iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max: Consequential

(STICK TO THE VERY END OF THIS ONE. IT'S GOING TO BE VERY SPECIAL)

The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max are the most consequential iPhones since the iPhone X in 2017. The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max were the saving grace for the Apple Event on September 7th, 2022. People had a lot of expectations from these iPhones and were right to have expectations after hearing such depressing rumours about the standard 14 and 14 Plus. The internet was flooded with rumours and people were biting their nails and breaking into production plants to find out whatever little piece of information they could find about the Pro models. It is hard to keep secrets when your phones are the most recognizable in the world and thousands of people are involved in its manufacturing even before the event takes place.

Enough context about the Pro models. Let's get right into them. They've got a major design makeover. The back remains largely the same and the cameras bulge out even more than before and we've got a new colour name deep purple which is a lot darker than how it appeared in the renders which showed a light purple-lilac. Sort of like the iPhone 12's purple. The screens are completely different - both on and under as we know it. The display can now refresh as low as 1Hz which would save a lot of battery and make the phone more efficient when you are reading an article and are not scrolling. The ability to refresh as low as 1Hz also means that the Pro Models are finally getting an always-on display.

They have been made possible only because of this more efficient LTPO display. Unlike Android phones which have a new interface and set of widgets and clocks configuration for always-on display, the iPhone only dims the lock screen. This means that all the information you normally like to see on your Lock screen will now be available to you all the time. It is one of the brightest always-on displays that I have ever come across and is certainly the most detailed and customizable. The always-on display has been designed to prevent colour and skin tones so that the wallpapers do not appear washed off. This was certainly one of the anticipated features and Apple delivered it spectacularly as usual.

The size options remain the same - Pro(6.1 inches) and Pro Max(6.7 inches). People have been praying for it for 5 years and they have finally dropped the notch. They have dropped the notch in favour of a pill-shaped cutout instead of the rumoured pill-shaped and hole punch cutout. They were able to fit a lot of sensors and components required for Face-ID authentication behind the display while retaining the highest security standards. They call the new cutout "Dynamic Island". It may sound over-engineered at first but fits the description almost perfectly. It is a new way to interact with the iPhone and moves beyond the mere aesthetic appeal of the pill-shaped cutout. The display has a peak brightness of 2000 nits when playing HDR content and is the highest smartphone on the planet.

Dynamic Island is an interactive space that accommodates shortcuts to the apps you are currently using. It provides information at a glance and does away with the hassle of switching apps to track progress. It can show directions, run timers, show incoming and ongoing calls, show notifications, signify airdrop and a lot more. All native Apple apps support it and 3rd party app developers are also encouraged to optimise messages, functions, and settings and take advantage of Dynamic Island. You can tap and interact with Dynamic Island, enlarge it to see more information and it can show 2 ongoing things such as a timer running while you Airdrop photos to your friend.

The casing is still stainless steel and titanium as it was believed. Although it would have made the phone lighter, it would have also driven up costs and that's the last thing we want from Apple. There's also no 2TB option. I still feel 1TB is enough even for the most intensive camera users. Even if you record a lot of 4K 60fps videos and take many PRO RAW pictures, 1TB is still a lot for all of this. If you require more storage than this, you seriously need to reconsider your phone usage and maybe take a look at your screen time under settings. We knew it would not happen but were still secretly hoping for it. USB-C did not make its way to the iPhone making it even more plausible that Apple may drop a charging port altogether next year with the iPhone 15.

The battery has been slightly improved thanks to the industry-leading A16 chip which is featured on the Pro models. iPhone 13 Pro Max was already a battery behemoth and champ. The iPhone 14 Pro Max only seems to win battery tests by bigger margins and leaves people wondering if a smartphone can have the battery of a feature phone. The more advanced LTPO display also contributes to improved efficiency. Apple's silicone cell chips are already touted as industry-leading and are ahead of the competition by at least 3 years. The A16 is about 20% faster than the A15. You don't get any better than this. Trust me on this one!!! There are 6 gigs of RAM and we expect the battery size to be a little over 4300mAh for the Pro Max.

