iPhone 15 Plus vs iPhone 14 Plus: Dynamic Island evolution

There are no major changes between these two when it comes to design. The big ones, obviously, are the pill-shaped camera cutout and Dynamic Island software feature, both these features have come to the iPhone 15 Plus, retiring the notch forever.

The other design change that's been in the pipeline for quite some time now and is sort of out of Apple's hands is the switch from Lightning to USB-C. The new standard will make things a bit easer when it comes to cables but the faster transfer and charging speeds are reserved for the Pro models.

When it comes to materials, the iPhone 15 Plus features the same glass and aluminum sandwich design as its predecessor, leaving the fancy titanium option for the Pro and Pro Max models. However, the glass back now has a textured matte finish, as opposed to the shiny glass on the iPhone 14 Plus, and there are new colors available on the new model.

There are no major changes in display size and resolution from the iPhone 14 Plus to the new model. The iPhone 15 Plus comes equipped with the same 6.7-inch OLED display clocked at the traditional 60 Hz refresh rate we know from the previous model. Both phones sport the same resolution - 2796x1290 pixels, resulting in a pixel density of 460 PPI (pixels per inch).

Both phones seem to have virtually identical display with one huge difference - the notch! Or rather the lack of it in the iPhone 15 Plus. The phone borrows the pill-shaped cutout from the Pro models of last year, along with the Dynamic Island functionality. There's a slight bump in brightness as well, the iPhone 15 Plus can go up to 1,600 nits peak HDR, and up to 2,000 nits peak outdoor brightness.

Sadly, as already mentioned above, no ProMotion on the iPhone 15 Plus, just the regular 60 Hz refresh rate. This also means that there won't be an Always-on mode on the iPhone 15 Plus as Apple relies on ProMotion to manage battery life using that particular display feature.

The iPhone 15 Plus is equipped with the A16 chipset from last year's Pro and Pro Max models, which means it technically has more processing power than the iPhone 14 Plus. The traditional tic-tock cycle continues, and this year's model ramps up the performance and takes it to the aforementioned Pro and Pro Max levels from last year.

The switch to the A16 brings some efficiency gains for the iPhone 15 Plus over its predecessor, as this chipset is built using a 4nm manufacturing process compared to the 5nm of the iPhone 14 Plus and the A15. We need to further test this, of course, but get ready for better 5G speeds and connectivity thanks to the X65 5G modem, and all in all, performance-wise, some similar numbers as the 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max with the new iPhone 15 Plus.

Both the iPhone 14 Plus and the iPhone 15 Plus sport the same 6GB of LPDDR5 RAM, and the storage options remain the same between both models. When it comes to software, both phones run on iOS 17 (available for download from September 18). The iOS 17 developer beta is already up for download, so you can try it, of you wish. Apple showcased some of the new features during the annual WWDC forum, and you can also check them in detail in our dedicated iOS 17 article. 

There are tons of new stuff, including Phone, iMessage, and FaceTime updates, as well as the new NameDrop (what a cool name) feature. We now have a dedicated iOS 17 preview, so you can check it out as well, if you need the deep dive.

Emergency SOS via satellite is coming to the iPhone 15 Plus, along with a new feature relying on satellite communication - roadside assistance by satellite. As the name suggests, it uses satellite to send a message to AAA Roadside Assistance and get you out of trouble if there's no network signal present.

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The main sensor from the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max has been transferred to the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus. Therefore, the iPhone 15 Plus has a clear pixel count advantages over its predecessor. The 14 Plus uses a 12 megapixel main camera with sensor-shift optical image stabilization, while the iPhone 15 Plus now has a 48-megapixel main sensor.

There some magic going on with the resulting images, they default at 24MP, apparently taking 12MP pixel-binned shots and adding additional detail to make them 24MP. The bigger sensors and resolution also allows for something that Apple calls Optical-quality 2x telephoto. In practice it's a 2x crop from the main 48MP sensor, resulting in a 12MP image with twice the focal length, or in layman's terms 2x. The new iPhone 15 Plus features improved image processing algorithms, especially in the Portrait department.

The ultrawide camera has been carried over from the previous generation, so there's no difference between the two phones in that regard. We're looking at a 12-megapixel, 120-degree field of view camera on both the iPhone 14 Plus and the iPhone 15 Plus. The selfie camera is identical between the two models, namely the 12-megapixel shooter on the iPhone 14 Plus.

Again, no big changes in audio quality between the iPhone 14 Plus and the iPhone 15 Plus. We haven't tear down the iPhone 15 Plus yet, but we're pretty sure it uses the same loudspeaker, earpiece, and haptic motor from the previous model. Which isn't a bad thing.

We already know that the big size of the 14 Plus gives enough space for a decent speaker, and the results are very pleasing - defined, with a good bass, and almost no distortion at louder volumes. The same stereo speaker sits inside the iPhone 15 Plus, alongside the tight and responsive haptic motor.

The iPhone 15 Plus most likely retains the same big 4,325mAh battery (Apple doesn't list capacities on its site but judging from the usage hours, it looks like the same cell), and we already saw great results from the iPhone 14 Plus' battery tests. Given the fact that the iPhone 15 Plus comes equipped with the A16 chip, built on a more efficient 4nm manufacturing process, but keep the same 60Hz refresh rate on the display, we expect even better battery life out of the new model (stay tuned for our in-depth battery tests).

Now, the charging situation remains more or less the same, despite the newly acquired USB-C port on the iPhone 15 Plus. The iPhone 14 Plus supports up to 20W wired via the Lightning port, and that's enough to charge 50% of the battery in 30 minutes. Apple cites the same charging speeds for the iPhone 15 Plus with 20W charger, so sadly no change in charging speed (or transfer speeds for that matter, USB 3.0 speeds are reserved for the Pro models).

We have summarized all of the major specifications highlights of the two models right below:

The iPhone 15 Plus is an evolution, rather than revolution. Clearly, it adds some nice features over its predecessor, such as the pill-shaped cutout for the front camera, accompanied by the Dynamic Island feature, a bigger 48MP main camera, and a better chipset.

Other than that, we're looking at two very similar phones, with nearly identical size, battery, display, hardware and software capabilities. The price of the iPhone 15 Plus is also identical to the price at launch of its predecessor, starting at $899. Should you upgrade to the 15 Plus if you already have the iPhone 14 Plus? Probably not. But if you're coming from an older iPhone, and like big screens, solid battery life, and the convenience of a long support cycle, the iPhone 15 Plus is definitely a viable option.