The iPhone 12 series was launched at the end of 2020, so the next Apple phones we are looking forward to are the iPhone 13 devices – but all the rumors point to very small improvements. That means we may have to wait until Apple’s 2022 phones, the supposed iPhone 14 series, for the big changes that iPhones could bring in the future.
Some of these big changes are advances that could possibly come, but not in time for the iPhone 13. Ergo, we expect things like eventually losing the notch to happen on the iPhone 14 as well. In that case, we’d expect a punch hole to house the selfie camera, but it’s always possible for Apple to put it under the screen – which would make sense given all its Face ID – activating sensors.
We’re been out of the iPhone 14 version for over a year, and ahead of time, a lot can change. The most important of the uncertainties is the name: some rumors suggest that Apple may return to its ‘S’ designation and make the 2021 phones ‘iPhone 12S’, which means that the Apple devices from 2022 may be the iPhone 13 – but before we confuse you anymore, let’s just refer to the next generation as the iPhone 14 we expect to come out next year until we hear otherwise.
Since we haven’t heard much about the iPhone 14 series yet, we’ll share what we have and what we want to see in Apple’s phones, including features we’ve already seen in Android phones and advanced benefits we’ve seen. was seen sketched on Apple patents. Here’s everything we know – and what we want – on the iPhone 14.
iPhone 14 hit the notch
One rumor suggests that the iPhone 14 will eventually drop the notch – and since it comes from renowned Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, we’ll take it more into account than other predictions so far.
Other Android phones lost their notches years ago, but Apple kept the notch to hide the front sensors (dot projector, infrared camera, and floodlight) that enable Face ID. But rumor has it the iPhone 14 could drop the notch and only have a hole for the selfie camera – though it’s unclear where the sensors are going.
It is possible that the sensors get a smaller notch, or that they are reduced – perhaps combined into fewer units – and placed next to the selfie camera for an elongated punch hole.
Or Apple can just jump in front of most Android phones and hide its sensors under the screen, like the ZTE Axon 20 5G. We’ll have to see how Apple rearranges its sensors (or replaces them entirely with photosensors), but eventually everyone will like to see the punch go.
iPhone 14 … glasses?
This is a little more in the air, but one patent suggests that the much-rumored Apple Glasses will simply be frame holders to charge an iPhone, a la Google Cardboard. And given that we have not yet heard of the iPhone 13 working that way, the iPhone 14 could be the Apple device enabling this feature.
Of course, we have not heard much else about Apple Glasses using the iPhone screen instead of custom binoculars – recently rumors points to a predominantly VR headset coming in 2022, which precedes a predominantly AR unit to follow in 2023, but we’ll wait and see if Apple finally offers a cheaper ‘device’ that can fit in an iPhone.
iPhone 14 MagSafe main charger
The iPhone 12 launched the MagSafe system, which magnetically clamped wireless chargers to the back of the phones through chargers. But the ‘MagSafe’ moniker was first used in MacBook laptops as a sort of breakaway charger, and according to another patent, this concept could be used for future Apple phones – possibly the iPhone 14.
As such, this charger will work like the MagSafe charger of the MacBooks: magnetically clips on the bottom of the iPhone 14 and breaks away easily. This means that the iPhone 14, if it applied the charging method, would eventually lose the Lightning cable, which has been an accessory since Apple’s iPhone. This is finally the right time to drop the mainstay solution. for Apple phones for a faster charging cable – though it would certainly be a curveball if the iPhones did not switch to USB-C.
2022’s iPhone Series All Becomes 5G
The same rumors from Kuo suggest that every phone in Apple’s series will get 5G by 2022. The iPhone 12 series has incorporated 5G into all of Apple’s flagship phones, leaving the cheaper devices to be upgraded to the next generation connection.
That leaves only a likely 5G refresh of the iPhone SE in early 2022 and whatever replaces the iPhone 11. It is possible that the standard iPhone 12 or iPhone 13 will simply take its place, but it is always possible that there will be another iPhone 14 model that fills this gap.
What else do we expect from the iPhone 14?
Since we do not yet know how much the iPhone 13 series will cost, we rely on similar speculations for the iPhone 14 prices. We will mainly use the price tags on the iPhone 12 to guide our estimates.
The cheapest iPhone 14 mini is perhaps the cheapest model and can start from $ 699 / £ 699 / AU $ 1,199 (the price tag of the iPhone 12 mini). Similarly, the standard iPhone 14 can cost $ 799 / £ 799 / AU $ 1,349 if it stays in line with the cost of the iPhone 12.
The price of the iPhone 14 Pro can start from $ 999 / £ 999 / AU $ 1,699, this is where the cost of the iPhone 12 Pro starts. The iPhone 14 Pro Max then starts at $ 1,099 / £ 1,099 / AU $ 1,849, like the iPhone 12 Pro Max.
Of course, these expected prices could all change if Apple finds a reason to charge more – this is in line with their iPhone 11 predecessors, but there may be new features that justify a price increase.
The iPhone 14 release date is also a mystery: Apple tends to launch its phones in the third quarter, and we would expect the phones to be officially unveiled in September 2022 before they hit the market in October 2022 . But given the delays of the pandemic to the iPhone 12 releases in 2020, there is some uncertainty as to whether Apple can deviate from the precedent and launch the phones on a different schedule.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 13S vs. iPhone 13: what will the future iPhone be called?
There’s some uncertainty as to whether the iPhone 14 will be named that way – and the numbering depends a lot on what happens to the next phone. The 2021 series can be called the iPhone 13, or the iPhone 12S numbered. In that case, the 2022 phones could be called the iPhone 13 series.
Or, if the 2021 series is iPhone 13, the Apple 2222 devices of 2022 could be called the iPhone 13S. Nothing is certain until the company gives their official name to the phones, which usually happens well after WWDC in the middle of each year.
What iPhone 14 devices can you expect?
We largely expect Apple to follow the tradition and release an iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. Whether there will be an iPhone 14 mini remains to be seen – we’ll have to see if there is another small format phone in the 2021 series before we consider it a permanent part of the iPhone series.