iPhone 14 vs iPhone 15: Is it worth upgrading, and what are the differences?

In September, Apple unveiled the iPhone 15 lineup – the most highly anticipated and discussed smartphones of 2023. Today, we will take a look at what’s new in the base iPhone 15 and 15 Plus models, as well as understand how they differ from their predecessors – the iPhone 14 and 14 Plus.

5 Fresh Colors

At the launch of the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus, they are available in 5 pastel shades: yellow, pink, blue, green, and classic black. It’s likely that another color will be added in about six months – this is a common practice for Apple.

For comparison, the iPhone 14 was available in vibrant black, white, blue, purple, red (Product RED), and yellow colors.

Updated Design and Matte Back.

Apple has its own approach to iPhone design: the company introduced a successful concept a few years ago and now simply refines it. Therefore, externally, the new iPhone 15 and 15 Plus models don’t differ significantly from their predecessors: they have aluminum bodies and a module with two cameras arranged diagonally. However, there are still differences, especially when you hold the iPhone 14 in one hand and the iPhone 15 in the other.

The edges have become more rounded, and the bezels around the display have been reduced. The smartphone feels more comfortable to hold – it’s a sensation that’s hard to put into words. Naturally, the addition of fresh colors adds novelty. By the way, the new generation iPhones have a more matte finish – for the first time in a long while. Since the iPhone XR, Apple equipped the base models with glossy colored finishes that tended to collect fingerprints. Now, this issue has been resolved.

Dynamic Island instead of the “notch.”

The exclusive feature of the flagship iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max is now available in the base versions, and it’s cool because Dynamic Island is not just a beautiful replacement for the “notch” with the TrueDepth camera and sensors. It’s a convenient interface element that displays notifications and background activities. For example, while you’re in Safari, the “island” can display the icon of the music you’re listening to and any active timers you’ve set.

Dynamic Island is interactive, so you can control apps and calls right from it – just tap. What’s very convenient is that the “island” changes in size depending on the task. For instance, it’s small when inactive but enlarges when you interact with it. Interestingly, the exclusive “dynamic island” technology was so successful that other smartphone manufacturers immediately started copying it.

To remind you, the base iPhone 14 and especially older Apple smartphones already have the outdated notch for the front camera.

The screen has an incredible brightness of up to 2000 nits.

The iPhone’s display has always been considered one of the best in its class, and this year even skeptics were impressed. The iPhone 15 and 15 Plus feature a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with a brightness of up to 2000 nits. This is an excellent feature for base models; last year, only the flagship 14 Pro received such an update.

If the numbers don’t mean much to you, imagine being outdoors on a bright sunny day. With an iPhone, you won’t need to squint at the screen or shield it with your hand because everything is perfectly visible, as if you were in a room.

The display is protected against fingerprints and cosmetics with an oleophobic coating, and its physical protection is ensured by the Ceramic Shield panel. It contains integrated nanocrystals that enhance the glass’s impact resistance, making it more difficult to scratch or break.

To remind you, the peak brightness of the iPhone 14 was 1200 nits, and Ceramic Shield was introduced for the first time with the iPhone 12.

The A16 Bionic chip is on par with the Pro versions.

The A16 Bionic chip from the previous year’s Pro models has made its way into the iPhone 15. It boasts a 6-core CPU and a 5-core GPU, complemented by a Neural Engine with 16 cores. This chip, built on a 4-nanometer process, was initially designed with ample performance headroom, so it should be sufficient for the next 4-5 years. You’ll notice that the iPhone easily handles demanding applications, games, and excels at all tasks. During gaming, you’ll also notice smoother graphics.

Additionally, the new model features an improved noise-canceling system during calls, which can be manually activated. Previously, it operated automatically.

For comparison, the iPhone 14 is equipped with the A15 Bionic chipset, built on a 5-nanometer process. Compared to it, the chips in the new models are both more powerful and energy-efficient.

A USB-C port replaces the Lightning port.

Great news for Mac, iPad, and new AirPods owners: now you can charge your iPhone with a single cable. The entire iPhone 15 lineup is equipped with a USB-C 2.0 port.

Even if you’ve been using an iPhone with a Lightning port for many years and don’t have any other Apple devices, the new port is still a good thing. That’s because there are plenty of other devices on the market with USB-C: wireless chargers, watches, electric corkscrews, electric toothbrushes, and much more. You probably have some compatible adapters and cables lying around somewhere, and you can use them to charge the new Apple smartphones as well.

