Better believe it! Six months after the launch of the iPhone 14, Apple’s 2022 flagship is clearly the worst iPhone upgrade ever. But Cupertino’s apology is now loading.
It’s now been six months since the launch of the iPhone 14 (and iPhone 14 Plus), which means it’s time to check how Apple’s most affordable flagship phones are ageing. Furthermore, the six-month mark in a phone’s lifecycle is crucial for users who are on the fence about buying the latest iPhone or waiting another six months for the new one.
With that being said, this story isn’t really meant to be an iPhone 14 review, or the ultimate iPhone buying guide, but one where I get to talk about the iPhone 14 in the context of all other iPhone upgrades in history. In other words, despite being a great device when judged in isolation, the iPhone 14 might not be the most impressive new iPhone for those looking to upgrade from an older model.
In fact, not to spoil the verdict but let’s just say that the iPhone 14 is on the bottom of my list when it comes to iPhone upgrades throughout the years. Oh, of course, there’s also the iPhone 14’s bigger brother, the iPhone 14 Plus, which might actually be the most ignored iPhone in history…
Despite looking exactly the same as the iPhone X, the iPhone XS brought massive upgrades to the iPhone camera processing. Just look at the difference in this photo courtesy of MactechNews.
If we don’t count different versions of the same release, and the SE (Special Edition) iPhone, there are exactly 14 different iPhone flagships in history — despite all the “S” models, the upcoming iPhone (15) is indeed going to be the 15th version of the legendary device.
So, for nearly 15 years of making 15 different flagship iPhones, Apple’s learned the importance of “slow innovation”, which might as well be Cupertino’s actual motto — although “Think Different” also holds up pretty well for the company about to remove all the buttons from its phone.
Hence, there have been plenty of relatively small (at least on the surface) upgrades throughout the years…
But with that in mind, the only iPhone upgrade that comes to mind when I try to think of a potential iPhone 14 competitor for “the smallest iPhone upgrade ever” might be the iPhone XS. Being an “S” model, it’s already clear that the iPhone XS will look exactly the same as its predecessor (the iPhone X), but it’s on the inside what matters.
