The iPhone 14 was just released to no small amount of fanfare. Given how influential Apple’s flagship mobile phone series is, it is easy to see why people are so interested whenever a new iPhone is announced and released.
Not all iPhones are created equal, and some innovate more over the previous generation than others. While some flock to the new iPhone no matter what, others may be interested to see how it stacks up against the iPhone 13.
How Do the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 Compare?
One of the most common criticisms of the iPhone 14 is just how similar it is in structure and design to the
iPhone 13. Despite being more expensive and labeled as a generational upgrade, it can be a bit hard to tell what the differences are.
The iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 both run on the A15 processing chip, one of the best chipsets in the business. They both have a similar design with an attached notch at the top of the display, as similarly built cameras.
The iPhone 14 does have improved main camera quality and a better GPU. Are these things enough to make it worth the hefty price tag?
How Much Do the iPhone 13 and 14 Cost?
The price of the iPhone 14 is
typical of new iPhone models, coming in at $799. As far as smartphones go, this is relatively the middle of the pack. It is not as high as some of the $1,000 plus Samsung phones, but it is not as low as one of the sub $200 budget phones you can find.
If you want a model with higher storage, you can dish out $899 for 256GB or $1,099 for 512GB.
The iPhone 13, on the other hand, has seen a price dip, now coming in at $699 for the base model. This is still not a budget price, but it is a full $100 cheaper than the iPhone 14. This means that, from a cost perspective, the iPhone 13 is the more attractive option.
Who Is the Target Audience?
The target audience for the iPhone 14 is anyone looking for the newest and shiniest Apple smartphone.
People who keep up with Apple’s regular smartphone releases will likely find themselves interested in what the iPhone 14 offers, including advanced emergency SOS and crash detection features. The 14 Pro even comes with a “dynamic island,” a new hub for alerts and notifications.
On the other hand, the target audience of the iPhone 13 at this point is the people interested in high-tech phones but not attached to having the newest model.
People who are happy with last year's innovations or are willing to wait for a more impressive technological jump may find the iPhone 13 to be just what they are looking for in the meantime.
Of course, when it comes to Pro models, many of the features included in the iPhone 13 Pro outstrip the base 14. When figuring out the best iPhone for you, the different models are sometimes more important than the specific series they come in.
Breaking Down the iPhone 13 and iPhone 14
Price
The iPhone 13 can be bought from Apple directly for $699. This is a $100 price reduction from its launch last year.
The iPhone 14 is priced at the usual base iPhone price of $799.
The iPhone 14 series also includes the iPhone 14 Plus for $899, the iPhone 14 Pro for $999, and the iPhone 14 Pro Max for $1,099. All of these models are more advanced versions of the base iPhone 14.
Design and New Colors
You can get an iPhone 13 in green, blue, midnight, starlight, or (PRODUCT)RED. The iPhone 14 sports the same colors, except it swaps out the green option for a brand-new purple color.
As far as design goes, the two are almost identical. They both feature a ceramic shield with a glass back and aluminum design and an IP68 water resistance rating. They have rounded corners with an upper notch that is integrated into the top of the screen.
Display
The iPhone 14 and 13 sport a 6.1” diagonal all-screen OLED display with a Super Retina XDR display. They both have a 2532-by-1170-pixel resolution at 460 PPI.
The HDR display, True Tone, Wide color, Haptic Touch, 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio, 1200 nits peak brightness (HDR), and fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating are consistent between both as well.
The iPhone 13 and 14 base models have a 60Hz refresh rate, the same as the iPhone 12 before.
Overall, the display capabilities and design are mostly identical. The resolution is the same, and it will have the same look when it comes to the eye test.
The screen's shape is the same, so your visual experience won’t deviate much, if at all, between the iPhone 13 and the iPhone 14.
Camera
The camera system is also identical at first glance, but there are some significant changes beneath the surface. Both phones have three 12-megapixel lenses: an ultrawide camera, a wide camera, and a front camera.