Apple did not stress as much on the camera as they did last year even though the upgrades are bigger. There's a 48-megapixel main camera which is up to 3X improvement in low light conditions. There are 4 focal lengths to shoot the camera at without using digital zoom - 0.5X, 1X, 2X and 3X. All 3 cameras have been improved with special emphasis on resolution, detail and low light performance. The sensors are a lot larger than before. Up to 65% larger. I would have for someone in my family to buy a Pro iPhone before I can say a lot about the camera. I want to see how much of an improvement there is over the 13 Pro. You can now shoot cinematic videos at 4K 24fps. Action mode is welcome on iPhone. It is a super-stabilization mode for your camera and is used while recording videos. It produces gimble-like stabilization and drastically reduces unsolicited upward and downward shaking in the videos.

Crash detection is a feature I hope you never have to use. It can detect when you have been in a crash and automatically alert emergency services such as ambulance and police. It will also send out alerts to your emergency contacts and share your location with them. There's SOS communication via satellite as well. You point your phone towards a satellite using an in-built app to send SOS messages in places where cellular services are non-existent. There should be a clear sky and you must maintain the established connection with the satellite until the message can be transmitted and it usually takes about a minute or two. This feature would be really useful for hikers and explorers except it would only be available in the US and Canada for free for 2 years, beyond which you would have to pay a subscription fee. Ah yes, no sim tray anymore in the US models.

Apple has missed the bull's eye with the pricing this time. It still starts at $1000 for the base pro model in the US and goes all the way to $1600 for the 1TB Pro Max spec. I love Apple for not raising prices this year despite record inflation and supply chain issues but this strategy did not somehow apply to India. In India, the prices of the Pro models have been hiked by another 10,000Rs. They now start at 130,000Rs and rise to 190,000Rs. That's an extreme 62.5% premium over the US counterpart. Without any credible reasoning and justification behind this misstep, I would not recommend getting the Pro models from India. They are a waste of time. The new display may be enticing but it's not worth 50,000Rs extra. Get the 14 Plus instead.

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A dreamer who changed the world.

I am delighted to announce that for the past 6 months, I have been working with a non-profit organization called Yuva Yodha. Here's Anaika Pathak and Bhuwan Jaiswal describing their incredible organization:

Yuva Yoddha is a student-led nonprofit organization started by CMS(City Montessori School) students. Yuva Yoddha is aimed at engaging the youth in working for different causes. We believe that students can be a powerful force, largely untapped so far, but one that can play a major role in bringing a positive impact on society. We currently have more than 50 CMS students and even alumni working with us and have received recognition from the D.M., S.D.M., and many media houses for our selfless efforts throughout the past year. Our past projects include working on the conservation of Uttar Pradesh's state bird, Sarus, which is a vulnerable species. We conducted awareness campaigns in remote areas of Uttar Pradesh and were successful in saving a huge number of birds from ill-fate.

On 12 June 2022, we started our campaign "Nirbhik" to promote women's empowerment by creating awareness of menstrual hygiene and distributing sanitary napkin kits as an attempt to encourage women to use pads instead of an unhygienic substitute. Apart from the distribution, we also talked to these women and realized that periods are still not talked about openly and we have a long way to go before menstruation is not treated as a taboo but as a sign of strength.

It is one of our motives to help the weaker sections of the social progress and have a better tomorrow. Interacting in slums made us realize that we as a country could be a lot more successful if our youth gets a basic education, enough to exercise their duties and fight for their rights at least.

We have been visiting a slum area near the LDA colony itself, and our team interacts with about 100 children every week. We talked to their parents who cannot afford education and were supportive of our endeavours.

Here is a link to our social media handles!

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/yuvayoddha/

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/YuvaYoddha

We have currently expanded over three cities - Banaras, Lucknow and Ghaziabad, and are looking forward to creating an impact big enough. Your support means a lot to us, for we are your students and guidance goes a long way.