The iPhone 14 will launch on September 7 with a new design, upgraded specs, and new features. Here’s when the iPhone 14 will be released and what you can expect.
Apple’s yearly iPhone launch is the biggest date in the company’s calendar, and expectations are high for the iPhone 14 in the fall of 2022.
In this article we round up the latest leaks and rumors concerning Apple’s next flagship iPhone launch, including the iPhone 14’s release date, tech specs, design changes, new features, pricing and more. The latest news is that all iPhone 14 models are expected to get an upgraded front camera with autofocus and an f/1.9 aperture, while a controversial hole + pill design is set to replace the notch on the Pro models and the handset could gain an always-on display. Pro models will further differentiate themselves with a 48-megapixel rear camera and A16 processor.
While we wait for the new phones to arrive, you can pick up a bargain on the current range with our roundup of the best iPhone deals.
The iPhone 14 will almost certainly launch at Apple’s Far Out event on September 7.
We expect that following the announcement Apple the iPhone 14 series will go up for pre-sale on Friday, September 9.
The phones are then likely to ship from Friday, September 16. However, it is possible that Apple will delay the release of the Pro handsets, as has happened in the past.
New iPhone names & sizes: Plus, Pro and Max
It will come as no surprise that the new iPhone will be called the iPhone 14, but the range of names does look set to change.
Reports suggest that there will be changes to the usual line up. All the signs suggest that the 5.4-inch iPhone mini line is going to be discontinued: Ming-Chi Kuo, for example, has predicted that Apple will kill off the mini to introduce the Max in 2022.
Not everyone will be glad to see the back of the mini form factor, as we explain in our article about why we mourn the iPhone mini. It’s likely that some customers will choose not to upgrade this year because of the lack of a mini model; Jason Snell is one of them. But after reportedly disappointing sales of the 12 mini and 13 mini, Apple must have calculated that their numbers will be sufficiently small that it makes sense to change to the new size strategy.
In place of the discontinued iPhone mini will be a new larger version of the standard iPhone 14, according to reports. This means we’ll still get four models, but instead of these being split into one small, two medium and one large, it will be two medium and two large.
In other words, this lineup:
will be replaced by this one:
Leaked images of case molds–used to design iPhone cases of the correct dimensions–illustrate these long-rumored size changes. Knowledgable Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman supports this theory, adding that Apple “will have to get more dramatic with [2022]’s overhaul, especially as competition mounts.”
While most pundits have been united in their expectation that a larger version of the standard iPhone 14 will launch, there has been some uncertainty about what it will be called. Early on the reports referred to this new model as an iPhone 14 Max, but a report in August 2022 suggested the–more likely we think–name iPhone 14 Plus. This will be the first Plus handset from Apple in five years (the iPhone 8 Plus launched in 2017). Using the Plus name does make more sense and should lead to less confusion (with Max usually beating Pro in Apple’s naming conventions).
This new iPhone 14 Plus isn’t the only iPhone that will be bigger. A leak in August 2022 claimed that the iPhone 14 Pro is “thick” and the Pro Max feels “like a brick,” perhaps owing to the bigger camera system and in support of a larger battery.
In fact all the iPhones could get slightly bigger screens, thanks to slimmer bezels. Slimmer bezels around the screen mean the Pro iPhones will gain a fraction of an inch in diagonal measurement, according to the reliable display analyst Ross Young.
You read that right: the Pro Max model is gaining precisely one hundredth of an inch of diagonal screen size. Needless to say, these microscopic changes in screen dimension are unlikely to be proclaimed in Apple’s marketing materials, which will continue to round to the nearest tenth of an inch.
Phone 14 price: How much will the the new iPhones cost?
Over the years there hasn’t really been a huge difference in price between the different iPhone generations. The iPhone X cost $999 when it launched in 2017 and the iPhone 13 Pro costs the same $999 five years later. Similarly, the iPhone XS Max cost $1,099 when it arrived in 2018 and Apple hasn’t increased the price of that model either despite adding a bigger screen and extra camera. But this year, rumors say the iPhone 14 Pro models are going to jump by $100 across the board, meaning the Pro will start at $1,099 and the Pro Max at $1,199. We imagine that outside the US the prices will be even higher (following the launch of the MacBooks earlier in 2022 prices in the UK and other countries increased despite falling or not changing in the US).
In January 2022 LeaksApple Pro on Twitter reported that Apple “is currently considering” bumping the prices of the Pro iPhones by $100 apiece, pushing the iPhone 14 Pro to $1,099 and the iPhone 14 Pro Max to $1,199. The account cites increasing production costs and the need to provide more than a $100 difference between the 14 Max and the 14 Pro. A report in June also claimed Apple will up the price of the Pro models by $100 in 2022, with the iPhone 14 Pro could start at $1,099 and the Pro Max starting at $1,199. With the expected removal of the mini model, the low-end model will likely start at $799, while the iPhone 14 Max model will slide in at $899.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo estimates that iPhone ASP (that’s average sale price) is expected to rise by 15% in the iPhone 14 generation. The removal of the $700 “mini” variant, replaced by a $900+ “iPhone 14 Plus” model, would account for a large portion of this. It is also estimated that the Pro models, which cost more, could be big sellers this year, which raises the ASP.
However, at a time when people are tightening purse strings and anticipating recession this may mean that iPhone sales are a little more subdued in 2022-2023. Perhaps to combat this, Apple is said to be preparing to unveil an iPhone subscription service which will see it bundle new hardware with its other services such as Apple TV and iCloud.
While we’re on the subject of sales, there have been reports of Apple “cutting orders” for the iPhone 14, which some have taken as an indication of soft demand. But as the Macalope explains, that doesn’t make a lot of sense: the demand is anticipated to be as high as ever, but there seems to be supply-chain disruption. There might not be quite enough iPhone 14 handsets to go around when the launch is announced, but that’s nothing new for Apple.
As well as the starting price for the iPhone 14 being higher than the iPhone 13 mini was, it’s possible that Apple will reduce the line up of older models. The company currently sells the following handsets:
• iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max – to be replaced by 14 Pro and Pro Max
• iPhone 13 – to be replaced by 14 and 14 Plus
The iPhone 14 is said to use the same processor and not add any new features compared to the iPhone 13, so it is possible that the iPhone 13 will not remain in the line up.
Read our iPhone buying guide for help deciding which iPhone is right for you.
iPhone 14 design: What will the new iPhone look like?
What will the iPhone look like in 2022? We expect significant design changes, at least for the Pro models.
