The iPhone 13 was only revealed a few months ago, but that doesn’t mean Apple isn’t working on the iPhone 14 behind closed doors – and given a surprising number of early leaks, we’ve already got some idea of what the company could be planning for its 2022 flagship range.
In fact, if the rumours are true, it could be a much more exciting upgrade than what’s on offer from the iPhone 13, with current rumours pointing towards a potential redesign, the removal of the Face ID notch and a vastly improved camera setup too.
With that in mind, we outline all there is to know about the iPhone 14 right now, including release date and pricing predictions as well as the latest leaks and rumours detailing what to expect from Apple’s 2022 flagship iPhone range.
When will the iPhone 14 be released?
Apple only officially unveiled the iPhone 13 in September, so we’re still quite some time away from the release of the next-gen iPhone 14.
While there aren’t any solid rumours right now, iPhone releases tend to happen in September – with the exception of 2020 amidst the pandemic – so with that in mind, we expect the iPhone 14 range to be released sometime in September 2022.
We’ll update this section once we hear more, so check back frequently for the latest details, and if you can’t wait that long, take a look at our iPhone buying guide.
How much will the iPhone 14 cost?
It’s far too early to give any concrete predictions on pricing, but the good news is that, even with chip shortages prevalent in 2022 driving up the price Apple has to pay for components, this year’s iPhone 13 range comes in at the same price as its predecessor.
While this doesn’t necessarily mean we’re expecting the same from this year’s models, it’s a good sign that Apple is trying its best to hold the iPhone to its current pricing.
For reference, the current iPhone range costs:
- iPhone 13 Pro Max – £1,099/$1,099
- iPhone 13 Pro – £999/$999
- iPhone 13 – £799/$799
- iPhone 13 Mini – £699/$699
- iPhone 11 – £599/$599
- iPhone XR – £499/$499
- iPhone SE – £399/$399
What to expect from the iPhone 14 range
Despite being quite some time away from the potential release, we’ve got a rough idea of what the iPhone 14 will offer – and it’s set to be an exciting one if current rumours are to be believed.
Bye Mini, hello Max
We all knew it was coming; after poor iPhone 12 mini sales, and expecting very much the same with the iPhone 13 mini, Ming-Chi Kuo suggests that Apple will discontinue the line officially in 2022.
Instead, the company is said to offer 6.1- and 6.7in variants of both the base and Pro models, meaning we could see the introduction of a new iPhone 14 Max alongside the iPhone 14 Pro Max.
The Elec goes as far as to suggest that the iPhone 14 Max could offer the same 120Hz refresh rate as the Pro range, although this is dependent on manufacturing costs and availability.
What’s more likely is a standard 60Hz refresh rate, putting it in line with the rest of the standard iPhone range – Apple doesn’t want to muddy the waters of its standard and Pro ranges, after all.
Redesigned form factor
Our best look at the iPhone 14 comes courtesy of notorious Apple leaker Jon Prosser, who has released a swathe of renders – and an entire YouTube video – outlining the iPhone 14 range. Prosser claims to have seen images of a prototype of the iPhone 14 Pro Max and worked with render artist Ian Zelbo to create the images, which seem to showcase an updated design.
Per Prosser and the renders, the iPhone 14 range could ditch the camera bump and offer a flush trio of cameras on the rear, made possible by increasing the overall thickness of the smartphone range.
That brings the design close to a merger between the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 4 – a comparison made stronger by the inclusion of circular volume controls, something not seen on the range since the iPhone 4 era.
It’s also the first iPhone in some time to have glass sit on top of the antenna bands, rather than have them protrude from the sides of the phone.
That chassis, according to Prosser, will be made from titanium – something we’d previously heard from analysts at JP Morgan Chase.
Though a variety of colours are depicted in the renders, those were chosen by Prosser and his team to help showcase the design. He does insist that the photos he saw were of a gold iPhone 14 Pro Max, but suggests that the shade may change by the time production comes along later this year.
It doesn’t look like it’ll be port-less either, as Prosser’s renders all include a Lightning port – we might have to wait for the iPhone 15 for that one!
Of course, we’re still months from a potential release, so even if Prosser’s information is accurate – and he has been on the money with some design predictions recently – plans could change dramatically in the next nine months, so take it with a big ol’ grain of salt.
No more Face ID notch
Back in March 2021, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo released predictions not only for the iPhone 13, but the iPhone 14 – though it was referred to as the 2022 iPhone, not specifically the 14.
In the note to investors, the analyst suggested that certain models of iPhone 14 could ditch the notch that houses the Face ID smarts. It has been present on every iPhone since the iPhone X, and although Apple shrank the unit by 20% on the iPhone 13, it’s apparently not done just yet.
According to Kuo, the Pro models will instead offer a “punch-hole” cutout for the front-facing camera while still keeping full Face ID functionality, offering an almost full-screen viewing experience. The analyst then doubled down on the claim in late September 2021, again suggesting that the Pro models will ditch the notch for a holepunch camera.
