Apple iPhone 14 Philippines Price Starts at PHP 56,990 : Should You Upgrade To It?

At around 1AM today - September 8, 2022 - here in the Philippines, Apple Inc. formally introduced its much-anticipated 2022 iPhone Series via a special media event from Apple Park in San Francisco, California, USA.

Almost everything that Apple unveiled to the public about their newest handsets during that event had already been successfully leaked by various insiders over the past several months so really, there were very few surprises.

If you wish so, you may visit the TechPinas Youtube Channel for a rundown of all previous rumors we've collated about this year's iPhones.

Of the four models under the new Apple iPhone 14 Series, the base one or the Apple iPhone 14 is the most affordable, donning an official price tag starting at PHP 56,990 for the 128GB variant.

Apple iPhone 14 is available in five colorways, namely, Midnight, Starlight, Purple, Red, and Blue.

Note that every Apple iPhone 14 (PRODUCT)RED purchase now contributes directly to the Global Fund to Combat COVID‑19, which I'm sure many of you here would want to support.

The Blue and Purple shades of the iPhone 14 are very light and powdery -- even more subdued than pastel.

Midnight is a deep grey color while Starlight is like silver with a slightly warm tint.

Frankly, Apple iPhone 14 should look and feel a lot like the Apple iPhone 13 from 2021.

On the outside, the two handsets have the same aluminum midframe as well as scratch-resistant ceramic glass front and back panels.

Even their overall footprint and rear camera module design are near identical.

The similarity doesn't end there, though.

In terms of specs, they have the same 6.1-inch FullHD+ Super Retina XDR OLED display and 5nm Apple A15 Bionic Processor.

So how exactly is Apple iPhone 14 better than Apple iPhone 13 if they have the same screen and processor, you ask?

Let me give you a quick rundown of what I think is relatively good about this year's release.

1. It delivers up to 26 hours of video playback coming from a full charge versus just 19 hours on the iPhone 13. Overall, the iPhone 14 has far longer battery life.

2. The Dual Rear Camera module of the Apple iPhone 14 is more powerful than that of the iPhone 13. According to Apple, the Main Camera at the back has a larger sensor and features larger pixels for improved photo and video quality. On paper, it also has a wider aperture than the Main Camera of iPhone 13. On top of that, iPhone 14 even comes with the new Photonic Engine that improves mid-to-low-light stills performance across all cameras, including the Ultra-Wide cam as well as the Front-Facing shooter.

Note, however, that Apple didn't specify the exact sensor size of the iPhone 14's Main Camera and Ultra-Wide Camera at the back.

3. Apple iPhone 14's front-facing TrueDepth camera now has Phase Detection AutoFocus, which is far better than fixed focus on previous iPhones. This should enable better-looking self-portraits and even videos with HDR and a natural bokeh effect. Honestly, this is the iPhone 14 feature I am most excited about.

4. The 5-core Apple GPU of the iPhone 14 should provide smoother gameplay and graphics performance. iPhone 13 has the older 4-core GPU.

5. For users in US and Canada, iPhone 14 will let them experience Emergency SOS that combines custom components integrated with software allowing antennas to connect directly to a satellite to enable messaging with emergency services even when the user is outside of cellular or Wi-Fi coverage. This is particularly handy for those who like going on off-road adventures.

6. For video content creators, there's now an ultra-steady Action Mode (which has frankly been available on many Android smartphones way back) and Cinematic Mode (which allows you to play with bokeh effect when shooting clips) is now available in 4K 24 and 30fps.

So what do you think of those features? Do they make the iPhone 14 quite attractive for you? Should you upgrade to it?

Here's my opinion: If you're not open to trying out other brands and you're still using an iPhone that's older than the Apple iPhone 12, you might want to consider upgrading to the iPhone 14, especially if you don't want to spend more than PHP 70,000 on a new handset. But if you own an iPhone 13 or iPhone 13 mini, I suggest that you wait for the 2023 iPhone models or choose any of the two more expensive Pro models this year if you're already itching for an upgrade.

Oh, and let me add that with the official announcement of the iPhone 14, the starting price of the iPhone 13 has gone down to PHP 49,990, which makes it a pretty attractive offer too for those are still using an older iPhone model.

As of writing, Apple and its authorized retail partners in the Philippines have yet to announce the iPhone 14 Series' official local release date. However, users in US, UK, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, and the UAE as well as in more than 30 other countries and regions will already be able to Pre-Order their iPhone 14 units beginning at 5AM PDT on September 9, 2022. Apple iPhone 14 will be available in Malaysia, Turkey, and 20 other countries beginning Friday, September 23, 2022. Kindly stay tuned for updates.

PS: I will talk about the Apple iPhone 14 Plus, Apple iPhone 14 Pro, and Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max, separately. I will definitely share my thoughts on each of these models. I'm just currently recovering from a fever so please bear with me. Thanks!

Apple iPhone 14 Specs

146.7 x 71.5 x 7.8 mm

172 grams

Display:

6.1 inches, FullHD+, 1170 x 2532 pixels, 460 ppi, 19.5:9, Super Retina XDR OLED

HDR10

Dolby Vision

1200 nits Peak Brightness

Oleophobic Coating

Dual Rear Camera Module:

12 MegaPixels, f/1.5 Aperture, 26mm, Wide, 1.9µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, Sensor-Shift OIS

12 MegaPixels, f/2.4, 13mm, 120˚ Ultra-Wide

Dual-LED Dual-Tone Flash

HDR

Front-Facing Camera Module:

12 MegaPixels, f/1.9, 23mm, Wide, 1/3.6", PDAF

SL 3D Depth and Biometrics Sensor

HDR

Video Recorder:

Back - 4K 24/25/30/60fps, 1080p 25/30/60/120/240fps, HDR, Dolby Vision HDR (available up to 60fps), Cinematic mode (4K 30fps), Stereo Sound Recording

Front - 4K 24/25/30/60fps, 1080p 25/30/60/120fps, gyro-EIS

iOS 16

5nm 3.23GHz Hexa-Core Apple A15 Bionic

5-Core Apple GPU

6GB RAM

128GB, 256GB, 512GB NVMe

Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6

Bluetooth 5.3

4G LTE-A

5G

Stereo Speakers

Face ID

Gyroscope

Barometer

Emergency SOS via Satellite

No 3.5mm Audio Jack

Lightning Port

Non-Removable 3,279 mAh Li-Ion Battery Pack

26 Hours Video Playback

Fast Charging, 50% in 30 minutes

USB Power Delivery 2.0

MagSafe Wireless Charging 15W

Qi Magnetic Fast Wireless Charging 7.5W

Scratch-resistant Ceramic Glass Front and Back

Aluminum Mid-Frame

IP68 Certified Dust and Water Resistant

Midnight, Purple, Starlight, Blue, Red

Apple iPhone 14 Prices in the Philippines via Apple Website

128GB - PHP 56,990

256GB - PHP 63,990

512GB - PHP 75,990

Official Announcement - September 8, 2022, 1AM Philippine Time

Official Release Date in the Philippines - TBA