Value Plus, plus
The iPhone Mini was a wild and wonderful experiment from Apple. Combine the sleek design of the original iPhone 5 and cram in the latest and greatest from Apple to make the cutest iPhone ever. Judging by how many we see of them in the wild (only one by this writer), the Mini experiment was a mini failure.
Though Apple still sells the iPhone 13 Mini, its discontinuation this year in the iPhone 14 line up speaks volumes.
While the Mini may not have enjoyed succcess, we suspect the Plus will be a very popular option for consumers, the reason? It's the anthithesis of the Mini. A big, big phone that was previously only accessible for the Pro Max market with the Pro Max price tag.
Battery for days, no really
Size matters and the 6.7-inch phone, once thought to be too big, is now a standard size in the smartphone world. It's large enough to view content or play games more comfortably yet small enough to use one handed.
We'll admit it does look a little large on some smaller hands, but even if you can't hold it comfortably in one hand, the benefits of the larger screen outweigh the convenience of one-handed use at this point.
The biggest benefit of the added size though is the obvious improvemment in battery life. Previously, only the iPhone Pro Max series enjoyed the reliable (and actual) all-day battery life. Now this same feature has arrived on the vanilla iPhone with the iPhone 14 Plus.
In our use, we managed to squeeze out two days before needing a charge on moderate use: Waze, YouTube, Whatsapp, and emails. Though it's a habit for most of us to charge our phones every night, it was nice to just let your worries go for once and just leave your phone on the table at bed time.
According to MacRumours, the iPhone 14 Plus and the iPhone 14 Pro Max share the same battery capacity at 4,325 mAh (the smaller models are rated at 3279 mAh for the 14 and 3200 mAh for Pro).
We're going to assume shoppers in the vanilla isle of iPhones aren't too bothered about camera features or processing power so for people who just want a battery that lasts, this is the one to beat.
A Big Deal
At RM4,699 the iPhone 14 Plus is a bargain when compared to the Pro Max at RM5,799. For RM1,100 less, you enjoy the same long, long battery life that was exclusive to the Max series and the same screen real estate.
Admittedly RM4,699 is still expensive for... anything really, but in the Apple world, it's a rare case of more bang for your buck. Let's face it, three cameras are cool and all, but how many people need to shoot in RAW, much less require a telephoto lens. Just walk two steps forward and you save RM1,100 just like that.
Figuratively, the iPhone 14 Plus is a big deal because Apple had previously walled off the more desirable, bigger-sized phone to the Max price range to court users who were not price sensitive and were simply looking for the longest-lasting phone and a bigger screen.
With the introduction of the Plus, Apple is showing more and more that they're listening to customer demands, and as we've previously covered, repairability has also been improved.
That said, maybe they're preparing for an Ultra phone next year that will increase the size of the phone even more and introduce an even larger battery so the iPhone 14 Plus was made just the whet our appetites with the potential of a large phone.
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The iPhone 14 Plus ships today and costs RM4,699 (128GB), RM5,199 (256GB), and RM6,199 (512GB).
Would we recommend you find an iPhone 13 Pro Max instead for the same price? Well, the iPhone 13 Pro Max offers plenty of advantages over the vanilla 14 Plus, i.e., 120Mhz refresh rate, better (and heavier) stainless steel body, one extra camera, and Pro camera capture ability.
But if you're shopping in this segment, would you really care about these Pro features? Are these features worth the fact that you'll be buying an older phone?
Our theory is that Apple doesn't sell phones because of its features (Android phones usually come up with features first), what Apple actually sells, is sex appeal. Apple sells exclusivity and the feeling of being an insider.
So, from a practical stand point, the iPhone 13 Pro Max is the obvious choice. But, if you're not bothered about features, we'd still recommend the iPhone 14 Plus as the upgrade.