iPhone 16 vs iPhone 14: All upgrades explained
Intro
What are the changes in the iPhone 16 compared to the iPhone 14, released two years prior? And do the new features justify an upgrade for iPhone 14 owners?
The iPhone 16 keeps the overall design and 6.1-inch size of the iPhone 14, but adds two new physical buttons, the Action button and the Camera Control. It also benefits from a higher resolution 48MP main camera, as well as a new and faster A18 processor that enables all the Apple Intelligence magic.
However, the iPhone 16 does NOT have the most requested features – 120Hz ProMotion display, which remains exclusive to the more expensive Pro models.
- Read more: iPhone 16: the deals
Let's explore all of the changes in more detail below.
iPhone 16 vs iPhone 14 differences:
| iPhone 16 | iPhone 14 |
|---|---|
| Same 6.1-inch form factor | 6.1-inch size |
| New Action Button in place of Mute Switch New Camera Control for camera | Older Mute Switch only |
| Newer and faster Apple A18 chipset | Apple A15 Bionic chipset |
| More memory, 8GB RAM | 6GB RAM |
| Support for AI | Does not support AI |
| Same storage options | 128 / 256 / 512GB storage models |
| New vertical camera with support for Spatial Video | Diagonal camera layout |
| 48MP main camera | 12MP main camera |
| 12MP ultra-wide camera Macro support | 12MP ultra-wide camera No macro support |
| Battery lasts for 22 hours of video playback | 20 hours of video playback |
| USB-C port | Lightning port |
| 20W wired charging | 20W wired charging |
| 25W MagSafe | 15W MagSafe |
Table of Contents:
Also read:
- iPhone 16 Preview
- iPhone 16 vs iPhone 15: All the upgrade
- iPhone 16 vs iPhone 13: All the changes
Design and Display Quality
Same size, but new physical buttons and new look for the camera
The iPhone gets some of its color back with the 16 series (but you don't have a yellow or a red version)
The shape and size of the iPhone 16 is very similar to the iPhone 14. Both are 6.1-inch phones with flat sides, an aluminum frame and a glass front and back.
On the back, you still have a dual camera system, but it's a vertical one instead of a diagonal one. And on the front, you get tougher Ceramic Shield on the 16 model.
There are some bigger tweaks and changes, though. You get two new physical buttons on the iPhone 16. The Mute switch from the iPhone 14 gets replaced by a programmable Action button, and both are located on the top left above the volume keys.
You also get a new Camera Control on the right side, below the power key. This button works with camera apps only, both Apple's native one and third-party apps. It is a two-way key, where a light press allows you to lock focus and a full press captures a photo or records a video. In many ways, this is like a regular camera shutter button.
However, this is Apple and it has made it kind of special, so you can swipe on it too to zoom in or out, or control a number of other functions. Cool!
We should also mention the USB-C port on the iPhone 16, a welcome change from the Lightning port on the iPhone 14.
Both models also have IP68 water and dust protection.
- Also read: iPhone 16 colors
As for screen quality, you have the same 6.1-inch OLED screen on both phones. The iPhone 14 goes to a peak brightness of 1,200 nits, while the iPhone 16 hits 2,000 nits, which makes it much easier to use outdoors.
We already mentioned the big disappointment – the iPhone 16 is not getting 120Hz ProMotion, so both the iPhone 16 and 14 will share the same old 60Hz screen tech.
Rumors say ProMotion will finally arrive on the vanilla iPhone 17 model in 2025, if that's any consolation.
Performance and Software
New iPhone, new chip
Coming two years after the iPhone 14, the iPhone 16 naturally gets a newer and faster processor.
While the iPhone 14 runs on the A15 Bionic chip built on 5nm technology, the iPhone 16 is the first vanilla iPhone to get a 3nm chipset, the Apple A18. Even flagship Android phones do not use that cutting edge manufacturing process yet, so that's definitely a good thing for the new iPhone.
Notice that the iPhone 16 Pro models get a slightly faster Apple A18 Pro chip.
More importantly, the iPhone 16 comes with 8GB of RAM, up from 6GB on the iPhone 14. This enables the iPhone 16 to get all the new Apple Intelligence (AI) features, while the iPhone 14 will NOT support AI.
- Also read: iPhone 16 AI features
There are no changes to the storage options on the iPhone 16, so you can still choose between 128GB, 256GB or 512GB capacities.
The iPhone 16 also likely uses the newer modem (Snapdragon X70), compared to the iPhone 14 (Snapdragon X65), so reception should be a bit improved in certain problematic areas.
