When the iPhone 14 leaked, I ran out and bought the iPhone 13 Pro. Now I know I wasn’t wrong

Apple today unveiled (along with much else) the entire iPhone 14 family, made up of iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max. I mean, everything rumored, including the goodbye iPhone mini. Seeing live the confirmation of its specifications and the price increase, I smiled.

Yes, I have smiled selfishly, because the company has validated a purchase I made months ago. Back then, after receiving a refund for a failing iPhone 12 mini, I thought I’d better wait for the iPhone 14. There was little left and I already liked the 13, so the 14 could only get better. But then leakedand I saw it clearly: for once, no waiting, it’s time to look for an iPhone 13 Pro at a good price, because an abyss is coming.

Months enjoying the best iPhone to not wait for the most continuous model that I remember

After how good the iPhone 13 had come out dry, the 14 made me eyes. But as I was saying, a source as reputable as Ming-Chi Kuo leaked that the base iPhone 14 was going to repeat a previous generation processor, the Apple A15. To this were added other details, such as the fact that the base model would continue without a telephoto lens, with a traditional notch and without the 120 Hz refresh rate of ProMotion.

All this, in a context of inflation and falling value of the euro, with several years of frozen prices. When weighing what to do, it was clear to me. “The base iPhone 14 is going to be one of the most continuous models in years, and it will not satisfy me, especially if it goes up in price compared to the 13.” That approach led me to look for iPhone 13 Pro dealsthrough websites, forums and platforms such as Wallapop.

And I found a pristine model, bought 5 days ago and with a three-year warranty. They sold it to me for 920 euros. A real fortune, yes, but little more than the 909 euros of 13 at that time. But the important thing for me was not that the 13 Pro beat the 13, the important thing was to make a good purchase in April or September. And knowing how reliable iPhone leaks are, I knew this:

• The iPhone 13 Pro had the same processor that the iPhone 14 was going to have. ✅
• The iPhone 13 Pro had a 120Hz display that the iPhone 14 would not. ✅
• The iPhone 13 Pro had a telephoto lens and the iPhone 14 only had a dual camera. ✅
• Unlike the iPhone 14 Pro, the iPhone 14 would have very similar cameras to the 13 Pro. ✅. Performance needs to be confirmed, but the size of the main sensor and the aperture are the same as the 13 Pro.
• The iPhone 14, at most, would match the 6 GB of RAM of the 13 Pro. To be confirmed, but very likely.
• The iPhone 14 would keep the notch like the 13 Pro, but without surpassing it. ✅.
• The iPhone 14 would keep the 128 GB of the 13 and 13 Pro, but it would not have more.✅

All this led me to not want to wait. The bet could have gone wrong, because the leaks have failed in important things with some model. But it has not been so in this case. Not only did I spend 920 euros on a new and pristine iPhone 13 Pro, but I have avoided months of waiting to end up paying 89 euros more for a mobile that is equal in some things, but in key aspects for me it is much worse.

Obviously, I am left without all the advantages that I really want, those of the 14 Pro. But today ends the era in which I can consider buying a new iPhone. I have never spent 1,000 euros on one, and with this increase I am definitely moving away from the range.

Apple still has marked events, but it is no longer worth waiting

If Apple gives us something, it is periodicity. And that has made me always recommend waiting for a new iPhone model from January, whenever possible. For two reasons: because he knew that the new model would be better, and because Apple lowers prices little or not at all and It was not worth getting something worse paying the same for a matter of terms.

Now, that account is no longer valid. Apple is even raising prices of products that do not change at all, as has happened with the MacBook Air M1 in Europe, or today with the AirPods 3, which have grown from 199 to 209 euros. The thing is not there.

Products that in the United States maintain prices, in Spain rise up to 16%, like these iPhone. Even entry-level products at Apple in which we expected price moderation, as was the case with the MacBook Air M2, They have gone from 1,129 euros for the Air M1 to 1,519 euros for the new modelwithout contributing much in performance and even with a worse SSD, drawing first and second class citizens.

The price rise has an explanation, and in fact, what is surprising is that prices do not rise in the United States, where the iPhone has been stuck at $999 since the iPhone X. But of course, even in a context like this, if we did not have in Account for the rise of the Air M1, one could expect the iPhone 13 to go down. And it has not been. Last year’s range has maintained its prices.

What is coming is not good. If you’re hoping for a successor to the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros with the M2 Pro and M2 Max, or a new Mac mini with the M2 or M2 Pro, and expect them to cost the same as their predecessors, don’t worry.or is there not a single internal and external indicator to Apple that makes me think that the company is not going to continue asking for more money of your customers on these computers.

If before waiting didn’t make sense for many people, although for me it did, today I can only advise people to buy today what they want and need, because the changes that are coming are minor, and the prices are much higher. Along the way, since April I have been enjoying a better mobile than the one that today costs 89 euros more, with what this implies: hundreds of summer photos that I have been able to take in 3X, hours of battery saved with 120 Hz, better screen in the sun and in HDR playback, ProRAW, materials, etc, etc.