A round up of the rumours surrounding the 2022 iPhone Pro models, expected to be called the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.
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(Pocket-lint) — The annual refresh of the iPhone is one of the biggest events in tech: it’s the phone that many aspire to own, one that sets trends and the phone that all others are looking to better.
While leaks and rumours are nothing new to the world of tech, getting full information about new Apple devices is fairly rare. They don’t tend to leak as comprehensively as a Samsung or Google phone — but we’re gathering up everything we hear about the 2022 iPhone Pro models right here.
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This is everything we’ve heard so far about the iPhone 14 Pro models. If you’re wondering about the standard iPhone 14 models then we have a separate feature for them.Apple iPhone 14 release date and price
To launch on 7 September 2022
From $999/£949?
Apple has confirmed that its annual iPhone launch event will take place on 7 September 2022. We fully expect the iPhone 14 Pro models to be part of that presentation.
In terms of price, we’d expect the iPhone 14 Pro models to start around the same ballpark as the iPhone 13 Pro models. The starting price for the Pro models is £949/$999. There have been reports claiming they could be £100/$100 more expensive though, but with a higher storage. What will the iPhone 2022 be called?
iPhone 14
iPhone 14 Max/iPhone 14 Plus
iPhone 14 Pro
iPhone 14 Pro Max
The iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max launched in 2019, followed by the iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max in 2020 and the iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max in 2021.
It’s therefore likely that the next iPhones will be called the iPhone 14, though it’s been claimed there will be no iPhone mini this time, with an iPhone Max or iPhone 14 Plus instead. It therefore looks like the 2022 iPhone line up will be the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Max/iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.
That’s not a guarantee though, as Apple could opt for the iPhone 13s, or it could go for something completely different. We’d put our money on the iPhone 14 for now though.Design
All-new design
Punch hole camera?
Flush rear
The Apple iPhone 13 Pro models followed the same design as the iPhone 12 Pro models, featuring flat edges and a design closer in line with the iPhone 4 and 5 compared to the rounded edges we had gotten used to since the iPhone 6.
Rumours suggest the iPhone 14 Pro models could change things up though, with talk of a move to a punch hole front camera. It’s said the Pro models could see some sort of pill-shaped cutout that would house the front camera and Face ID beneath the display. This idea has been further supported by leaked front panels showing this new design. There’s also been the suggesting that it will be a wide pill shape when on.
Other claims say the protruding rear camera may end up flush with the back of the phone in the next iPhone, though a video of some dummy models doesn’t quite support flush, even if the protrusion does seem to be reduced slightly.
@AR72014
We saw a reduced notch at the top of the iPhone 13 Pro models compared to previous Face ID phones, and a patent was previously filed for a notch-less phone, but we suppose we will have to wait and see if this becomes a reality.
In terms of finishes, we’d expect the Pro models to continue to be more premium than the standard models, and there have been rumours to suggest they could adopt scratch-resistant titanium. There’s also the suggestion that titanium was tested but the result will be the same materials as the iPhone 13 Pro models, though with a purple colour option instead of Sierra Blue. Displays
All OLED
120Hz refresh rate
Different sizes
All 2022 iPhones will have likely have an OLED display, like the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 models offer. It’s also likely the iPhone 14 Pro models will have an adaptive refresh rate between 10Hz and 120Hz, like the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max, though maybe the ProMotion technology will filter down to the standard models too — that’s the rumour anyway. There’s also talk of a 1Hz bottom rate for the Pro models too.
Other rumours suggest the iPhone 14 Pro models will feature an Always On Display, allowing you to see some information — likely that of the iOS 16 Home Screen widgets — on a grayscale without unlocking your phone.
In terms of screen sizes, the iPhone 13 Pro has a 6.1-inch display and the iPhone 13 Pro Max has a 6.7-inch display. It is expected that the iPhone 14 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro Max will offer the same. It’s been suggested the bezels around the display will be thinner though.
Some speculation previously suggested in-display fingerprint sensors could work alongside Face ID, which is a plausible suggestion. There’s also talk that the iPhone 14 Pro models could see taller displays in order to accommodate that pill-shaped cut out we mentioned.Cameras
Dual camera on standard models
Triple camera on Pro models
Front camera upgrade
The Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max both have a triple rear camera, consisting of a main wide sensor, ultra wide sensor and a telephoto sensor, and it is expected this setup will continue for 2022.
There have been a couple of rumours claiming the iPhone 14 Pro models would feature a wide angle camera with an 1/1.3-inch 48MP CMOS image sensor and support 8K video recording but nothing is confirmed as yet. Rumours have also claimed the front camera of both the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max will see an upgrade to include autofocus and a wider aperture of f/1.9.
We expect the iPhone 14 Pro models to continue to offer an extra lens and extra features, like Macro and ProRES, over the iPhone 14 standard models. At the moment, it is unclear what might change for 2022 but improvements over the 2021 models are likely.Hardware and software
5G
A15/A16 chip
iOS 16
With Apple adopting 5G with all the iPhone 12 models and iPhone 13 models, it’s pretty much guaranteed all the iPhone 14 models will be 5G compatible. It’s also claimed the iPhone 14 models may adopt satellite connectivity.
It’s also likely the iPhone 14 Pro models will run on the A16 Bionic chip, assuming Apple continues with its naming patterns in terms of chipsets. The iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max had an extra core for their GPU, so this could be case again for the iPhone 14 Pro models, helping differentiate them from the standard models.
There have been a couple of rumours to suggest the standard iPhone 14 models will stick to the A15 chip from the iPhone 13 models though, while the iPhone 14 Pro models move to the A16 chip, which would be a bigger differentiation than the iPhone 13 models featured.
The next major software build will be iOS 16, which we heard more about in June 2022 — when Apple held its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC). There are a number of features to look forward to, including a redesigned Lock Screen.
In terms of storage, with the iPhone 13 Pro models coming in 128GB, 256GB, 512GB and 1TB options, we’d expect the same from the iPhone 14 Pro models, though it has been said the Pro models might start at 256GB. It has also been said all models will have 6GB of RAM.
When it comes to battery, it’s been said the iPhone 14 Pro will have a 3200mAh battery and the iPhone 14 Pro Max a 4323mAh battery, though this is unconfirmed and met with some skepticism.
