At Wonderlust event 2023, Apple unveiled the new iPhone 15 as the successor of the iPhone 14, with better battery life, a better set of cameras, and the A16 bionic chip, which was earlier available to iPhone 14 Pro & Pro Max models. And like every year, the base variant i.e. the iPhone 15 is among the most talked about iPhones from this year’s lineup as it is more affordable (starting at $799 for the 128GB model) than its “Pro” counterparts and more feature-packed than the previous generation iPhone 14.
Like the iPhone 13 and 14, the iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 also share most features and have almost the same design except for the Dynamic Island and the all-new USB type C charging port. So, should you consider sticking to the iPhone 14 to save money or upgrading to the iPhone 15 to experience new features? Let’s see a comparison between the iPhone 15 and iPhone 14.
iPhone 15 vs iPhone 14 : Specs
| iPhone 15 | iPhone 14 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $799 (128GB) | $699 (128GB) |
| Screen Size | 6.1 inches | 6.1 inches |
| Display Resolution | Super Retina XDR OLED (2556×1179) | Super Retina XDR OLED (2532×1170) |
| Processor | A16 Bionic chip | A15 Bionic chip |
| Rear Camera | 48MP main (f/1.6); 12MP ultrawide (f/2.4) | 12MP main (f/1.5); 12MP ultrawide (f/2.4) |
| Front Camera | 12MP TrueDepth camera (f/1.9) with Autofocus | 12MP TrueDepth camera (f/1.9) with Autofocus |
| Battery Life | Up to 20 hours video playback | Up to 20 hours video playback |
| Dimensions | 5.81 inches x 2.82 inches x 0.31 inch | 5.78 x 2.82 x 0.31 inches |
| Weight | 171 grams | 172 grams |
| Available Colors | Pink, Yellow, Green, Blue, and Black | Midnight, Starlight, Blue, Purple, and (Product) Red |
iPhone 15 vs iPhone 14: Design
Apple is known for not making significant design changes on its iPhone, and the iPhone 14 had the exact same design and build as the iPhone 13. However, a new addition is the color-infused glass back on the iPhone 15. Apple explained that the iPhone 15 is the first iPhone to have the color “embedded throughout a single piece of durable color-infused [back] glass”.
On the front, unlike the iPhone 14 series, this time, you get the pill-shaped Dynamic Island on the iPhone 15, which was earlier reserved only for the Pro models. The device also has a Ceramic Shield for added durability, just like the previous model. However, no matter what, iPhones are still prone to damage from accidental drops, so you’ll want to get one of the best iPhone 15 cases, just as the best iPhone 14 cases helped prevent damage to Apple’s older phones.
There is another addition – the USB-C port which has replaced Apple’s proprietary Lightning port. However, the USB-C port on the iPhone comes with a limitation. (More on this in the section below).
On the rear, the iPhone 15 has the same design as the iPhone 14 with dual vertical stacked camera lenses. There are 5 different iPhone 15 colors – Pink, Yellow, Green, Blue, and Black.
iPhone 15 vs iPhone 14: Display
Once again, the non-pro iPhone model has the same 6.1” Super Retina XDR display display. The iPhone 15 display also has HDR support, 1600 nits of brightness, as compared to the 1200 nits peak brightness of the iPhone 14.
Also, just like the iPhone 14 series, you still get the option to go for a bigger display with the iPhone 15 Plus, which gives a bigger real estate of 6.7”, similar to what you find on the iPhone 15 Pro Max. With the iPhone 15, Apple has finally shifted from Notch to the Dynamic Island, which was reserved for iPhone 14 Pro models previously.
However, keeping everything aside, I still think that Apple should have gone with a higher refresh rate for the iPhone 15 which it offers in the Pro models instead of sticking to the 60Hz refresh rate.
iPhone 15 vs iPhone 14: Cameras
In the camera department, the iPhone 15 brings major upgrades over the iPhone 14. The new iPhone 15 adopts iPhone 14 Pro’s 48MP sensor with ƒ/1.6 aperture along with 12MP ultra-wide snapper. Apple has also brought improvements to the Night Mode as the new camera sensor on iPhone 15 brings sharper details and more vivid colors.
Another major improvement that the iPhone 15 brings over the iPhone 14 is better detection of people in the frame and rich depth information in the photos.
The front camera on the iPhone 15 is the same as that of the iPhone 14 except for the support for Smart HDR 5.
iPhone 15 vs iPhone 14: Performance
Before the iPhone 14, a new iPhone usually meant a new chipset, but Apple completely changed that, and now only Pro models get the new chipset. The same is the case with the iPhone 15 series; the iPhone 15 comes with an A16 Bionic chipset, which we have already seen in the iPhone 14 Pro models.
The A16 Bionic features a 6-core CPU, a 5-core GPU, and a 16-core neural engine. This makes the iPhone 15 and 14 gap larger than the previous years. Performance-wise, the iPhone 15 models should be comparable to the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max (without all the bells and whistles like high refresh rates and Pro camera technology, though).
Built on the 4nm architecture, the A16 Bionic chip performs much better than the 5nm design of A15. In simple words, the A16 Bionic chip can use more transistors in the same space, thus boosting performance and efficiency over its predecessor. Also, Apple has claimed that the A16 uses 20% less power than the A15, which will improve battery life.
The iPhone 14 still has all the power you need on a phone, but upgrading to the iPhone 15 is a wise choice if you want ultimate performance.
iPhone 15 vs iPhone 14: Battery Life and Charging
If you are planning to upgrade to iPhone 15 from the iPhone 14, the biggest enticing factor could be the USB-C port on the newer iPhone. Apart from this major change, there are no improvements in battery life at least as per the official specification sheets. However, it is to be noted that the USB-C port on the iPhone 15 supports USB 2 charging standard which offers the same charging speed as Lightning port. There is no improvement in charging speeds in iPhone 15 despite USB-C port.
As per Apple, the iPhone 15 is rated for up to 24 hours of battery life, as Apple claims that the battery can last a full day on moderate usage. The iPhone 14 is rated for 20 hours of video playback, 16 hours of streamed video and 80 hours of audio. The company has also promised the exact same battery life for the iPhone 15. Thus, there is no change in battery life between iPhone 15 and iPhone 14. We will run our usual battery tests to test battery performance once we get our hands on the iPhone 15 unit.
iPhone 15 vs iPhone 15: Pricing
Now comes the most important part when we compare iPhone 15 and iPhone 14 – pricing. iPhone 15 pricing starts from $799 for the base variant of 128GB. In comparison, iPhone 14 now starts at $699 and was launched at $799 last year. So to say, iPhone 15 is $100 more expensive than the iPhone 14.
iPhone 15 Vs iPhone 14: Bottom Line
The update from iPhone 14 to iPhone 15 is actually pretty dramatic. Last year, we only saw incremental changes from one Pro model to the next.
With the iPhone 15, however, Apple has been generous with the upgrades. The new Dynamic Island, 48MP camera, improved chipset, and USB Type C port set the iPhone 15 apart from its predecessor, and with the same launch price as that of iPhone 14, there doesn’t look to be any drawbacks versus the outgoing models.
Sagnik Das Gupta