Camera
Spatial Videos and Photos, baby
The iPhone 16 comes with a new vertical styling for the camera, but it's still a dual camera system, with a main and an ultrawide lens.
Compared to the iPhone 14, the iPhone 16 will be a big camera jump because of the more capable 48MP main sensor compared to the 12MP snapper on the older model.
This new 48MP sensor provides more detail and better low light performance, plus many of the overprocessing issues from the iPhone 14 are gone. You also get 2X lossless zoom with sensor crop, an improvement over the digital zoom on the iPhone 14.
The changes to the ultra-wide camera are more subtle, as both phones share a similar 12MP sensor, with the same 13mm field of view and f/2.2 aperture.
We already touched upon the new physical Camera Control, placed below the power key. This is a really cool idea, and it will likely make capturing those special moments easier on the iPhone 16.
And of course, you get a bunch of AI editing features on the iPhone 16, such as the "Clean Up" tool in Photos, which comes with iOS 18.1.
We also love the new Photographic Styles on the iPhone 16 which are much more powerful. And while previously you could not change a photographic style after the capture, you can now do this, so this opens lots more possibilities for photo editing.
As for video, don't expect major changes, as 4K60 remains the maximum available quality.
The vertical iPhone. 16 cameras, however, enable Spatial Video and Spatial Photos, which you can then play on the Apple Vision Pro. This seems like something far out in the future currently, as not many people own the headset yet, but it's nice having the option to record 3D videos.
When editing video, on the iPhone 16 you get a new Audio Mix option that allows you to cut out background noise and isolate voices better.
- Also read: iPhone 16 camera: All the upgrades
Audio Quality and Haptics
Apple tweaks and improves the audio quality from iPhones every year, but there are no ground-breaking changes to audio in the iPhone 16.
And as for haptics, they have been top-notch ever since the Taptic Engine on the iPhone 6s! Again, no significant changes in this area either.
Battery Life and Charging
Longer battery life and MagSafe gets faster
We don't yet have the iPhone 16 battery size, but we know some other numbers.
Apple rates the iPhone 14 for 20 hours of video playback and 80 hours of audio playback, while for the iPhone 16 those numbers stand at 22 hours of video and 80 hours of audio.
In other words, battery life will improve ever so slightly.
We are yet to verify this with our own in-house battery tests, so stay tuned for those results appearing here in a couple of weeks.
As for the battery, leaks say the iPhone 16 has a 3,561mAh battery, a 9% increase over the 3,279mAh battery on the iPhone 14, but we'd rather wait for the first teardowns soon to confirm that number.
Interestingly, we have a shift in charging speed too.
But not wired charging, which remains rather slow at 20W speeds.
MagSafe wireless charging, however, runs at 25W maximum, up from 15W before. Know that you need a new MagSafe charger and a power brick that outputs at least 30W to get the benefit of this.
If you have this setup, expect a 50% top up in 30 minutes with MagSafe, an upgrade from the 35% charge you get with the 15W speeds before.
- Also read: iPhone 16 Battery and charging
Specs Comparison
And here is a high-level look of the iPhone 16 vs iPhone 14 specs:
| iPhone 16 | iPhone 14 |
|---|---|
| Same or very similar to iPhone 15 | 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.80 mm |
| Same or very similar | 172 g |
| 6.1-inch OLED 60Hz | 6.1-inch OLED 60Hz |
| Apple A18 3nm | Apple A15 Bionic 5nm |
| 8/128GB for $800 8/256GB for $900 8/512GB for $1,100 | 6/128GB 6/256GB 6/512GB |
| 48MP main, f/1.6 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.2 12MP front | 12MP main, f/1.5 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.2 12MP front |
| 3,561 mAh | 3,279 mAh |
| Upgrade possible, but not certain | 20W wired 15W wireless |
Should you upgrade?
So... is the iPhone 16 a worthy upgrade?
We say: iPhone 14 users not rushing to buy a new phone could wait another year.
The big ticket item, ProMotion, has not arrived to the iPhone 16, and it might finally appear on the iPhone 17 next year.
The AI upgrades are probably the biggest reason to upgrade, but many of those new features such as the new Siri will only arrive next year on the iPhone 16 with updates. We suspect Apple will need at least a year to catch up with Google on AI.
The camera improvements are nice, and we have a modest battery life upgrade, but none of that seems enough. You also have the new buttons and the USB-C port. Again, more conveniences that are nice to have, but not really a reason to upgrade.
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