If your iPhone 11 is looking a little outdated, you may be thinking about swapping to the iPhone 14 when it arrives this fall. Three years is a long time between handsets, so what do we expect for the new iPhone 14, and how does that compare to the iPhone 11?
The iPhone 11 series was itself a big step forward, introducing us to pro-grade iPhones with the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max and enhancements like Night mode photography and the Apple U1 ultra wideband chip. But the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro are expected to use a newer flat-sided design, updated cameras, more powerful, 5G-ready chips, bigger batteries and better displays. All of those changes together could make the iPhone 11 series look quite dated.
So if you’re thinking about upgrading your phone this fall, take a look at our comparison below. If you need a new iPhone right now, then check our iPhone 13 vs. iPhone 11 comparison to see what the differences are for those models.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 11: Price
Going by the iPhone 13 models currently on sale, we should see the iPhone 14 cost around $799/£779, while the iPhone 14 Pro would sell for $999/£949. That would put the iPhone 14 Pro Max at $1,099/£1,049.
The new iPhone 14 Max model we’re apparently getting should slot somewhere in the middle, perhaps around the $899/£879 mark. However, rumors of a price hike mean those numbers could end up higher, particularly for the iPhone 14 Pro models, which could see a $100 hike.
Currently, you can still buy the iPhone 11 from Apple for a budget-friendly $499/£489, while the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max are no part of Apple’s product line. When the iPhone 14 series goes on sale, it’s likely that the iPhone 11’s going to get dropped, too.
While you’ll probably still find some iPhone 11 models, including the two Pro versions, hanging around in stores for less than the iPhone 14 range, they’re likely to be in short supply. You can always use the refurbished market for iPhone 11s with restored bodies and new batteries if you wish too.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 11: Design
The iPhone 11 series was the last of the Face ID iPhones to have curved sides, while the iPhone 14 is expected to continue the flat-sided design from the iPhone 13 family. So while the iPhone 11 and iPhone 14 may look similar from the front, they’ll feel quite different to hold in your hand
On the back, the dual or triple camera block will only be slightly different. The iPhone 14 and 14 Max will probably both get two diagonally-arranged cameras, making them look different from the vertically stacked sensors on the iPhone 11. The triangular pattern of cameras on the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max should be the same as on the iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max, but there will likely be a big size difference considering how large the lenses on the iPhone 13 Pro models are.
The base iPhone 14 is thought to be the same size as the standard iPhone 11 at 6.1 inches. However, the iPhone 14 Pro models are believed to be a bit larger than the iPhone 11 Pro counterparts, measuring 6.1 inches for the Pro and 6.7 inches for the Pro Max, as opposed to 5.8 inches and 6.5 inches.
There’s no direct comparison for the rumored iPhone 14 Max model, but at 6.7 inches it’ll also feel larger than even the iPhone 11 Pro Max.
Although the iPhone 11 was made of toughened glass on the back and front, it missed out on the Ceramic Shield glass Apple introduced on the iPhone 12 and continued to use with the iPhone 13. This likely means the iPhone 14 will have Ceramic Shield glass too, making it substantially tougher than the iPhone 11.
We aren’t sure what the iPhone 14 colors will be yet, but there will likely be basic black, white and Product Red options for the base models, and silver, graphite grey and gold for the Pro models, as there were for the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro. The iPhone 11 also offers yellow, purple and green colors, while the iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max had a darker matte green option.
The only rumored new color for the iPhone 14 is purple, with two different versions for Pro and non-Pro. There may also be a new sky blue option for the regular iPhone models, replacing the darker blue currently offered with the iPhone 13.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 11: Display
While the iPhone 11’s display should be the same size as the iPhone 14’s, the underlying tech will most likely be different. All iPhone 13 models use OLED panels instead of the iPhone 11’s LCD, which makes for better color and greater power efficiency. We’d expect the iPhone 14 series to use OLED too.
Beyond the size differences, the biggest upgrade between the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro is the new rumored notch design. Instead of the rounded rectangle, the iPhone 14 Pro models could turn to a combination of punch-hole and pill-shaped cutouts to give back more of the display.
There’s also ProMotion, which debuted on the iPhone 13 Pro and seems a given for the iPhone 14 Pro too. This lets the display crank its refresh rate all the way up to 120Hz, which makes swiping around the iPhone’s interface much smoother. Building on the current version, the iPhone 14 Pro’s ProMotion could also enable an always-on display for convenient at-a-glance information according to some sources.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 11: Cameras
Starting with the base models, we should see two 12MP cameras, serving main and ultrawide roles, on the back of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Max, like there are on the iPhone 11, only with updated sensors and optics. Apple replaced the 7MP camera on the front of the iPhone 11 with a 12MP version for the iPhone 12, and that should be carried through to the iPhone 14.
The iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max had three 12MP cameras on the back, combined with main, ultrawide and 2x telephoto lenses. The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max should differ in two key ways. First, the main camera is said to be getting updated to a higher-resolution 48MP sensor, allowing for extra detail and light in photos. Second, we’d expect the iPhone 14 Pro to keep the 3x telephoto camera from the iPhone 13 Pro, beating the iPhone 11’s max optical magnification by 50%.
Also, since the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro use LiDAR scanners, we’ll probably see them on the iPhone 14 Pro, too. These help out with AR apps, 3D scanning and photo effects, and are something the iPhone 11 Pro lacks entirely.
Apple’s also introduced a lot of Camera app software improvements since the iPhone 11 launched. That means we should see things like night mode portraits, Cinematic mode video on all iPhone 14 models, and macro mode and ProRAW/ProRES on the iPhone 14 Pro models that the iPhone 11 can’t match, plus whatever new photo/video abilities Apple introduces this year.
We shouldn’t see any changes to the front cameras. Both iPhone 11 Pro models had 12MP sensors, and that didn’t change for the iPhone 12 or iPhone 13. Without any rumors saying different, we’re expecting the same for the iPhone 14 Pro.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 11: Performance and 5G
As powerful as the A13 chip in the iPhone 11 series was in its day, Apple’s A15 chips used in the iPhone 13 are already way ahead in terms of performance. That’s good since the basic iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Max could also use these chips rather than getting updated silicon, according to some sources.
The iPhone 14 Pro models will reportedly turn to a new Apple A16 processor, though, which will likely increase the performance gap even further. That’ll be compounded by the increased RAM tipped for all iPhone 14 models (8GB), which should allow for much smoother multitasking than the 4GB in the iPhone 11 could.
The default storage for all iPhone 11 models was a paltry 64GB. In more recent times, Apple’s been selling 128GB iPhones by default, with the option of going up to 1TB of storage on the Pro models. We should see this again on the iPhone 14 series, which is good news if you’re running out of room for photos.
Apple only introduced 5G to its phones with the iPhone 12, meaning that all three iPhone 11s are stuck with 4G compatibility only. While that’s not a dealbreaker right now, you’ll notice a lack of download/upload speed on cell networks compared to other phones as coverage increases.
The iPhone 14 line will certainly be 5G-ready. Sadly they are rumored to miss out on both the new Qualcomm 5G modem and Apple’s rumored first 5G modem, but they’ll likely still work with the latest network standard just fine.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 11: Battery and charging
Apple gave all iPhone 13 models a considerable increase to battery size compared to the iPhone 12 and iPhone 11, and the rumors suggest that those capacities aren’t changing much for the iPhone 14 range. That means they’ll probably still be quite a bit larger than the iPhone 11’s batteries, and as a result, last longer on a single charge.
We’ve not heard anything about new charging standards for the iPhone 14, so we should see 20W wired charging and 15W MagSafe wireless charging support on all models. The iPhone 11 series can charge up to 18W wired, and up to 7.5W wirelessly with no support for Apple’s magnetic charging pucks. That’ll make the iPhone 14 faster and simpler to power up when needed.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 11: Software
The iPhone 11 series shipped with iOS 13 but will be able to update all the way to iOS 16, when that software arrives in the fall. iOS 16 will be the default software on the iPhone 14 when those devices start shipping.
However, as a newer phone, the iPhone 14 will continue to get OS updates when Apple decides to drop support for the iPhone 11. That’s likely still a few years off, but it’s something that may influence your buying decision.
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 11: Outlook
Unsurprisingly, the three-year gap between iPhone 11 and iPhone 14 means that the iPhone 14 is going to be an overall worthwhile upgrade if you’re looking for the best overall performance, photography, battery life and display.
However, the new iPhones are going to be more expensive and larger than the equivalent iPhone 11. Also, their 5G-ready chips may not yet be a key selling point to users who live a long way outside current coverage areas.
With big things promised for 2023’s iPhone 15, like a periscope telephoto lens for even better zoom performance, it could be worth holding out another year so you get to join in on the next big iPhone update. However, if you’re looking to upgrade sooner than that, there seems to be little to hold you back from moving from an iPhone 11 to an iPhone 14 once the new phones arrive.