The brand new iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max have just been launched and Gadgets 360 is on display at Apple Park in Cupertino. We can finally put all the rumors and speculation to rest, which is interesting because the equipment I have is not what I expected – or maybe terrible. There’s more to talk about beyond the obvious new “dynamic island” front camera design. If you’ve always loved having the latest and greatest iPhone, or if you’ve been waiting a while to upgrade, read on.
iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max Price in India
Thanks to the strong US dollar, both of Apple’s new Pro phones are more expensive than their predecessors in India even though the prices in the US have not changed. iPhone 14 Pro starts at Rs. 1,29,900 for 128GB, Rs. 1,39,900 for 256GB, Rs. 1,59,900 for 512GB and Rs. 1,79,900 for the 1TB option. The larger iPhone 14 Pro Max is priced at Rs. 10,000 more at each level, so prices range from Rs. 1,39,900, Rs. 1,49,900, Rs. 1,69,900, and Rs. 1,89,900 respectively. It is still unclear why the gap between iPhone and iPhone Pro prices in India is higher than in other countries – Apple should use the same multiplier in their products, but it doesn’t.
The iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max (review) have officially been discontinued but should continue to be available from third-party retailers for some time, hopefully at discounted prices.
The new 48-megapixel main camera is said to allow for more flexibility and better low-light shots.
iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max “Dynamic Island”
So, all the leaks and rumors were accurate, but it turns out that what we knew before this launch was only a small part of the whole story. It’s a fantastic reminder that we shouldn’t all get on the hype (or hate) train based on leaks alone, and an example of how technology can still surprise and delight us. I think it’s great that Apple knows it can still surprise people, and as the spokesperson said during the keynote, it’s Apple’s unique dedication to designing hardware and software together that makes things like this possible.
Several leaks and renders based on technical specifications, over a period of several months, all agree that Apple has settled on a weird pill-and-hole camera cutout design. Even though it looks downright awkward and distracting, it wasn’t hard to imagine Apple going with it—it’s the company that brought us the notch idea, tried and failed. The touch bar catches on, and once you’ve convinced yourself that a A buttonless and screenless iPod It was a good idea.
The latest leaks were somewhat on the right track before this was revealed. While there is space between the bullet and the hole, it won’t be visible to users because the hole is actually enlarged using software, so you’ll get used to seeing a black patch. It is integrated into UI elements for notifications and status indicators and is interactive. Apple has worked on a set of fluid animations and transitions that all turn these distractions into assets.
I’m glad that full-screen video won’t play around the two holes – I still don’t like having one – and I’m really curious to see how Apple uses its hardware and software expertise together to make this a useful UI element. . The active display area expands into a notification popup when needed and will otherwise show things like a small version of the album artwork, charging or payment indicators, etc. while music is playing. Apps can use it to show ongoing activity status, such as your next turn-by-turn direction, running sports scores, or updates about the status of a delivery. In fact you can see two activities at once – the secondary one appears in a little circular bubble to the right of the “island”. This is where I’m sure Apple is just trolling leakers – it looks a lot like a leaked “pill and hole” arrangement.
Overall, it’s definitely an improvement over the notch and makes the premium iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max feel very fresh. It’s still distracting when watching a full-screen video but that’s how we live now. In my brief experience, it seems that while the cameras still interfere with the display area, no part of the island is a dead zone for touch, so swipes work no matter where your finger moves on the island.
The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max can be hard to tell apart from their predecessors at a glance.
iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max Design
This year, the new signature color is deep purple and it’s very subtle. The color is dark and desaturated so it actually looks a bit grayish. If the past two years are any indication, a new color option could be introduced mid-cycle, early next year. Other options are Space Black, Silver and Gold. The frames of both the phones are still made of polished stainless steel. iPhone 14 Pro weighs 206g while iPhone 14 Pro Max weighs 240g.
The iPhone 12 Pro series hasn’t changed much in terms of size and proportions since its launch. You still have a flat back and a frame that runs on all four sides – the MagSafe accessory ecosystem restricts Apple a bit in this regard. The rear-facing camera module has grown again so unfortunately the case won’t fit last year’s phone. If you’re in the US, you’ll notice a complete lack of SIM trays – a goal Apple has been working towards for some time, but it has its drawbacks and India has been spared for now.
There’s still a Lightning port on the bottom – rumors now suggest that next year will be the year Apple finally moves to USB Type-C. This may be required by law in many countries but it also makes a lot of sense.
The new display, battery, and SoC technologies all work together to enable Dynamic Island and Always-On modes
iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max display and specifications
The Dynamic Island Pro is exclusive to iPhones because of the display technology that Apple can leverage at these prices. The Super Retina XDR display is now slightly taller and has narrower borders. Apple claims a whopping 1600nits of peak brightness for HDR, and these panels are rated to hit 2000nits outdoors. The refresh rate can go down to 1Hz to save power.
The always-on display is a first for iPhones and is a huge change. In typical Apple fashion, it has a very specific visual style to its implementation. Instead of the simple text or simple graphics on a black background you’ve come to expect on Android phones, the new iOS 16 Always On Display is your lockscreen, but slower. Apple uses machine learning to reduce the brightness of your wallpaper image but preserve detail. Your lockscreen widgets are always visible.
Apple claims 29 hours of battery life with the iPhone 14 Pro Max and 23 hours with the iPhone 14 Pro. There is a new A16 Bionic SoC with improvements across the board. It has 16 billion transistors and uses a 4nm manufacturing process. Apple claims industry-leading performance and power efficiency with its six CPU cores, five GPU cores, 16 neural engine cores and various other subsystems.
Deep purple is the new signature color for this launch
iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max cameras
Of course there’s also a brand new camera setup, with a 48-megapixel camera and quad-pixel binning for the first time. Apple claims the sensor is 65 percent larger than the one in the iPhone 13 Pro. In most cases, the camera will be optimized for light capture, with four pixels grouped into one, resulting in a 12-megapixel photo. Low-light quality is said to be 2X better, and subjects can stay in sharp focus even with blurry motion behind them. On the other hand, you can optimize for details using individual pixels, which lends itself to more creative options for shooting and editing. There’s also a new 2X zoom option that effectively crops the center of a 48-megapixel shot to give you a 12-megapixel result with high detail. You can also shoot ProRAW 48-megapixel photos. Action Mode is a new video feature that also crops video to compensate for motion, effectively stabilizing video like a gimbal.
Then there’s a new 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera sensor with more focus pixels for even sharper macro and low-light shots. The front camera gets autofocus for the first time, and f/1.9 aperture for better low-light shots. The rear flash is now optimized with nine LEDs and intelligent pattern and intensity adjustment. We’ll see how it all works when we review all the new iPhones.
Other new features include crash detection and satellite-based emergency messages (now only in the US and Canada). The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will ship with iOS 16 which will also introduce a bunch of new capabilities.
It seems that the new Pro iPhones are fresh enough to prompt people to upgrade, and the gap between these phones and their non-Pro counterparts is the biggest ever. However, the prices will put them out of reach for many buyers. To decide whether you should take the plunge, check out the full Gadgets 360 review, coming soon.
Disclosure: Apple sponsored the reporter’s flight and hotel stay for the launch event in Cupertino.
