Battery life on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro could be improved by new display tech reports Economic Daily News (opens in new tab) out of Taiwan, citing sources within Apple’s supply chain.
These sources say the display driver chip (the bit of silicon that controls your screen on behalf of the main chipset) that Apple will use for the iPhone 15’s OLED displays will be made with a 28nm process, down from the current 40nm one on the iPhone 14 series. That’s thanks to Apple’s suppliers updating their manufacturing lines.
The move from a larger process to a smaller process means greater power efficiency, although it’s not clear how much of a saving there would be. Apple could do with a sizable drop in its displays’ appetite though, since its phones are lagging behind in the battery life stakes compared to other new phones like the Samsung Galaxy S23 series.
Take a look at the table below, and you’ll see how poorly Apple’s 6.1-inch iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro manage on our custom battery test (browsing web pages constantly over cellular data) compared to the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23 Plus. The larger, 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 14 Plus still perform well, but their lead over the Samsung rivals isn’t as commanding as it once was.
| Battery size (mAh) | Battery life (hrs:mins) | |
| iPhone 14 Pro Max | 4,323 | 13:39 (120Hz adaptive) |
| iPhone 14 Plus | 4,325 | 13:15 (60Hz) |
| Galaxy S23 Ultra | 5,000 | 13:09 (60Hz) / 12:22 (120Hz adaptive) |
| Galaxy S23 Plus | 4,700 | 11:24 |
| Galaxy S23 | 3,900 | 11:20 (60Hz) / 10:27 (120Hz adaptive) |
| iPhone 14 Pro | 3,200 | 10:13 (120Hz adaptive) |
| iPhone 14 | 3,279 | 9:28 (60Hz) |
Other than greater efficiency, we may also see the Pro models’ displays curve a little around the edges, which would match the also rumored rounded sides and back panel of the handset. The Dynamic Island is also said to be coming to all iPhone 15 models, removing the notch currently seen on the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus.
We may also see more power saved by the new processor, assumed to be called the A17, in the Pro models. This is tipped to be built with a 3nm process, meaning it’ll have leading performance and efficiency compared to previous Apple and Android phones.
It’s likely not until September that we’ll see the iPhone 15 series, and whether these rumors and leaks are accurate or not. So in the meantime, check out our iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro hubs for all the latest rumors and leaks.
