers every user — from the casual user to the professional — to take their best photos and video, and innovative new technologies like the Always-On display and the Dynamic Island, which offers new interactions for notifications and activities,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.
The new iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max feature a beautiful surgical-grade stainless steel and textured matte glass design in four stunning colours. Available in 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch sizes, both models include a new Super Retina XDR display with ProMotion that features the Always-On display for the first time ever on iPhone, enabled by a new 1Hz refresh rate and other power saving wizardry.
The are powered by the all new A16 Bionic, which is the fastest chip ever in a smartphone according to Apple. The A16 Bionic chip is exclusive to the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max and unlocks experiences like the new notch-hiding Dynamic Island, powers all-day battery life, and delivers impressive computational photography capabilities. With two high-performance cores and four high-efficiency cores, the new 6-core CPU is up to 40 per cent faster than the competition and easily handles demanding workloads. So, that means more pawah and less battery which I have no doubt given the exceptional performance of the iPhone 13 Pro.
This new chip is also critical in powering the new class of pro camera system, with the first-ever 48MP Main camera on an iPhone featuring a quad-pixel sensor and Photonic Engine, an enhanced image pipeline that dramatically improves low-light photos. The CPU, GPU, Neural Engine and image signal processor seamlessly work together to support the new camera hardware and perform up to 4 trillion operations per photo. This means the iPhone 14 Pro can now shoot Cinematic Video in full, fat 4K at 24 and 30fps, a massive step up from the somewhat lacklustre FullHD version first introduced with the iPhone 13 Pro.
The advanced display also brings the same peak HDR brightness level as Pro Display XDR and the highest outdoor peak brightness in a smartphone: up to 2000 nits, which is twice as bright as iPhone 13 Pro. iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max also continue to offer industry-leading durability features with the Ceramic Shield front cover — tougher than any smartphone glass — and are protected from common spills and accidents with water- and dust-resistance.
In an exciting move that took everyone one by surprise, Apple also introduced the Dynamic Island, a new feature that blends the physical hardware of the new, pill-shaped notch and the iOS 16 software. Without impeding content on the screen, the Dynamic Island maintains an active state to allow users easier access to controls with a simple tap-and-hold. Ongoing background activities like Maps, Music or a timer remain visible and interactive, and third-party apps in iOS 16 that provide information like sports scores and ride-sharing with Live Activities can take advantage of the Dynamic Island. It’s a brilliant user interface design and I can’t wait to put it to the test.
Pricing and availability
Pricing surprisingly hasn’t changed much from last years model with iPhone 14 Pro starting at RRP A$1,749 inc. GST (AU) before trade-in, and iPhone 14 Pro Max starting at RRP A$1,899 inc. GST (AU) before trade-in from apple.com/au/store, in the Apple Store app, and at Apple Store locations. With trade-in, you could save up to AU$830. iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will be available in Deep Purple, Silver, Gold and Space Black in 128GB, 256GB, 512GB and 1TB storage capacities.
I’ve been using an iPhone 13 Pro Max for the last year and it’s the best, all round smartphone I’ve ever owned. It’s also a phenomenal content creation machine with extremely reliable cameras that I’ve used for a ton of photography and high quality video for YouTube and Instagram. Additionally, the battery life has been outstanding, even a year later – easily lasting me two whole days of moderate use so I’m really excited to put the new iPhone 14 Pro Max to the test.