Another advantage of Type-C is that it supports the connection of peripheral devices such as monitors, external drives, keyboards, and many others.

And with iPhone 15, you can also charge other gadgets, like AirPods. To make the magic happen, simply connect one end of the cable to your AirPods and the other end to another device.

Comparison of the cameras between the iPhone 14 and iPhone 15.

When it comes to camera specifications, you can immediately see the differences between the two. The iPhone 15 and 15 Plus feature three cameras: two main cameras and one front-facing camera. The ultra-wide and front cameras are both 12 MP, while the wide-angle camera boasts a 48 MP sensor! For comparison, the iPhone 14 had a 12 MP camera.

Interestingly, the base iPhones can capture photos at the full 48 MP resolution and save them in the HEIF format (as opposed to JPG, which requires less storage space while maintaining the same quality). Previously, capturing at 48 MP was only possible in the Apple ProRAW format. By the way, the ability to shoot in ProRaw and ProRes formats remains exclusive to the Pro versions. However, most users don’t need these formats as they are primarily for professional editing.

Even if you’re not an expert in photography, the iPhone 15 will allow you to take ultra-clear photos and videos capturing fine details. A comparison between the two would be incomplete without photos, so there will be plenty of shots to look at. All of them were taken with the iPhone 15.

For the first time, the base versions will be able to shoot at 0.5x, 1x, and 2x zoom levels, all with just a dual-camera system! The 2x zoom without loss of quality is achieved through intelligent integration of hardware and software. It’s worth noting that in the iPhone 14, you could only shoot at 0.5x and 1x.

The portraits captured with the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus are particularly impressive. They feature sharp details, deep shadows, and vibrant colors without distortion, even in challenging lighting conditions!

Unlike the iPhone 14, the 15th lineup introduces automatic switching to portrait mode. The smartphone can now recognize people, dogs, or cats in the frame and automatically switch to portrait mode to create a more impressive shot. You can cancel the switch by tapping on the screen.

You now have the ability to adjust the focus during post-processing of photos when shooting in portrait mode. In the iPhone 14, you could only adjust the focus in videos with the “Cinematic” mode.

Apple has also improved the Photonic Engine algorithm. Even without using special lighting during shooting, the system correctly processes the colors of the foreground and background scenes.

Taking photos in low light conditions has become even more enjoyable and faster. Firstly, portrait shooting is now possible in Night mode. Secondly, the iPhone 15 requires less time to process the image. Moreover, when shooting in low light conditions, the camera captures more details and doesn’t distort colors.

Speaking of color reproduction, the iPhone 15 supports Smart HDR 5 compared to Smart HDR 4 in the previous version.

Speaking of color reproduction, the iPhone 15 supports Smart HDR 5 compared to Smart HDR 4 in the previous version.

There are other features of the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus that make these smartphones some of the best on the market.

1. Storage options of 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB.
2. Support for fast charging: 50% charge in 30 minutes (with a 20W adapter or higher).
3. IP68 certification for water and dust resistance.
4. Display resolution of 1170 x 2532 pixels for a realistic image.
5. A 60Hz refresh rate.
6. Improved Ultra-Wideband (UWB) chip. Availability may vary by region.
7. Excellent battery life: up to 20 hours of video playback and 80 hours of audio playback.

Conclusion: iPhone 15 или iPhone 14

The iPhone 15 is an excellent everyday smartphone with advanced camera technology, a powerful processor, and a long-lasting battery that can easily get you through 1.5 days of active use. It introduces some impressive features that will delight even those currently using the iPhone 14, let alone older models. For example, the interactive “Dynamic Island” screen within a screen and a brightness of up to 2000 nits, which is twice as bright as the previous generation.

Is it worth upgrading to the iPhone 15? Yes, if you love technology, value innovation, and prioritize high-speed performance. It’s definitely worth it if you are into content creation, as the iPhone’s camera is one of the best on the market. And, of course, the iPhone 15 will be the best choice for those seeking a convenient and functional smartphone to replace an older one. You will be pleasantly surprised by the capabilities of this new model.

Where to Buy?

You can buy the iPhone 15 in Armenia at iSpace: we have all colors and memory capacities in stock. The new models are displayed openly in our stores, so come and check them out to decide whether to choose the 6.1-inch or 6.7-inch version.

See you at iSpace!

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