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It’s time to make the regular iPhone more Pro
If there’s one thing that we learned from the launch of the iPhone 14, it’s that Apple is creating more space between the regular iPhones and the Pro lineup. And I’m telling you right now that this gap needs to close with the iPhone 15.
Reports that the iPhone 14 and iPone 14 Plus sales are slow compared to the Pro models are not a fluke. As you’ll see in our iPhone 14 vs iPhone 14 Pro comparison, the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max have lots of features the standard iPhones lack. We’re talking about everything from the Dynamic Island and always-on display to the new 48MP main camera on the iPhone 14 Pro.
I think Apple should course correct with the iPhone 15 and make it more “Pro” in order for more people to care. Here are 5 fixes and upgrades the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus need to stand out.
There is one wrinkle, though. The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max/Ultra are tipped to offer faster transfer speeds than the regular iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus. As long as they all offer speedier charging speeds — an area where Apple has fallen behind Android phones — I’ll be happy.
I’m sorry, but in 2023 a 60Hz phone display is not going to cut it.
The iPhone 15 could find a middle ground and offer a 90Hz display, which would make for smoother scrolling and animations. Heck, the Pixel 7 sports a 90Hz display for just $599, or $200 less than the iPhone 14. Or Apple could offer a 120Hz panel that isn’t dynamic, where it can’t scale all the way down to 1Hz. But I doubt that would happen.
So where would that leave the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus? I would very much like Apple to hand down the telephoto zoom on the current iPhone 14 Pros to the iPhone 15 lineup. So you’d get a 3x optical zoom and 15x digital zoom.
The regular Galaxy S22 packs a telephoto lens for $799 with 3x zoom and 30x digital zoom. So why can’t the iPhone 15? Even if this doesn’t happen, it’s nice that the iPhone 15 is rumored to get the same 48MP main sensor (opens in new tab) as the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max.
Here’s one rumor that could very well come true. The regular iPhone 15 is tipped to feature the same Dynamic Island (opens in new tab) as the iPhone 14 Pro series. This replacement for the notch delivers real-time alerts and Live activities on the fly, which is pretty clever. And Apple has opened up this feature to developers, so you can get things like sports scores on the go.
I’m pretty confident the Dynamic Island will trickle down to the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus so Apple can make the most of this feature and more developers get on board with optimizing their apps to take full advantage.
After testing all four models of the iPhone 14 for battery life (opens in new tab) , it was clear that the regular iPhone 14 was bringing up the rear. It lasted for a decent-but-not-great 9 hours and 28 minutes. That beat the Galaxy S22 (8:02) and Pixel 7 (7:14), but the iPhone 14 Pro turned in a longer 10:13.
Assuming that the iPhone 15 gets the hand-me-down A16 Bionic chip from the iPhone 14 Pro series, it should be able to last longer on a charge. The iPhone 14 Plus lasted a very good 11:57, but that was still a ways behind the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which endured for 13:39 and made our best phone battery life list.
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Mark Spoonauer is the global editor in chief of Tom’s Guide and has covered technology for over 20 years. In addition to overseeing the direction of Tom’s Guide, Mark specializes in covering all things mobile, having reviewed dozens of smartphones and other gadgets. He has spoken at key industry events and appears regularly on TV to discuss the latest trends, including Cheddar, Fox Business and other outlets. Mark was previously editor in chief of Laptop Mag, and his work has appeared in Wired, Popular Science and Inc. Follow him on Twitter at @mspoonauer.
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