The iPhone 14 will get a release date later on this year, likely in and around September 2022. But if you already have an iPhone, you’re probably best skipping it and waiting for the iPhone 15 – here’s why…

When it comes to reliability and overall support, there is no better phone on the market than Apple’s iPhone. You can buy an iPhone today and run it without a hitch for the next seven to eight years, and during this time you will get FULL support from Apple in the form of timely iOS updates, ensuring your phone is secure and has all the latest tweaks and features.

With an Android phone, you’ll get three years of support at best. And only if you go with OnePlus, Google, or Samsung. This is why many – including myself – moved from Android to iPhone.

But if you’ve already moved to Apple and are currently running an iPhone 13, should you be considering an upgrade later this year when the iPhone 14 lands? I’d argue, no – updating from the iPhone 13 to the iPhone 14 will be largely pointless. Here’s why…

Why ALL iPhone 13 Users Should Skip iPhone 14

The main reason why no current iPhone 13 users should upgrade to the iPhone 14 is that the iPhone 14 doesn’t appear to be that much of an update on what came before – it’s looking increasingly incremental. There will be some slight design changes on the Pro models, relating to FACE ID and the notch, but that is literally about it.

iPhone 14 Chipset

With things like the iPhone 14’s CPU, things are even muddier. Plenty of sources claim that Apple will re-use its A15 chipset, the same one that runs inside the iPhone 13, inside the base model iPhone 14 handsets, so the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Max. If this is true, there’ll be very little difference with respect to performance between the two generations.

According to sources, only Apple’s iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will get the company’s new A16 chipset. If this does turn out to be the case, it’ll be the first time that Apple has done something like this. Again, it’s all conjecture at this point but there are some very reliable sources behind this news. I’m hoping it turns out to be bunk.

iPhone 14 Camera

There will be tweaks to the camera module, of course, and this will be present on all models, especially the Pro models, but, again, the difference between the standard iPhone 13 model and the standard iPhone 14 model will not be too dramatic – it certainly won’t warrant an upgrade after just 12 months of owning the 13.

Apple is said to be sourcing a new front-facing camera module from LG Innotek that’ll bring “high-end” features like autofocus to the iPhone’s selfie camera. Similarly, Ming Chi Kuo claims the iPhone 14 will feature a superior, wider f/1.9 aperture (vs f/2.2 on the iPhone 13). Again, these types of upgrades, while certainly welcome, aren’t really anything to get too excited about. Unless you are the type of person that annoys the poop outta your friends by posting a million pictures of your face every single day on Instagram.

The main cameras on the Pro models will get quite a significant update, however, so if you’re running a standard iPhone 13 and fancy getting in on some Pro action, a switch to the iPhone 14 Pro or iPhone 14 Pro Max might be worthwhile.

In terms of pixel size, the iPhone 12, iPhone 13, and new 2H22 iPhone are about 1.7um, 2um, and 1.25um, respectively. We believe that the new 2H22 iPhone may support direct 48MP output and 12MP (four cells merge output mode) output simultaneously. 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. We believe that the camera quality of the new 2H22 iPhone will elevate mobile phone camera photography to a new level.
Ming Chi Kuo

iPhone 14 Battery Life

Up until now, Apple has used Qualcomm modems for its iPhone’s 5G connectivity. But all that will change with the iPhone 14. According to sources, Apple will release its own 5G modem, made by TSMC, inside the iPhone 14. And this new Apple-made modem will bring with it lots of power savings which, in turn, will improve the iPhone 14’s battery life.

If you have an iPhone 12, you’ll know that 5G is both a blessing and a curse when it comes to battery life. With the iPhone 13, Apple remedied this problem by adding larger batteries. The iPhone 13’s battery performance – in my experience – is great; it lasts all day, even with heavy usage, and this is the case with all models, save for the shockingly bad iPhone 13 Mini (which won’t be returning this year anyway).

How much of an improvement will we see with the iPhone 14’s battery life – 10%, 20%, 30%? No one knows. But there WILL be an improvement, it is now just a case of sitting back and waiting to find out. Still, I wouldn’t say this would be a good reason to upgrade your iPhone 13 for an iPhone 14. As I said above: the iPhone 13’s battery life is great, and while having 10% better battery life would obviously be great, it isn’t something that would force me out the door to upgrade my phone.

In addition to power-saving benefits, Apple’s new modem is said to support WiFi 6E as well. Not heard of WiFi 6E? All it does is massively improve the fidelity and speed of your wireless connection, so, yeah, it is kind of cool, especially since most peoples’ iPhones spend most of their lives connected to WiFi networks.

Why You Should Wait For iPhone 15, If You Have iPhone 13

Given all that we’ve just discussed, I think it is fairly safe to say that the vast majority of iPhone 13 users do not need to upgrade to the iPhone 14 this year.

Apple’s iPhone 13 will more than match the iPhone 14 where it counts. Plus, all the big changes and improvements, as always, will be reserved for the Pro models.

Fast forward to 2023, however, and the case for upgrading is very strong. The iPhone 15 will likely have a completely new design, a fully notch-less front, and big, sweeping updates to both the camera and the CPU inside the base models.

Apple also seems to work on a two to three-year cycle anyway, whereby it knows the VAST majority of its users run their phones for two to three years before upgrading to a new model.

This is why, more often than not, it does incremental updates. But what’s incremental to one user, an iPhone 13 user, for instance, might not seem incremental to another, say an iPhone 12 or iPhone 11 user. For this reason, the ONLY people that should be looking at the iPhone 14 this year are those that are running older models like the iPhone 11, iPhone 12, and iPhone XS.

iPhone 13 users will be better off holding steady for another 12 months, and then upgrading to the iPhone 15 once it gets a release date during late-2023.