iPhone 14 Storage: Which Size Should You Buy?

iPhone 14 Storage: Which Size Should You Buy? is a post by Adam Mills from Gotta Be Mobile.

Picking the right iPhone 14 storage size for your needs and budget can be tricky so we want to help you decide between the cheapest option, the middle-of-the-road options, and the most expensive version of the iPhone 14 series.

You might be tempted to buy the cheapest iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, or iPhone 14 Pro Max or, perhaps, the model with the most storage. Some people will be perfectly fine buying one of those. However, others will want to buy something in-between.

One thing to keep in mind is that you will likely wind up paying for more storage one way or another. Either you’ll spend the money up front when you buy your new phone or you’ll end up paying a monthly fee for additional storage via Apple’s iCloud service.

iPhone 14 Storage Options
iPhone 14 Plus Storage Options
iPhone 14 Pro Storage Options
iPhone 14 Pro Max Storage Options
Pay for Storage Today or Pay Later
Who Should Buy the 128GB iPhone 14?
Who Should Buy the 256GB iPhone 14?
Who Should Buy the 512GB iPhone 14?
Who Should Buy the 1TB iPhone 14?
How to Check Your Current iPhone Storage

There are several factors you need to consider before you settle on one storage size or another. We’ll break down everything you should think about about before you buy a iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, or iPhone 14 Pro Max.

iPhone 14 Storage Options

Apple offers three iPhone 14 storage options at three different price points.

The iPhone 14 starts at 128GB and the company also sells 256GB and 512GB options for those who need more storage. The 128GB model is the cheapest option while the 512GB model is the most expensive.

iPhone 14 Plus Storage Options

The company’s iPhone 14 Plus also comes in three sizes: 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB.

iPhone 14 Pro Storage Options

As for the iPhone 14 Pro, there are four storage options, but they’re different than the company’s iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus variants.

The iPhone 14 Pro starts at 128GB. From there, the device’s storage capacity goes up to 256GB, 512GB and 1TB.

iPhone 14 Pro Max Storage Options

The largest and most expensive iPhone 14 model, the iPhone 14 Pro Max, comes in the same sizes as the iPhone 14 Pro: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB.

Pay for Storage Today or Pay Later

You can add additional storage to Android devices using external memory cards but the iPhone 14 series, like its predecessors, doesn’t have a microSD card slot. If you want to add additional storage to your new iPhone you’ll need to use iCloud or buy a Lightning-compatible drive.

If you plan to shoot high-resolution video on your iPhone, download movies or songs, or play games on your device, you’ll need quite a bit of storage space.

While 128GB or 256GB might seem like enough, there’s a chance your storage fills up quickly. At that point, you’ll be forced to continuously delete files you no longer need, buy a compatible external drive, or pay for iCloud storage.

Fortunately, Apple’s iCloud storage is fairly inexpensive. You can get 50GB of cloud storage for a dollar a month. Here’s how the pricing breaks down:

50GB: $0.99
200GB: $2.99
2TB: $9.99

You can also share iCloud storage with your family members.

Why You Should Buy the 128GB iPhone 14

The 128GB iPhone 14 models are the cheapest options and they should be considered if you don’t think of yourself as a power user.

Here are a few reasons why you might want to buy a 128GB iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, or iPhone 14 Pro Max:

You stream most of your movies and music.
You don’t plan to shoot a lot of high-resolution video.
You plan to store your photos in iCloud Photo Library or on a computer.
You come nowhere close to using 128GB of storage on your current phone.

Why You Should Buy the 256GB iPhone 14

Apple’s 256GB option is the middle of the road choice for prospective iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus users. It’s the second largest option for the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Here are some reasons why you should buy the 256GB iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, or iPhone 14 Pro Max:

You like to store some movies, photos, and music locally.
You plan to shoot some high-resolution video.
You’re close to using 128GB of space on your current phone.
You hate having to occasionally manage the data on your phone.

An 256GB iPhone 14 model is an excellent middle-of-the-road option that can work with or without iCloud.

Why You Should Buy the 512GB iPhone 14

Some of you might want to spend the extra money for more space, even if it’s for the peace of mind that comes with having a bit more storage to play around with,

Here are a few reasons to buy the 512GB iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, or iPhone 14 Pro Max:

You like to store lots of movies and music locally.
You need or prefer to keep your photos stored locally.
You plan to shoot a lot of high-resolution content.
You’re close to using 256GB of space on your current phone.
You can’t stand having to constantly manage the data on your phone.

Why You Should Buy the 1TB iPhone 14 Pro

The expensive 1TB iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max models are solid options for those that desire a ton of local storage.

It should provide enough space for photography buffs, avid gamers, and those who plan to tackle school or work projects while on-the-go.

Unless you’re already using well over 512GB or don’t use iCloud, you probably don’t need this much storage. Here’s who we think should buy one of these models:

You’re an extreme power user.
You’re planning to use the iPhone as a professional creative.
You’re a photo buff who doesn’t want to use iCloud.
You’re someone who travels often and wants everything store locally.

How to Check Your Current Storage

Before you pick one of these, you should check your current storage because you’ll be able to gather some great insight into your habits. Here’s how to do this:

Tap on your Settings app.
Tap on General.
Tap on iPhone Storage.

This will show you how much free storage you currently have and how much you are using. It’ll also tell you exactly what’s taking up the most storage. For many of you, it’ll be photos and videos, apps, and messages.

If your current device is around a year old, you should still have around 50% of your storage left. If you are within 10-15% of its capacity, you probably need more storage.

If you’re using iCloud, you should also check on your iCloud storage usage:

Open Settings.
Tap on your Name at the top of the screen.
Tap on iCloud.

This screen shows your iCloud storage use and your current plan. If you tap on Manage Storage you’ll get a better breakdown of how you use cloud storage.

5 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 15 & 5 Reasons Not To

Wait for Performance Improvements

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Apple always makes year-to-year performance improvements to the iPhone so you can expect the iPhone 15 series to come with numerous changes.

You can expect the iPhone 15 models to feature an improved processor which could lead to better battery life and app performance.

The higher-end iPhone 15 models should feature Apple's new A17 chip though we could see the lower-end come with Apple's A16, the same processor that powers the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Rumors suggest the iPhone 15 series might come with a brand new processor based on TSMC's next-gen 3nm chip technology. The process is expected to enhance performance while also reducing power consumption. In other words, we should see faster phones with better battery life.

Qualcomm's announced a new 5G Snapdragon X70 modem which is expected to launch in devices this year. It didn't make it into the iPhone 14 series but there's a good chance it lands inside all four iPhone 15 models next year.

Apple's reportedly working on its own modem but we won't see it until 2024 or 2025. TrendForce thinks Apple's in-house modem will debut in 2024 while analyst Jeff Pu believes Apple will stick with Qualcomm and its unannounced Snapdragon X75 in 2024.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman says Apple will indeed be sticking with Qualcomm chips in 2023.

Leaker Majin Bu says the iPhone 15 Ultra will start at 256GB of storage while the iPhone 15 Pro will start with 128GB.

Taiwanese research firm TrendForce predicts Apple will put an increased 8GB of RAM into the upcoming iPhone 15 Pro models. The standard iPhone 15 models may still carry 6GB of RAM.

It's still early, but you can expect additional iPhone 15 rumors to outline some of the other potential performance enhancements in the coming months.