Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: The Apple iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 have the same design and have so many features in common. And for an iPhone that is supposed to be an upgrade to the iPhone 13, the iPhone 14 doesn’t seem to be much of an upgrade at all, or is it?
To confirm if there are any differences between the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13, we asked our team to take a closer look at the specifications of both phones. So, in this Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13 specs comparison, we’ll be bringing you details of our findings. Physically, there is no difference between these two iPhones but a careful look into the small details tells a different story.
See Also: Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max vs iPhone 13 Pro Max: Which is better
Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13
Quick Note: The Apple iPhone 14 Plus is the same as the iPhone 14 but has a bigger display. So, this comparison also serves as the Apple iPhone 14 Plus vs iPhone 13 and Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13 mini comparisons.
Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Display, Design, and Durability
At first glance, the display of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 are the same. The display on both smartphones is 6.1-inches, both have a Super Retina XDR OLED panel that refreshes at 60Hz, and both have support for HDR10 and Dolby Vision. Both iPhones also have the same screen brightness (1200 nits peak brightness). The screen design and features on both phones are the same.
Both phones are made of a Glass front (Gorilla Glass), glass back (Gorilla Glass), and aluminum frame. They are also IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 6m for 30 mins) and have Scratch-resistant ceramic glass and oleophobic coating. The durability and protection features of both phones are the same. The front screen and back panel design on both iPhones are also the same.
Both iPhones have the same front notch and the same rear camera module. The volume, power, and dedicated silent buttons are placed in the exact same locations. The only difference is the lack of SIM card space on the iPhone 14 (US models only) which is available in the iPhone 13. There is literally no difference between the design and display of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 but we started seeing some differences in the camera sensors.
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Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Camera
| Camera | iPhone 14 | iPhone 13 |
| Main | 12MP | 12MP |
| Ultra-wide | 12MP | 12MP |
| Front | 12MP + SL 3D | 12MP + SL 3D |
The iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 have 12MP main camera, 12MP ultra-wide lens, 12MP front camera, and SL 3D sensor. Now, it’s easy to assume that the 12MP sensors on both iPhones are the same but they’re not.
The 12MP main camera of the iPhone 14 is a bigger sensor that has an f/1.5 aperture, 1.22µm dual pixel PDAF, and 26mm focal length while the 12MP main camera of the iPhone 13 is a smaller sensor that has an f/1.6 aperture, 1.7µm dual pixel PDAF, and 26mm focal length. Apple upgraded the main camera of the iPhone 14 to the main camera of the iPhone 13 Pro Max. So, the main camera of the iPhone 14 has faster aperture and larger sensor compared to the main camera of the iPhone 13.
The 12MP ultra-wide camera of both iPhones remains unchanged but the 12MP front camera is not the same. The front camera of the iPhone 14 has an f/1.9 aperture, 23mm focal length, and AutoFocus feature. This makes it slightly different than the front camera of the iPhone 13 which has an f/2.2 aperture, 23mm focal length, with no AutoFocus feature.
The camera features available on both iPhones are HDR, Dolby Vision HDR (up to 60fps), stereo sound rec., dual pixel PDAF, sensor-shift OIS, Dual-LED dual-tone flash, and HDR (photo/panorama). However, only the iPhone 14 has camera features such as Cinematic mode (4K@30fps), ACTION MODE stabilization, and record 4K videos in an additional 25fps.
So, the significant differences in the camera are the larger 12MP main camera sensor, a new ACTION MODE stabilization feature, Cinematic Mode now up to 4K@30fps (iPhone 13 has no Cinematic Mode), and an additional option to record 4K videos in 25fps (iPhone 13 is 24/30/60fps). While the camera setup of the iPhone 14 is similar to that of the iPhone 13, the sensor and available camera features are not the same.
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Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Chipset, RAM & Storage
The chipset in the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 is the Apple A15 Bionic chip. This is a 5G chipset that is built on the 5nm process technology. But, because both iPhones have the same chipset does not mean they’re the same.
