In what appears to have change into an annual custom, the spring season will start with a brand new iPhone.
No, it’s not an all-new mannequin, but it surely’s a recent seasonal shade — yellow — that’s positive to seize your consideration.
Accessible throughout the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus lineup, this new yellow end simply hit cabinets this week. Previous to the launch, I had the chance to spend some hands-on time with the iPhone 14 Plus in yellow.
Not solely have I warmed as much as the daring new shade, however I’ve additionally been impressed with the cellphone itself.
It is probably not as highly effective because the higher-end iPhone 14 Professional and iPhone 14 Professional Max. Nonetheless, it packs rather a lot into a light-weight and extra reasonably priced bundle (beginning at $799) that ought to make it successful with vacationers.
Right here’s why.
Greatest-ever battery life
Should you’re something like me, you could be (a tiny bit) obsessive about ensuring you don’t run out of juice whereas on the highway.
Personally, which means scouting out energy shops on the airport or toting round an exterior battery pack to verify my cellphone is at all times charged. As a final resort, I’ll interact Apple’s “Low Energy Mode” on the iPhone, however this function comes with degraded efficiency to attenuate battery utilization.
Happily, vacationers will not want to fret about that with the bigger iPhone 14 Plus. Apple says this mannequin packs the longest-ever battery lifetime of any iPhone, and this declare may be very a lot substantiated in my expertise.
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I’ve had no drawback reaching practically a day and a half of fairly constant utilization throughout productiveness, social media, journey and digital camera apps with no need to recharge.
That’s fairly spectacular and maybe purpose sufficient for some highway warriors to go for the iPhone 14 Plus over some other mannequin.
Should you go for the entry-level iPhone 14, you may anticipate as much as 20 hours of battery life which ought to nonetheless assist most vacationers get by their journey.
Greater, higher screens
“Plus” doesn’t simply confer with a bigger battery. It additionally means the system has a 6.7-inch Tremendous Retina XDR show, providing you with much more room to take pleasure in content material if you’re on the go.
Whether or not you utilize the additional display screen actual property to immerse your self in a recreation or peruse the inflight leisure programming, it received’t take lengthy to understand the bigger show.
Higher but, I discovered the larger cellphone doesn’t truly really feel a lot bulkier. It weighs simply 7.16 ounces, and it suits completely in my hand. I do not thoughts sacrificing a little bit of portability for a bigger show and longer battery life, however that’s a private choice each traveler might want to make.
The 6.1-inch iPhone 14 additionally contains a crisp Tremendous Retina XDR show.
One function from Apple’s higher-end iPhones you will not discover on the usual 14 and 14 Plus fashions is a ProMotion show. This enables content material to scroll extra easily between pages. One other draw back is that the show brightness on the entry-level fashions is not as excessive as on the costlier Professional units — a distinction that is instantly noticeable when the solar is shining open air.
For many informal vacationers, nevertheless, these two options alone will not be well worth the $200 improve to a Professional mannequin.
Spectacular efficiency
I lately attended a gaming showcase the place some iOS builders confirmed off their newest video games.
Whereas I’m not a severe gamer myself, I left the showcase most impressed by how effectively Apple’s entry-level iPhone 14 fashions rendered the video games. When enjoying round with “Name of Responsibility: Warzone Cellular,” the iPhone 14 had no drawback maintaining with the tens of millions of inside computations wanted to show the sport with out lag or overheating.
This efficiency is powered by Apple’s proprietary A15 Bionic chip — the identical pro-level silicon that powered final yr’s iPhone 13 Professional.
For the common person, A15 is loads highly effective. It takes simply seconds to make batch edits and render movies in iMovie — two superior duties that almost all informal vacationers could have no hassle acting on these units.
Emergency SOS
Knock on wooden, Emergency SOS through satellite tv for pc is a function you’ll hopefully by no means want to make use of. Nonetheless, the function may save your life if you happen to, sadly, want it.
This function helps you to join with emergency companies utilizing satellites, even if you happen to’re far off the grid with out mobile or Wi-Fi service.
Each iPhone 14, together with the entry-level fashions, has built-in satellite tv for pc connectivity — a game-changer for many who are sometimes trekking or adventuring off the overwhelmed path.
Even if you are going to buy your iPhone within the U.S., you may interact Emergency SOS through satellite tv for pc in 12 nations (and counting) — together with Canada and lots of the largest nations in Europe. This makes it a terrific insurance coverage coverage on your summer season trip.
Even if you happen to don’t want emergency help, you should utilize satellite tv for pc connectivity to ship your location to family members again dwelling by the Discover My app.
Though you received’t have the ability to name or textual content them, having the ability to ship your location ought to assist reassure your loved ones and mates that you simply’re doing effectively in your tenting journey.
For extra about utilizing Emergency SOS through satellite tv for pc, you should definitely try TPG’s devoted information.
No extra bodily SIM playing cards
For the previous 15 years, each iPhone mannequin has shipped with a bodily SIM (brief for subscriber identification module) card slot.
These tiny chips comprise the knowledge wanted to connect with the mobile community. Nonetheless, they’ve change into a ache to handle — particularly if you’re touring overseas and fumbling round with a number of nano-size SIM playing cards throughout your journey.
Plus, bodily SIMs are much less safe. In case your cellphone will get misplaced or stolen, somebody may take away your SIM card to start out making calls and texts (and receiving two-factor authentication codes) together with your cellphone quantity.
This yr, each iPhone 14 offered within the U.S. is dropping the bodily SIM slot in favor of the brand new eSIM (or embedded SIM) commonplace.
With this innovation, you may retailer at the least eight digital SIM playing cards instantly in your cellphone. This implies you will not must shuffle round with a number of 9-millimeter-by-12-millimeter chips.
You possibly can change between cellphone numbers instantly in iOS, and you may even obtain low-cost worldwide plans by apps like Airalo, Truphone and GigSky.
Actually, the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus each help twin SIM, which means you may join to 2 cell networks concurrently. It is a key function to avoiding the pesky $10-a-day roaming fees with AT&T and Verizon.
Crash detection
In recent times, Apple’s been busy constructing health- and safety-focused options throughout its total cellphone and watch lineup.
With the introduction of Crash Detection within the iPhone 14 household, you may be reassured that your smartphone can detect a extreme automotive crash and routinely dial emergency companies if obligatory.
Similar to Emergency SOS through satellite tv for pc, this can be a function you hope by no means to make use of. Nonetheless, it may possibly deliver vacationers additional peace of thoughts when hitting the highway.
Backside line
Apple’s iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus are phenomenal smartphones for the on a regular basis traveler — they usually now are available a daring new yellow shade.
They each pack many must-have options, together with the introduction of eSIM-only mobile connectivity. The actual star of the present is the Plus mannequin, which is Apple’s first entry-level mannequin to supply a 6.7-inch touchscreen.
It additionally packs the longest-ever battery life in an iPhone, making it a terrific possibility for vacationers who’re regularly on the go.
Emergency SOS through satellite tv for pc and built-in crash detection are two important safety-related options that may be notably comforting to solo vacationers or these heading to distant locations.
In fact, some heavy smartphone customers and creatives may wish to splurge for the top-of-the-line Professional fashions. Nonetheless, until you want the digital camera and show enhancements, the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus ought to match the invoice fairly effectively.
