Apple has officially unveiled the iPhone 17 collection, bringing with it a flurry of upgrades that fix a few long-time complaints about Apple’s entry-level iPhone.
Unlike the iPhone 17 Pro, it still resembles recent models of the iPhone, which might lead some to wonder if it’s worth the upgrade.
While it might not be a smart move to jump from the iPhone 16 to iPhone 17, there’s a bigger difference for those rocking an older iPhone – like 2022’s iPhone 14. Compared to the three-year-old iPhone, there could be enough here to tempt users to upgrade.
Here’s how the iPhone 17 stacks up to the iPhone 14 based on specs, with our full in-depth comparison on the way once we’ve reviewed the latest iPhone.
Pricing and availability
The iPhone 14 launched in September 2022, starting at £849/$799, although it’s much cheaper to buy in 2025. We saw it for just £449 at the time of writing, and that’ll likely drop further in the coming weeks.
The iPhone 17, on the other hand, starts at the same $799 in the US and a cheaper £799 in the UK. Pre-orders are set to begin on 12 September, with the phone going on sale on 19 September.
The iPhone 17 looks a lot like the iPhone 16
The iPhone 17 Pro has received a massive redesign, featuring a significantly wider camera bump and a combination of glass and aluminium on the rear. However, the iPhone 17 looks… well, a lot like the iPhone 16. Which is to say that it looks a lot like the iPhone 15, and really, the iPhone 14.
That said, the iPhone 17 sports a slimmer and lighter build than the iPhone 17, and elements like slimmer bezels, the smaller Dynamic Island cutout, and the Action and Camera shortcut buttons should make it feel new and fresh.
The iPhone 17 is also available in colourful shades, including lavender, mist blue, black, white and sage, compared to the iPhone 14’s midnight, blue, starlight, purple, and red.
The iPhone 17 has a bigger, better screen
One of the most immediately noticeable improvements over the iPhone 14 comes in the display department. While the iPhone 14’s 6.1-inch OLED screen isn’t to be sniffed at, the bezels are relatively thick and, crucially, it’s stuck at the slow 60Hz refresh rate.
The iPhone 17, on the other hand, is the first regular iPhone to offer Apple’s (previously Pro-exclusive) ProMotion display tech, allowing the phone to hit a much faster 120Hz refresh rate. This should make everything feel faster, smoother, and more responsive than on the iPhone 14’s 60Hz alternative, and helps the iPhone compete with its Android counterparts.
The iPhone 17’s screen is also slightly larger this year, increasing to 6.3 inches to match the iPhone 17 Pro, providing a bit more space for your apps and games without expanding the device’s overall footprint.
The iPhone 17 should last longer on a charge
The iPhone 14’s battery was fine – it lasted a day with average use, but you couldn’t push it to its limits without scrambling for a charger before bedtime. And when you did plug it in, you’d be hit with 15W MagSafe charging or 20W wired charging.
The iPhone 17 sports a much larger cell that, when combined with the more efficient screen and A19 smarts, Apple claims lasts 8 hours longer than last year’s iPhone 16, which was already an improvement on what the iPhone 14 offered.
What’s more, the iPhone 17 offers the same faster 25W MagSafe charging as the iPhone 16, along with a slightly faster wired charge speed that the company claims delivers 50% charge in just 20 minutes.
The iPhone 17 has a much more capable processor
The iPhone 14 shipped with the A15 Bionic, while the Pro variants used the newer and faster A16 Bionic. It was an odd decision from Apple that it reverted with newer models of iPhone.
With that said, the iPhone 17 features the new A19 chipset while the Pro and Air models get the A19 Pro, both built on a 3nm process.
That essentially means that iPhone 14 users can look forward to big jumps in CPU and GPU performance compared to the four-year-old A15 Bionic, along with improved efficiency and boosted AI smarts that simply weren’t possible on the iPhone 14’s chipset.
The iPhone 17 will take much better selfies
The front-facing camera has received an upgrade across the entire iPhone 17 collection, representing the first big change to Apple’s selfie camera since the jump to 12MP with the iPhone 11.
That said, the new centre-stage selfie camera offers not only a boost in resolution over the iPhone 14’s 12MP alternative, which should translate to sharper selfies, clearer FaceTime calls, and better low-light shots, but it also tracks your face in real-time and adjusts the angle automatically.
There’s also a wider field of view, ideal for group shots, and a new square sensor allows the phone to take both portrait and landscape shots without having to rotate the phone.
It’s a similar story on the rear of the phone; the iPhone 17’s combination of 48MP main and 48MP ultrawide sensors – the latter of which is new for this year – should offer a noticeable jump across the board compared to the iPhone 14’s dual 12MP offering.
Early thoughts
Upgrading from an iPhone 14 to an iPhone 17 should feel like more than just a simple refresh. Between ProMotion screen technology, significantly better cameras, boosted battery life, the raw speed of the A19, and the Apple Intelligence support it brings, the improvements are obvious and practical in everyday use.
If you’ve been waiting for the right time to move on from your iPhone 14, the iPhone 17 makes a rather compelling case – but we’ll have to wait until we’ve thoroughly reviewed the new iPhone to say for sure. Check back soon for our complete, comprehensive verdict.
