Friday Buying Guide: Apple iPhone 14 series is here, should you upgrade or get iPhone 13 instead?

The iPhone 14 is here, but is it worth the upgrade? Or should you stick with the iPhone 13 if you were planning to buy a new iPhone? We decode in our weekly Friday Buying Guide.

Apple iPhone 14 | iPhone 14 Plus | iPhone 14 Plus price in India

The Apple iPhone 14 Plus is seen after the launch event. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan/Indian Express)

7 min readNew DelhiSep 12, 2022 11:45 AM IST First published on: Sep 9, 2022 at 04:43 PM IST

The iPhone 14 is here and there is one big question that many potential buyers probably have in their minds. Is it worth an upgrade? In this week’s Friday Buying Guide, we are taking a look at who should consider the iPhone 14 upgrade and what has changed compared to iPhone 13. Yes, we are focusing on a particular smartphone this week, instead of other consumer electronics. But considering this is a question that many users might have, we’ve decided to tackle it this week. Let’s take a quick look at the iPhone lineup in India right now, what the prices are and what has changed in the specifications lineup.

Apple iPhone 14, iPhone 13, iPhone 12: India prices, the entire lineup

The iPhone 14 starts at Rs 79,900. This is the same starting price as last year’s Apple iPhone 13. The iPhone 14 Plus starts at Rs 89,900, which is not surprising given this has a bigger 6.7-inch OLED display and a bigger battery as well. However, the rest of the specifications are the same for the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus.

The iPhone 14’s 256GB option costs Rs 89,900, while the 512GB costs cost Rs 109,900. The iPhone 14 Plus costs Rs 99,900 for the 256GB option and Rs 1,19,900 for the 512GB one. In comparison, the iPhone 13 now starts at Rs 69,900 for the base 128GB version. The iPhone 12 is also listed on the Apple website for a price of Rs 59,900.

Of course, the older iPhones are retailing at a slightly lower price on websites like Flipkart, Amazon, Croma, Vijay Sales and others. Plus with the sale season around the corner, the older iPhones will come with more discounts, cashback offers and exchange offers, which could bring the price down further.

Who should upgrade to a new iPhone this year?

If you have an iPhone 13, you can skip an upgrade this year, unless you wish to switch to the Pro series. But if you are an iPhone user still on the iPhone X, XS or perhaps an even older generation, it is time to upgrade. While Apple is bringing the iOS 16 upgrade to iPhone 8 and above, many of the features are limited to the iPhone XS and above. The signal is that each software update will bring lesser features for the older iPhones. So if you’ve been holding out against an upgrade this might be the year to consider.

Apple iPhone 13 in Pink colour is seen in this file photo. (Image: Express photo)

Someone with an iPhone 11 or the iPhone SE 2 can also consider an upgrade. The iPhone 11 launched three years back and will be a four-year-old device by 2023. The iPhone SE 2 launched in 2020 is nearly two years old already. Given Apple’s cashback schemes and exchange offers, it is possible to get deep discounts on a newer iPhone, especially if you are trading in an older iPhone as well.

Apple iPhone 14 or iPhone 13: Specifications, what has changed?

The iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 both have the same display. This is a 6.1-inch OLED screen with a notch on top, 2532 x 1170-pixel resolution at 460 PPI and 1200 nits of maximum brightness. The dimensions are slightly different with the iPhone 14 having 7.80mm depth while the iPhone 13 has 7.65 mm depth. The iPhone 14, however, is slightly lighter at 172 grams vs 174 on the iPhone 13.

But iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 run the same A15 Bionic processor, so the performance difference will not be noticeable. Except, this time, the iPhone 14 has a 5-core GPU compared to the 4-core one on the iPhone 13. Still, this does not mean a noticeable difference for most users.

On the battery front, it also looks like the two are evenly matched, though the iPhone 14 appears to be just slightly ahead. The iPhone 14 Plus, of course, has a bigger battery life, of course, with 26 hours of video playback compared to the 20 hours on its smaller counterpart. Apple does not confirm the battery size. While the iPhone 14 now supports Bluetooth 5.3, iPhone 13 is on 5.0. The iPhone 14 series in the US also does not come with any physical SIM slots and relies only on the eSIM. The India units will come with a SIM slot.

The major differences are on the camera front between the two series. While on paper, the iPhone 14 series and iPhone 13 have a similar 12MP wide-angle with 12MP ultra-wide angle camera and a 12MP TrueDepth front camera, Apple has made some changes. The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus’ main camera sport a larger f/1.5 aperture (which should mean more light and better photos) and has a larger 1.9 µm pixels size. The front camera of the iPhone 14– which remains 12MP– also gets a better aperture at f/1.9 over f/2.2 on the iPhone 13. The front camera gets autofocus as well.

Apple’s iPhone 14 series is seen at the Steve Jobs Theatre after launch. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan/Indian Express)

Apple is also bringing what it calls a dedicated ‘Photonic Engine’ to the iPhone 14 series throughout, including the Pro variants. This is supposed to be a new form of computational photography aimed at enhancing low-light performance on iPhone photos. Apple is applying software, driven by machine learning and other advancements to make sure low-light photos are a lot better on the main, ultra-wide and front cameras. The feature is not a part of the iPhone 13 series.

There’s also a new Action mode to let users shoot “smooth-looking video that adjusts to significant shakes, motion, and vibrations,” even when the user might be moving a lot. Further, the Cinematic mode on the iPhone 14 now supports 4K at 30 fps and 4K at 24 fps. Apple also claims to have improved the True Tone flash on the iPhone 14.

Apple iPhone 14 or iPhone 13 or iPhone 14 Plus: So which one to pick?

This is a tricky one to answer, given that both the iPhone 14 and 13 have similar features. If you were hoping to get an iPhone at the Rs 60,000 odd price mark, the iPhone 13 is the easy choice to make. Its overall performance, camera and battery life are still the best in the list of premium phones. Plus during the sale season, the older iPhone 13 will get better deals, cashback offers, etc, and with an exchange, the final price could be lower. It might be possible to get this for under Rs 60,000 depending on when you buy it and what deal you are able to claim.

But if you’re one who is upgrading to an iPhone after a gap of a few years and budget is not such a rigid issue, then the iPhone 14 Plus make more sense. The iPhone 14 Plus, in fact, is an excellent choice for someone trading in an older iPhone 12 or iPhone 11 because you could get a good exchange price and get some discount on the price. The iPhone 14 Plus offers a bigger screen and battery life as well.

The iPhone 14 is for someone who doesn’t want the bigger display and instead prefers a more compact form factor. More importantly, if you don’t wish to Rs 90,000 for a new phone and want the latest Apple device, then the iPhone 14 will have to be your pick.