Pro-Level Performace: iPhone 14 Pro is a Smartphone Lovers Dream
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Apple has had a big year, introducing the long-awaited AirPods Pro (2nd Gen) and even the Apple Watch Series 8. At the top of the list though, had to be the latest iPhone Pro.
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Apple’s iPhone line has always been amongst the top smartphones we’ve tested, and the latest iPhone 14 Pro is no different.
Packed with Apple’s A16 Bionic Chip, the Pro delivers blazing-fast performance, all-day battery life and camera features for professional-looking photos and videos.
I spent a few weeks with the new iPhone 14 Pro, and here’s what I thought.
iPhone 14 Pro
iPhone 14 Pro: Availability and Design
The iPhone 14 Pro (and Pro Max) are currently available to buy in four colors, including the latest deep purple and four storage options, running from 128 GB to 1TB.
The design itself is similar to the previous iPhone Pros, including an almost bezel-less screen and a durable textured matte glass back. The front has a hefty ceramic shield, which is designed to withstand the occasional bump or fall, although of course, I refrained from testing this out.
For legacy iPhone users, you’ll like that the design hasn’t changed much, as this means all the control buttons are still in the same place. You’ll still be using a lightning cable for charging too — sorry, no USB-C charging yet.
The only really noticeable difference in the design is the absence of a sim card slot. Apple has moved to eSIM, which essentially means you don’t need a physical sim in your phone to get it to work — saving you the hassle of transferring a sim card when you upgrade to the new Pro. I found setting up eSIM to be quite easy, good news for customers who are a little hesitant about trying it out.
As for water resistance, the iPhone Pro has an IP68 rating, meaning it can be submerged in water at a maximum depth of 6 meters for up to 30 minutes. Your iPhone will be able to withstand light spills as well, which gave me great peace of mind if I took my iPhone with me to the washroom or to the gym.
iPhone 14 Pro: Display
The Pro boasts a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED Display, with a 2556‑by‑1179-pixel resolution screen. If these stats don’t really make sense to you, all you need to know is that the iPhone 14 Pro delivers bright, clear and ultra-detailed content, whether you’re streaming, gaming or taking notes in a meeting.
The iPhone 14 Pro also features the first-ever Always On display on an iPhone, meaning you can keep an eye on your important notification at all times. The display is surprisingly smart too, automatically toggling off during sleep mode or if you’ve placed your phone far away from you — like. in your bag.
The other new feature is Apple’s Dynamic Island. Dynamic Island is a thin bar at the top of the iPhone’s screen that can help you quickly get to an app without having to do the usual ‘swipe up.’ I could get to Spotify with just a tap and Apple plans to add more functionality to the use of dynamic island — even for ride-sharing apps, saving you the trouble of constantly checking just how far your driver is.
iPhone 14 Pro: Performance
The iPhone 14 Pro packs Apple’s latest A16 Bionic Chip. I had no trouble multitasking between apps, playing games on Apple Arcade, or watching videos through Youtube.
If you want to get in the technicals, Geekbench scores place the iPhone Pro at the forefront of newer smartphones, even beating Samsungs S22 Plus. You won’t notice that much difference in performance between the 13 Pro and 14 Pro though, although you will get a slight bump in battery, with the 14 Pro now boasting 23 hours of battery life.
When I put it to the test, I found that I could spend an entire day, watching TikTok videos, texting, placing calls and keeping the always-on display on from sunrise to sunset. Of course, video playback and gaming will deplete your battery faster, but all in all I was pretty impressed with the iPhone’s battery.
Apple also introduced new safety features with the iPhone 14 series, namely the Emergency SOS via satellite. This game-changing feature allows you to contact emergency services even if you have no cellular network. Apple actually offers a demo so you can test this feature out for yourself.
iPhone 14 Pro: Camera Features
iPhone 14 Pro’s camera system is revolutionary and here’s why. The phone has a three-camera system on its rear, including a 48MP quad pixel sensor, a 12 MP Ultra Wide camera, and a 12MP Telephoto lens. The 48 MP lens can take 24mm photos, and includes the ability to shoot images in RAW format — incredibly helpful if you like to edit your photos in photoshop or any other photo editing app. To turn on raw though you’ll need to go to camera settings.
The 48 MP lens is pretty useful for low-light pictures too, thanks to its pixel-binning sensor. I also enjoyed the ultra-wide lens which offers a 120-degree field of view plus macro for closeups of images.
You can also get 15x zoom with the iPhone Pro. While that might not seem as noteworthy as the Pixel 7 Pro’s 30x zoom or Samsung’s 100x zoom, the pictures were surprisingly clear and will get the job done.
As for the video, you have action mode which keeps your image stable as you move and cinematic mode which subtly puts the focus back on the subject.
All in all, you’ll be very happy with the iPhone 14 Pro’s camera system, thanks to its true-to-life pictures and professional video-taking abilities.
iPhone 14 Pro: Verdict
iPhone 14 Pro is definitely a major upgrade on the last generation from the camera features to its satellite emergency-based SOS capabilities. It’s got an all-day battery life, an always-on display, and the new dynamic island, which makes accessing everyday apps and getting back to important phone calls easier.
For some people, shifting to an eSim might not be ideal, but the process is so seamless that it’s worth the change. Plus with Apple’s continued updates, I only expect the 14 Pro to get even more useful over time. If you’re looking to make the jump to Apple or are a seasoned iPhone user looking for the best, the iPhone 14 Pro is what you need.
iPhone 14 Pro
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