The A15 Bionic chipset on the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 are slightly different. Both iPhones are equipped with the same CPU cores i.e two Avalanche high-performance cores with a speed clocked at 3.23GHz and four Blizzard power-efficiency cores with a speed clocked at 1.82GHz. However, the GPU on both phones is different. The Apple GPU used in the iPhone 14 has 5-cores while that of the iPhone 13 has 4-cores. So, there is an extra GPU core available in the iPhone 14.
The iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 have the same RAM and storage options. The RAM option available on both iPhones is 4GB and the storage option is up to 512B (starts at 128GB of storage). There is no space for storage expansion via a microSD card slot.
See Also: Apple iPhone 14 models debut with important and useful features
Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Software
Apple iPhone 14 boots iOS 16 out of the box while the Apple iPhone 13 boots iOS 15 out of the box. However, the iPhone 13 is currently getting the iOS 16 updates. The iPhone 14 will get about five more years of software updates while the iPhone 13 will get four. Apps and games are downloaded from the Apple App store and you can also get software updates via OTA.
The software and user experience on both iPhones are really good. The user navigation and animations are smooth and there is no lag or frequent hang of the device. Although the screen is a 60Hz panel, interaction with Apps responds fast and this adds to the fluidity of using both phones.
See Also: Apple Watch Series 8 Price in UK and Availability
Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Battery Charging & Sensors
A 3240mAh battery powers the iPhone 13 while a 3,279mAh battery powers the iPhone 14. This is about a 30mAh increase a battery capacity. The charging features of the battery on both iPhones are the same. Available charging features include 15W MagSafe wireless charging, 27W wired fast charging, USB Power Delivery 2.0, and 7.5W Qi magnetic fast wireless charging.
The sensors available in both iPhones are Face ID, NFC, Apple Pay (Visa, MasterCard, AMEX certified), and Ultra Wideband (UWB) support. The sensors exclusive to only the iPhone 14 are Emergency SOS via satellite (SMS sending/receiving), Crash Detection, and eSIM support only for users in the United States.
See Also: iPhone 14 Price in UK and Availability
Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Price
The starting price of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 is $799. The price of the iPhone 14 might be a little more in other regions because those models will have space for SIM cards. It’s also important to note that the price of the iPhone 13 might drop below $799 now that the iPhone 14 is out.
| iPhone 14 | Price |
| Buy on Amazon(UK) | £849 |
| Buy on Amazon(EUR) | €999 |
| Buy iPhone 13 | Price |
| Buy on Gazelle | $769.00 |
Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13: Summary
| Specs | iPhone 14 | iPhone 13 |
| Display | 6.1-inches, OLED | 6.1-inches, OLED |
| RAM | 4GB | 4GB |
| Storage | up to 512GB | up to 512GB |
| Back Camera | 12MP + 12MP | 12MP + 12MP |
| Front Camera | 12MP + SL 3D | 12MP + SL 3D |
| Chipset | Apple A15 Bionic | Apple A15 Bionic |
| Software | Apple iOS 16 | Apple iOS 15 |
| Battery | Unspecified | 4,352mAh(27W) |
| IP Rating | IP68 | IP68 |
The Apple iPhone 14 vs iPhone 13 specs comparison has shown that the iPhone 14 is an iPhone 13 with a little touch of iPhone 13 Pro Max. The iPhone 14 has the same design, the same display, and the same CPU as the iPhone 13. But it featured a larger 12MP sensor, more camera features, an extra GPU core, Emergency SOS via satellite (SMS sending/receiving), and Crash Detection, and these features are not available in the iPhone 13.
So, is the iPhone 14 better than the iPhone 13, in some ways, YES, but the overall value for money is the same. Based on this comparison, I won’t advise iPhone 13 users to upgrade to iPhone 14 as moving from iPhone 13 to iPhone 13 Pro Max is a much better upgrade. But for first-time buyers who are on a budget, the iPhone 14 is a better device to buy ahead of the iPhone 13.
