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For months now we’ve been hearing that Apple will launch an iPhone 14 Max in place of an iPhone 14 mini, with this new model going in the opposite direction – serving as a big-screen iPhone 14 (without the extras from the Pro line), rather than a small-screen version. But while the existence of this phone isn’t in much doubt, its name now is.
According to leaker @Tommyboiiiiii (opens in new tab) in a Tweet spotted by Pocket Lint (opens in new tab), this phone might instead be called the iPhone 14 Plus.
Their initial evidence for this comes in the form of a photo of some case packaging with the name ‘iPhone 14 Plus’ printed on it, and they followed that up with another Tweet linking to the source – case-maker ESR’s official website (opens in new tab), where indeed an iPhone 14 Plus is mentioned, and a screenshot of a Casetify page (opens in new tab) which we’ve found, and which also mentions that same name.
These are both respected third-party case manufacturers who may well have advance information on the name, so it’s certainly possible that ‘Plus’ is accurate.
Then again, they also might just be guessing or using placeholder text until the name is officially revealed, and with most leakers pointing to the iPhone 14 Max. As such, we’d certainly take this fresh rumor with a pinch of salt.
Analysis: Max makes more sense
While we certainly can’t rule out the iPhone 14 Plus moniker, we’d argue that iPhone 14 Max is the more logical handle.
Just as the iPhone 14 Pro Max will be a larger version of the iPhone 14 Pro, the iPhone 14 Max is expected to be a larger version of the standard iPhone 14. Adding ‘Plus’ into the mix just complicates things.
That said, typically, Apple’s ‘Pro Max’ models have a little bit more to them than just a larger screen, so there could be an argument for using Plus when it’s literally just the screen size changing, but Max still feels simpler and more obvious.
While we wouldn’t count on seeing an iPhone 14 Plus on our best iPhone guide, an iPhone 14 Max may well make an appearance once the iPhone 14 lineup launches on September 7.