Apple has four new phones—the standard iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus, and the high-end iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. We got a chance to check them all out ahead of their release. Here’s what we think.
The wait for new iPhones is over. The rumors circulating over the last few months were all over the place: Would the iPhone 14 have a notchless screen and an always-on display? Does the star-filled “Far Out” invitation mean the satcom era of Apple technology is upon us? Did the iPhone mini get put out to pasture? OK, so most of those rumors were actually more or less true, but it was still cool seeing the four new iPhones in person at Apple’s launch event in Cupertino.
After the event concluded, it was pretty telling that the iPhone 14 Pro side of the hands-on demo table was almost impossible to get to—most of the cool new advances are happening on the Pro end, and that’s what most of the crowd was interested in. But not everyone is going to pick the pricier Pro lineup over the standard iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus, so we got our hands on all four models to give you our first impressions.
Notch No More
Dynamic Island isn’t a reality dating show, but the name given to the now-animated area where the iPhone once had a notch. To be clear, it’s only on the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max. In Apple’s introduction video, it looked like a game changer. In person, my first thoughts are: It’s cool, but pretty tiny (most of the time). Depending on the apps you have running in the background, the Island changes form—for most apps, it looks like you have to swipe up while you’re using the app for it to join the Island. The Dynamic Island replaces the notch on Pro models
What I like is how seamlessly various apps are integrated into this small space simultaneously—you can see anything from a timer to album art, and the color of the animated waveform when music is playing matches the color scheme of the album art, so the Island is truly dynamic in both color and shape. It’s also impressive how little you notice the front-facing camera. If you’re looking for it, you’ll see it, but your eye is more likely to pick up the Island’s shape-shifting blob than the camera.
What I don’t love—and I suspect Apple is less excited to show off—is the Island’s presence when watching video. The notch may be gone, but there’s still an Island blocking out full-screen playback.New Lock Screen and Always-On Display
The new lock screen feels dynamic in its own right. Long-pressing on the screen reveals an an impressive array of customizable options. There are now multiple ways to make your lock screen yours, and an extensive image gallery, which includes Suggested Photos from your own library and image banks with themes like Weather & Astronomy.
