Apple iPhone 14 vs Apple iPhone 12: Should you upgrade?
The iPhone 14 is finally here, and it’s not too different from its predecessor, save for satellite connectivity and slightly better cameras. If you’re rocking an iPhone 13, there’s no need to upgrade, as improvements are not there to warrant a jump. But what if you’re holding an iPhone 12? Should you upgrade to the newest model? Or if you’re in the market for a new iPhone, should you pick up the latest and greatest iPhone 14 or save money and grab an iPhone 12 at a good discount? There’s only one way to find out.
Apple iPhone 14 vs Apple iPhone 12: Specifications
| Specification | Apple iPhone 14 | Apple iPhone 12 |
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| Dimensions & Weight |
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| Display |
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| SoC |
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| RAM & Storage |
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| Battery & Charging |
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| Security |
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| Rear Camera(s) |
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| Front Camera(s) | TrueDepth camera: 12MP, ƒ/1.9 | TrueDepth camera: 12MP, ƒ/2.2 |
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| Audio |
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| Connectivity |
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| Software |
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| Other Features |
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Design & Display
The iPhone 14 and iPhone 12 may be two generations apart, but they have a lot in common in the design department. They’re about the same size, have flat sides, and feature a glass and aluminum body. The most notable bit that gives each phone its identity is the camera arrangement on the back. The iPhone 12 has vertically stacked cameras inside a square module, while the iPhone 14 has it diagonally arranged (not for aesthetic but technical reasons, as the new sensor-shift OIS mechanism requires larger space.)
The iPhone 14 is also thicker and heavier than the iPhone 12. Otherwise, both are pretty similar, featuring Ceramic Shield on the front and IP68 dust and water resistance. The similarities between the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 also carry over to the display segment. Both phones offer 6.1-inch OLED panels with 1170 x 2532 resolution, Dolby Vision support, and 1200 nits peak brightness. The only notable difference is that the iPhone 14 can reach max brightness of 800 nits while the iPhone 12’s panel tops out at 650 nits. In simple words, the iPhone 14 will be more readable under direct sunlight than the iPhone 12.
Cameras
While the iPhone 14 and iPhone 12 both feature dual 12MP + 12MP cameras, they’re very different camera systems. Let’s start with the main camera first; the iPhone 12 uses a 12MP f/1.6 main shooter with OIS and 1.4μm pixel size. Meanwhile, the iPhone 14 has a 12MP shooter with a faster f/1.5 aperture and a larger 1.9μm pixel size. In addition, it also has more advanced sensor-shift optical stabilization.
Coming to the ultra-wide shooter, both phones share the same 12MP f/2.4 camera with a 120-degree field-of-view. As for selfies, both phones have 12MP front-facing cameras. However, the iPhone 14’s selfie shooter is more advanced as it has a faster aperture and autofocus. The iPhone 14 has a 12MP f/1.9 front camera with autofocus, while the iPhone 12 has a 12MP f/2.2 fixed-focus camera.
While both phones can shoot great shots under good lighting conditions, the iPhone 14 excels in low-light conditions thanks to the better hardware and Apple’s new Photonic Engine image pipeline.
As far as video shooting capabilities are concerned, the iPhone 14 and iPhone 12 can shoot 4K footage at 60fps from all three lenses. However, the iPhone 14 has additional video modes, such as Cinematic Mode and Action Mode, which are not available on the iPhone 12. It’s unlikely Apple will backport these features to older iPhone models such as the iPhone 13 and 12.
iPhone 14 camera samples
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- iPhone 14, main camera
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- iPhone 14, ultra-wide camera
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- iPhone 14, ultra-wide camera
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- iPhone 14 main camera (Night mode: On)
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- iPhone 14, main camera
iPhone 12 camera samples
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- iPhone 12 Pro main camera
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- iPhone 12, main camera
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- iPhone 12, main camera.
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- Night shot, main camera
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- Night shot, main camera
Performance, Battery life, and Software
The iPhone 14 is powered by an A15 Bionic chipset, the same chip that was inside the iPhone 13. Although this is a year-old processor, it is still better than most smartphone chipsets on the market, including Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. And with a new 5-core GPU, the iPhone 14 delivers 18% faster graphics performance than the iPhone 13.
As for the iPhone 12, it’s equipped with Apple’s A14 Bionic chipset, which, although not as powerful as the A15, is capable of handling most tasks and demanding games. In Geekbench 5, the iPhone 14 scored 1,714 and 4,567 in single-core and multi-core tests, while the iPhone 12 posted 1,323 and 3,793, respectively.
The iPhone 14 packs a larger 3,279mAh battery compared to the iPhone 12’s 2,815mAh cell, with Apple advertising up to 20 hours of video playback for the former and 17 hours for the latter. Both phones have the same charging speeds: 20W for wired, 15W for MagSafe, and 7.5W for Qi wireless charging.
On the software front, the iPhone 14 runs iOS 16 out of the box, while the iPhone 12 ships with 14.1 but is upgradable to iOS 16. Apple usually offers five years of software support for the iPhone lineup, so you can count on both phones getting iOS updates for several years. But since the iPhone 14 is a newer model, it’s better in terms of future-proofing.
Two notable features that you’ll only find on the iPhone 14 are basic satellite connectivity and Crash Detection. Satellite connectivity lets you get a message out to emergency services when you get lost or stuck in a remote place, and there’s no cellular connectivity. Meanwhile, the Crash Detection feature, as the name implies, can detect if you were in a car crash and can automatically notify emergency services and contacts. In addition, the iPhone 14 also drops the physical SIM tray in the US in favor of eSIM.
Both phones offer stereo speakers, Ultra Wideband (UWB) support, Face ID, and Wi-Fi 6 support.
iPhone 14 vs iPhone 12: Should you upgrade?
The iPhone 14 is better than the iPhone 12 in almost all areas, offering a brighter screen, a faster chipset, more capable cameras, and longer battery life. It also boasts basic satellite connectivity and Crash Detection. The iPhone 14 is a worthy upgrade for anyone coming from an iPhone 11 or an older model. But if you’re holding onto an iPhone 12, we would say wait for the iPhone 15, which will likely bring many exciting hardware upgrades, including Dynamic Island and better cameras.
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The iPhone 14 is powered by A15 Bionic chip and offers powerful cameras.
The iPhone 14 starts at $799 but can be had for much less using deals and discounts. Meanwhile, the iPhone 12 goes for $650 for the 128GB variant. We do not recommend picking up an iPhone 12 at this point since, for $50 more, you can get an iPhone 13, which is not only more future-proof but has pretty much the same hardware as the iPhone 14. So if you had to choose between the iPhone 12, 13, and 14 right now, our recommendation would be to go for the iPhone 13, then the iPhone 12. The iPhone 14 is great, but the iPhone 13 is better value, and the iPhone 12 is the cheapest that gets you a lot of the same goodies too. The iPhone 14 just doesn’t justify all the extra premium that is charged.
If you do pick up the iPhone 14, do check out some of the recommended cases and chargers.
