The Worst thing about the iPhone 14 Pro after 7 months

It’s been seven months since Apple launched the iPhone 14 Pro and after using it on and off during this time period, I've come to the realization that while Apple has made a lot of really nice smaller improvements, this is not the phone that I would recommend to most people right now.

But let's set the stage with the expectations and how Apple itself presented this phone to everyone. While you may not remember much about the announcement, you probably do recall all the hype around the new Dynamic Island. This was the defining feature and it almost seemed like a game-changer. And then I was also excited to try out Apple's very first high-resolution, 48 megapixel camera and back when I first started using it, I was also hoping Apple would once again increase the battery life.

Few months in and most of those things are not really all that exciting anymore, but some others actually are.

The Worst Thing about it

But before we go into the nitty-gritty, I have to start with what seems like the worst thing about this iPhone 14 Pro.

So yes, it’s broken and this happened just a mere month after I got the phone. We could go into a long tangent about glass phones in general, but let's just say that it’s my fault that I dropped the phone from about 3 feet on the concrete. But that's where the nightmare actually only starts and I think Apple could and SHOULD do a better job here.



So obviously glass breaks, but even if Apple insists on the glass back, it’s insane that it charges you $500 bucks to replace the back. This is just a complete rip-off.

What’s even crazier is that the more affordable iPhone 14 model actually uses a new and more advanced internal structure, which allows for easier repairs and... it costs just $170 dollars to fix a broken glass back on it! How is the cheaper phone more advanced than the Pro model when it comes to repairs, Apple?

I hate having to use a case for my phone, but Apple kind of forces users to do that, not just because of the fragility of the glass, but also because of the extremely costly repairs.

This small thing is what Apple should improve next

The other thing I can’t quite shake off is just the weight of this phone.

If you are considering the iPhone 14 Pro, you are probably doing that because it’s a smaller phone, so it really should not weigh as much.

iPhone Weight Evolution

But take a look at how iPhone weight has evolved year by year:

• The iPhone XS weighed 6.24 ounces
• The iPhone 11 Pro was 6.63
• The iPhone 12 Pro was a tiny bit heavier at 6.66
• The iPhone 13 Pro went to 7.2 ounces
• And the iPhone 14 Pro weighs 7.27

Sure, it’s nowhere near as heavy as an iPhone Pro Max or a foldable phone, but it sure isn’t lightweight either! I am actually ready to give this phone away and switch to the regular iPhone 14 just because it’s not quite as heavy.

Battery Life

But let’s address the number one question I always get about this phone: the battery life. 

Apple has very slightly bumped the battery size in the iPhone 14 Pro: it’s a 3200 mAh battery, so it should technically have longer battery life than the 13 Pro.

Our battery tests also show that the 14 Pro battery life is better both in our web browsing test and in our YouTube video streaming test, but in real life… nope, it doesn’t.

There are a few possible reasons for that. The first one is the Always On display. We measured it drains an additional 5 to 6% of battery life a day, but I’m not really using that feature and still I’m typically getting just below 6 hours of screen on time on the iPhone 14 Pro, about an hour less than I used to get with the 13 Pro.

So my guess is that this ultimately has something to do with the brighter screen and the new Apple chip which now has to drive the Dynamic Island, so that might be why the battery drains quicker.

To be honest, I usually don’t have a problem going through the day on a single charge, but I got this phone hoping for an improved battery life and it’s actually a bit worse.

Dynamic Island: was all the hype justified?

So I mentioned the Dynamic Island and at the launch, Apple made a big deal out of it, so is it all hype or actually useful?

For me the biggest change is that it kind of draws my eyes better than the notch, so I tend to look directly at it, and this kind of improves the Face ID accuracy, which I didn’t expect. And then you get the other features, the nice waveform with your music, system notifications show up there.

The only downside of the Dynamic Island is that it does stick out a lot more when you watch video on the whole screen, so Dynamic Island… yeah, it’s mostly a thumbs up, but not quite the big deal I hoped it would be.

Camera: Video quality is unmatched, but photos don't look as good as rivals

So the camera is the one area I think the iPhone 14 Pro could do better. The big story is all about the new 48 megapixel sensor, but the reality is that by default you still get 12 megapixel photos and you need to actually shoot RAW photos and then edit them in order to get a full 48 megapixel shot.

This is really annoying because 48 megapixel shots actually look great here, you get a TON and I mean a TON more detail, but it’s also a real pain having to edit every single picture. Just give us that RAW look in a JPEG file, Apple!

Now, if you just take pictures like most people, the 12 megapixel shots from the 14 Pro come with extreme sharpening. It may not be immediately noticeable on the small screen, but if you open the pictures on a larger device, you really start to notice it.

Photos on the 14 Pro overall just really have that “smartphone look” and in the past few months we have seen a few companies bring their Android flagships and the image quality is actually really improved.

And I would say that the 14 Pro is also behind the pack with night shots, especially if you try to use that zoom camera or take a portrait at night, other phones do a much better job.

It’s also a struggle to focus up close and the camera would often switch back and forth between the main and the ultra-wide camera, struggling to pick one.

On the flipside, I really like the speed of the iPhone camera and also the consistency.

The new 2X zoom mode in particular has exceeded all my expectations. Basically, for portrait shots I now mostly use the 2X zoom, it just has the right look and detail is almost as good as the 1X camera.

The iPhone is also still the best smartphone for video recording by far, so it’s not a bad camera, it’s just that it shows age in some aspects.

Performance: Sure, it's fast, but iOS is the real difference maker

The one thing that I didn’t expect to have a lasting impression on me was the speed. So yeah, the iPhone 14 Pro has the Apple A16 Bionic processor which is faster and bla bla bla, but it’s kind of the same thing every year, right? And you usually barely notice this.

The iPhone is still at the top or close to the top of the rankings, but it’s not really about the benchmarks, even seven months after the release I am still at awe just how smooth and effortless everything just flows with the 120Hz ProMotion screen. iOS is mostly to blame for that, with the card like interface, it really feels like juggling a pack of cards, and oh so satisfying.

At the end of the day, the iPhone 14 Pro stands out as one of very few compact phones with such refinement and fast performance.

But also, the iPhone 15 Pro coming in a few months is rumored to use a titanium frame, so it could finally weigh less rather than more.

Speaking of the iPhone 15 Pro, it’s also said to make a big switch to a new 3 nanometer chip technology, which should be one of the bigger boosts in performance speeds. It’s also said to get 8GB of RAM, up from 6GB, and also (finally!) charge via a USB-C port like all of your other devices.

If you are still undecided about the current iPhone 14 Pro, I think it makes sense to wait for the new model that’s coming out in late September, just be warned that it is expected to cost a bit more than before.

What’s your experience with the iPhone 14 Pro, is there one feature you love or hate the most?