Apple’s much-awaited iPhone 14 series was launched officially on Wednesday, with minor, yet most recognisable, tweaks to the Pro and Pro Max versions.

As rumoured widely before the official launch, Apple has ditched its mini version and started with the regular iPhone 14.

Apples has launched the phone in four models— the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

While iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro have smaller screens (6.1 inches and 6.7 inches), the iPhone 14 Plus and iPhone 14 Pro Max are the ones which have bigger screens.

Apple CEO Tim Cook has called the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max the “most innovative pro lineup yet.”

There is a massive hardware difference between the Pro and non-pro versions of the iPhone.

While iPhone 14 and 14 Pro come with last year’s Apple A15 Bionic SoCs, the Pro models are powered by the latest Apple Bionic A16 SoC.

The latest smartphones come with e-sim activation without Wi-Fi in the US. For the first time, the iPhone models in the US will not have a SIM tray.

But, among the most notable feature in all the models of iPhone is the satellite emergency communication technology that can be used to send SOS message over satellite.

The feature will start in US and Canada, and it will be free with iPhone 14 for two years.

iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus prices and specifications

Pricing for the iPhone 14 starts at $799 for 128GB version, just like iPhone 13, and will be available on September 16.

The iPhone 14 Plus, which also comes with 128GB base storage, starts at $899 and is available on October 7. Pre-orders for both models will open on September 9 in US.

In India, the iPhone 14 price in India is set at Rs. 79,900, while the iPhone 14 Plus will be starting at Rs. 89,900.

iPhone 14 features a flat-edge aerospace-grade aluminium frame, with Ceramic Shield material on the front, and IP68 dust and water resistance rating — just like the previous generation.

The phone sports a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display which is said to be better in terms of brightness and colour reproduction as compared to last year’s handset. Apple said it offers 1200nits peak brightness and support for Dolby Vision.

The features of iPhone 14 Plus are similar to the iPhone 14 except the bigger screen size and battery backup.

The handset has 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display and Apple claims that the Plus version has “the best battery life ever in an iPhone”. 

Just like the iPhone 13 series, Apple continues to offer the Face ID technology as the only biometric security option to unlock the phone.

For cameras, both devices feature an updated 12-megapixel main lens, with a faster aperture that should lead to better motion capture.

A new video stabilization mode dubbed “action mode,” is designed to keep your content smooth even when recording video while moving around.

Both handsets have a 12-megapixel sensor in the front camera which can produce crisp images in low light.

Prices and features of iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max

The iPhone 14 Pro will start at $999, and the iPhone 14 Pro Max starts at $1,099. Both will be available for pre-order on September 9 and available in stores on September 16.

In India, the price of iPhone 14 Pro is set at Rs. 1,29,900, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max will cost Rs. 1,39,900.

It will come out in four colour options—Deep Purple, Gold, Silver, and Space Black colour options.

With regards to hardware, Pro models surgical-grade stainless steel which is said to be abrasion and corrosion-resistant.  Both handsets come with Ceramic Shield front cover touted to be tougher than any smartphone glass.

The iPhone 14 Pro comes with a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR Always-On OLED display with Apple’s ProMotion refresh rate feature.

Moreover, the Pro models can scale as low as 1Hz in order to provide a combination of smoother motion and power-efficient system.

But the most poignant difference between the pro and non-pro models is the hole-punch in the screen.

Apple has introduced a pill-shaped hole-punch cutout in place of the famous trend-setting notch.

It is calling it Dynamic Island, an “interactive space” that expands for notifications alongside other information such as music player, calling interface, Maps, among others.

The tech company says that the feature works with third-party apps.

Both hands pack Apple’s new in-house A16 Bionic SoC which is said to be the most powerful chip in a smartphone. It has two high-performance cores and four high-efficiency cores.

According to Apple, the new 6-core CPU is claimed to be up to 40 percent faster than the competition. The A16 Bionic SoC also features an accelerated 5-core GPU with a claimed 50 percent more memory bandwidth and a new 16-core Neural Engine capable of nearly 17 trillion operations per second.

The most major boost up is in the camera department. Both models have a new 48-megapixel main camera with second-generation sensor-shift optical image stabilisation and a 12-megapixel telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom, f/2.8 aperture lens and optical image stabilisation.

The third is a 12-megapixel sensor with f/2.2 aperture ultra-wide angle lens that has 120-degree field-of-view.

The quad-pixel sensor combines four pixels into one pixel for maximum light intake. It also enables a 2x Telephoto option and the new machine learning model allows the iPhone 14 Pro to shoot ProRAW. 

Both handsets also have Photonic Engine which is said to offer a better low-light performance — up to 2x on the main camera, up to 3x on the ultra wide camera, up to 2x on the telephoto camera, and up to 2x on the TrueDepth front camera that has 12-megapixel sensor and f/1.9 aperture lens.