Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. Guides

Does the iPhone 14 have a 120Hz display?

By

Apple’s iPhone 14 lineup is now official, comprising four smartphones: the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max. The phones — especially the Pro models — get nice new upgrades over last year’s iPhone 13 series. The 14 Plus replaces the iPhone 13 Mini with a much larger display, and the Pro variants get the Dynamic Island: a pill-shaped cutout to house the selfie camera and Face ID sensors.

An important feature the non-Pro variants of the iPhone 13 series missed out on was a display with a faster refresh rate. So, you might wonder whether the new iPhone 14 has a 120Hz display or not. Sadly, Apple has again decided to keep higher refresh rate screens exclusive to the more expensive Pro variants only.

Recommended Videos

The iPhone 14 and 14 Plus both pack a 60Hz display

Someone holding an iPhone 14 with the display on, showing the Home Screen.
Joe Maring/Digital Trends

If you’re planning to get the iPhone 14 or the iPhone 14 Plus, you’ll have to make do with a 60Hz display. This is a little annoying, as there are Android smartphones out there offering 120Hz displays, despite costing one-third of the new iPhones.

Related

To experience a faster refresh rate on a new iPhone, you’ll need to spend a little extra and buy one of the Pro variants instead. The iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max both ship with a ProMotion display, which allows for an adaptive refresh rate of 1Hz to 120Hz. The refresh rate goes all the way down to 1Hz, in order to save battery. Moreover, the Pro models get a bunch of other new exclusive features, like Dynamic Island and Always On Display.

Having said that, the iPhone 14’s display should not let you down, even without a 120Hz refresh rate. Apple’s animations are better than its competitors, and thanks to iOS’s optimizations, you’re going to get a more fluid experience compared to other phones with a similar refresh rate. Basically, the 60Hz display on the iPhone 14 feels smoother than the 60Hz panels of most Android smartphones.

However, if you compare the iPhone 14’s display with the Pro variants or with other smartphones rocking a 120Hz panel, there’s going to be a noticeable difference. A phone with a 120Hz display will be more fluid and smooth than one with a 60Hz panel, though it won’t be something you’ll notice until you use a 120Hz display. So stay away from the iPhone 14 Pro, and your iPhone 14 will probably feel just fine.

Apple versus the competition

In the Android world, a lot of midrange phones come with a 120Hz display, and we’ve even seen 144Hz panels on a few premium smartphones. While 60Hz displays on Android are becoming less and less common, Apple is still sticking with a 60Hz panel for the iPhone 14. Hopefully, the next iteration of the iPhones might use ProMotion displays with a higher refresh rate as standard, but for now, you’ll have to stick with 60Hz on the standard iPhone.

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Hinshal Sharma
Hinshal Sharma
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Hinshal is a Tech Journalist covering tech news and feature pieces for over four years. Apart from Digital Trends, he has…
Android 16 might give its own spin to iPhone’s Dynamic Island alerts
The DynamicSpot Dynamic Island at the top of the Pixel 7 Pro.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve come across some interesting details about the next major build of Android. Currently in development under the apparent codename of Baklava, Android 16 will reportedly bring a cool new feature called Priority modes for notifications.

If that sounds familiar, that’s because Apple already offers a bunch of focus modes toward the same goal and bolsters the system with AI-assisted priority notifications in iOS 18. It seems Google doesn’t want to be left behind, and in doing so, could very well lift from a popular iPhone trick.

Read more
The iPhone 17 Pro Max may slim down this particular feature
The Dynamic Island on the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

The iPhone's Dynamic Island is expected to get even smaller on the iPhone 17 series, according to technology analyst Jeff Pu (via MacRumors).

According to Pu, in a research note with investment bank Haitong International, the iPhone 17 Pro Max will offer a “metalens” for Face ID. Because of this, the Dynamic Island will be “much narrowed.”

Read more
Does the iPad mini 7 have Face ID?
2024 iPad mini in the hands of a person.

The diminutive iPad mini 7 (2024) is the newest addition to Apple's expansive tablet lineup. It's perfectly portable and pocket-sized, which makes it a fun-sized option that you can pop in your bag and take everywhere you go. And it's also sporting a series of great future-proofing upgrades that make it a good investment for an Apple Intelligence-ready future.

The latest iteration of the iPad mini comes packed with double the storage, with 128 GB to play with, at its previous $499 price. It may look virtually identical to the iPad mini 6 (2021), without the home button or thick bezels, giving it a bit of a Kindle-like silhouette. It also boasts a 2K-resolution display with a 60Hz refresh rate, which Apple has optimized alongside the previous model's LCD panel in an attempt to avoid the "jelly scrolling" seen with the iPad mini 6.

Read more