That was later backed up by notorious leaker Jon Prosser, who showcased a number of renders of what’s claimed to be the “iPhone 14 Pro Max” just days before the iPhone 13 is set to be revealed, depicting a centrally placed holepunch cutout.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also seems to think that Apple will ditch the notch for a hole punch camera in 2022, with Gurman suggesting a ‘complete redesign’ is on the way, and The Elec’s unnamed industry sources also point towards a holepunch.
But while you might assume it’s a circular hole punch, one leaker suggests otherwise. Leaker @dylandkt suggests it’ll instead be “pill shaped”, and while he doesn’t go into any more detail, it sounds like it’ll be close to a dual-front facing camera setup like that of the Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus.
Without mention of a second camera, the extra space will likely be used for Face ID smarts which are said to be unaffected by the move away from the notch.
But what about a combination of the two? That’s what display analyst Ross Young believes. Taking to Twitter, the analyst – with a 100% track record – predicts a combination of a circular hole punch and a pill-shaped cutout on the front of the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max. The leaker even showcased an image in the tweet, although it’s an inverse view – the pill-shaped cutout is allegedly on the left, with the circular holepunch on the right.
We now believe Apple will have a hole + pill design on the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max models. The smaller hole will not be invisible…The two hole concept will be unique to Apple, like the notch, not similar to all the pill models from Huawei…Let’s see those new renders pic.twitter.com/Udt8cTKzPZ
— Ross Young (@DSCCRoss) January 12, 2022
Young also claims (in a now-deleted tweet) that the hole is said to house the Face ID dot projector while the pill cutout will house the front-facing camera and Face ID’s infrared camera at a minimum.
Twitter leaker @MauriQHD has a slightly different take though; the leaker instead suggests that there will be no notch or holepunch camera, but instead slightly thicker bezels on all four sides that’ll completely house the front-facing camera and Face ID technology.
He also disagrees with Prosser’s suggestion that the iPhone 14 will feature a flush camera module, claiming that it isn’t flush in any current prototypes. Let the war of the leakers begin!
ProMotion is still a Pro exclusive
One of the key new features of the iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max is the 120Hz ProMotion display, offering buttery smooth animations compared to the 60Hz display of the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Mini.
While some might’ve hoped that the upgraded tech would transition to the rest of the line with the iPhone 14 – like with the Sensor-Shift OIS that was exclusive to the iPhone 12 Pro Max before the iPhone 13 range – a report from The Elec suggests differently.
Citing unnamed supply chain sources, the South Korean outlet suggests that the 120Hz LTPO (Low Temperature Polycrystalline Oxide) OLED panels will be exclusive to the Pro models, while the standard models will use the same 60Hz LTPS (Low Temperature Polycrystalline Silicon) OLED panels as the 13 range.
As noted earlier, The Elec believes that the new iPhone 14 Max could buck the trend and offer 120Hz without the Pro moniker, but we’d take that with a rather large pinch of salt.
Camera improvements
Camera improvements are almost a given when it comes to the yearly iPhone update, but the iPhone 14 Pro range is said to house something special; a new 1/1.3in 48Mp CMOS image sensor for the main wide-angle lens. What’s more impressive is that the new sensor could offer hybrid operating modes to improve pixel size and light-gathering capabilities.
Kuo believes that “the new 2H22 iPhone may support 48MP output and 12MP (four cells merge output mode) output simultaneously”. Merging pixels to improve quality – also known as pixel binning – isn’t a new concept for Android users, but it’ll be a first for the iPhone.
That’s not all either. Kuo claims that “With 12MP output, the CIS pixel size of the new 2H22 iPhone increases to about 2.5um, which is significantly larger than the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13, and larger than existing Android phones, and close to the DSC level.” For reference, the iPhone 13 pixels measure in at 1.7um, while the Pro line cranks that up to 1.9um.
Along with improved image quality, Kuo believes that it’ll also enable 8K video capture – a massive jump over 4K offered right now, though he doesn’t detail potential framerates.
Kuo reiterated the claim in late September, while also suggesting the changes would be exclusive to the “two high-end models”.
The idea of a 48Mp snapper with 8K video capabilities has also been backed up by analysts at Haitong International Securities, and again more recently by analysts at TrendForce, lending more credence to the claim.
4nm chipset
Apple’s A15 Bionic at the heart of the iPhone 13 runs on an improved 5nm process, offering improvements to efficiency and power compared to the 5nm A14 Bionic – but changes aren’t that dramatic compared to the A14 Bionic.
That’s set to change with the iPhone 14, however, according to a TrendForce analyst forecast.
The forecast, which came out in late 2020, claims that Apple’s 2022 iPhone range will be powered by a 4nm processor manufactured by TSMC, likely dubbed the A16 Bionic.
Switching to a narrower structure width will allow for more noticeable improvements to performance and efficiency, which should also have a knock-on effect on battery life – all welcome upgrades to the iPhone experience.
This is seemingly confirmed by a report from The Information, citing engineers familiar with the matter. The report suggests that TSMC isn’t quite ready to ship even smaller 3nm chipsets with the iPhone 14, although it is still expected to begin ahead of its competitors.
What are you most looking forward to with the iPhone 14? Let us know on Twitter.