They both have front cameras, or selfie cameras, that function well for FaceID features and FaceTime. First-time users, or users switching from Android phones or the Google Pixel 7, will likely enjoy the night mode, low-light, autofocus, and TrueDepth aspects of the rear cameras on both devices.
While the hardware is the same, Apple made some new additions on the software end. A new feature called the photonic engine was created to help improve photo quality, especially for moving subjects and poor lighting.
This allows Apple to compete directly with chipsets like the
Google Tensor chip from the Google Pixel series.
Regarding the video system, both the 13 and 14 have a cinematic mode that automatically adjusts focus and lighting for optimal picture quality. However, the action mode is new to the iPhone 14, which is great for capturing footage of heavily active environments.
Battery Life and Charging
The iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 have a rechargeable lithium‑ion battery and MagSafe and Qi wireless charging. They are both fast-charging compatible and can hit 50% charge with a 20W or higher charger.
Overall, the battery systems are identical between the iPhone 13 and 14, so no model has the advantage in this department.
Performance
Once again, the differences are minimal in performance — the iPhone 13 runs on the A15 bionic chip, a fantastic chipset.
It has consistently matched, if not exceeded, the performance of its competitors, such as the latest Snapdragon and Tensor models. The iPhone runs very well and can handle multiple concurrent applications without slowing down.
The iPhone 13 also has a 6-core CPU, a 4-core GPU, and a 16-core neural engine, making it a compelling phone.
The iPhone 14 has an almost identical setup, except instead of a 4-core GPU, it has a 5-core GPU, meaning there are some visual and performance upgrades.
This means that the iPhone 14 is one of the more powerful phones out there; however, one hangup is that the new A16 Bionic chip does exist, just not in the base model of the iPhone 14; only the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro max got the latest version.
This is another example of the iPhone 13 being relatively the same structure as the iPhone 14, especially given that there are versions of the iPhone 14 that are a much more substantial upgrade regarding performance.
Is the iPhone 13 or 14 Better?
On paper, the iPhone 14 is the better phone. It has slight performance and camera improvements, bringing some new software options. However, both can run iOS 16 with little to no trouble.
When discussing which option is the better deal, the iPhone 13 comes out on top. The design of the two phones is identical; the batteries are comparable, the chipsets are the same, most of the color options are the same, and the display is mostly the same.
With all of this taken into account, the primary difference between the iPhone 13 and 14 for many people will likely be the price, and being $100 cheaper is a big nod in the iPhone 13’s favor. The iPhone 13 is still a very advanced phone, and it can do almost everything the iPhone 14 can do.
What makes matters worse for the iPhone 14 is how many features were expected for the product that ended up only being present for the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max. The improved display, camera, chipset, and battery were given to those models instead of the base version.
This means that the iPhone 14 is stuck in a gray area between the iPhone 13 and the iPhone 14 Pro. The iPhone 13 is comparable in technological innovation to the iPhone 14 at a much better price. At the same time, the iPhone 14 Pro is much more advanced and indicative of what people were looking for in a new Apple smartphone.
This means that, between the two, the iPhone 13 is a much easier product to recommend.
Conclusion
The iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 are both solid phones, but at the end of the day, the iphone 13 is the better deal.
The iPhone 14 may have improved machine learning capabilities and some improved specs, but more may be needed to be worth the extra cash. Especially with the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max out there, the iPhone 13 is the better deal.
With the iPhone 15 being a certainty for the coming future, many people may prefer to take a step back and wait for another generation before paying full price for an Apple smartphone.
While it is fun to keep up with the most advanced tech of the time, the iPhone 13 will do just fine at a much better cost.
Navi is here to help you make the right decision, whichever phone you prefer. Navi can help you find the best deals on the
iPhone 13 and the
iPhone 14. Using their industry insight, Navi ensures you never pay too much for your mobile phone.
Use Navi today to decide which Apple iPhone is the right fit for you.
Sources:
Buy the New iPhone 14 | Apple
Buy iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini | Apple
How Google Tensor Helps Google Pixel Phones Do More | Google
