We put the Apple iPhone 14 Pro through our rigorous DXOMARK Audio test suite to measure its performance both at recording sound using its built-in microphones, and at playing audio back through its speakers.
In this review, we will break down how it fared in a variety of tests and several common use cases.
Overview
Key audio specifications include:
- Two speakers: top-center, bottom right
- No Jack audio output
- Dolby Atmos technology
- Spatial Audio playback
Scoring
Sub-scores and attributes included in the calculations of the global score.
Apple iPhone 14 Pro
142
audio
141
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (158)
139
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (149)
147
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (162)
143
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (162)
91
Asus ROG Phone 5
Best: Asus ROG Phone 5 (157)
130
Honor Magic3 Pro+
Best: Honor Magic3 Pro+ (147)
124
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (146)
108
Asus ROG Phone 5
Best: Asus ROG Phone 5 (157)
123
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (170)
138
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (145)
152
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (166)
Position in Global Ranking
10
th
4. Asus Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders
149
10. Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
142
14. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max
140
16. Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max
139
27. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4
134
28. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon)
133
28. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos)
133
34. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4
130
35. Vivo X80 Pro (Snapdragon)
129
38. Xiaomi Redmi K50 Gaming
128
42. Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
127
42. Samsung Galaxy A52 5G
127
45. Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
126
50. Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max
125
50. Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
125
50. Vivo X80 Pro (Mediatek)
125
53. Lenovo Legion Phone 2 Pro
124
56. Apple iPhone SE (2022)
122
59. Samsung Galaxy S22+ (Exynos)
121
62. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G
120
62. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon)
120
62. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos)
120
65. Xiaomi Redmi K40 Gaming
119
71. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
118
71. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
118
71. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon)
118
71. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon)
118
71. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos)
118
82. Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra
116
82. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
116
82. Xiaomi Redmi K40 Pro+
116
88. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
115
91. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 5G
114
93. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G (Exynos)
113
93. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ (Exynos)
113
101. Nubia RedMagic 6 Pro
112
105. Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G
109
111. Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
108
116. Lenovo Legion Phone Pro
105
116. Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro
105
124. Motorola Edge 20 Pro
102
128. Xiaomi Mi CC9 Pro Premium Edition
97
135. Vivo X70 Pro (MediaTek)
93
140. Vivo X60 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
86
Position in Ultra-Premium Ranking
5
th
2. Asus Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders
149
5. Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
142
8. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max
140
9. Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max
139
15. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4
134
16. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon)
133
16. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos)
133
21. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4
130
22. Vivo X80 Pro (Snapdragon)
129
26. Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max
125
26. Vivo X80 Pro (Mediatek)
125
28. Samsung Galaxy S22+ (Exynos)
121
31. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G
120
35. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
118
35. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
118
39. Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra
116
39. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
116
42. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
115
43. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 5G
114
44. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G (Exynos)
113
44. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ (Exynos)
113
50. Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G
109
54. Lenovo Legion Phone Pro
105
Playback
Pros
- Good performance in all attributes, with a great consistency across them
- Great timbre performance overall, enriched by a deep low-end extension
- Great dynamics performance overall
- Very good spatial performance
Recording
Pros
- Good timbre performance overall
- Good performance when recording loud content such as concerts
- Good dynamics performance
- Good handling of artifacts overall. Wind noise reduction needs some fine-tuning but it works decently
Cons
- Midrange rendition is too dependent on the use case, and can sound either canny or nasal depending on the app and use case
- SNR could be greater, as main vocal content is often a bit masked by the ambient noise
- Poor audio zoom performance
The differences between the iPhone models when it comes to audio playback and recording have usually been minimal. The same holds true now with the release of the iPhone 14 series.
Although the iPhone 14 Pro is smaller in size, it shares many of the same hardware specs as the 14 Pro Max, including the A16 Bionic chipset,
Given the similarities between the models, it’s no surprise that the iPhone 14 Pro’s overall audio score was identical to the 14 Pro Max’s score. We direct you to the full audio test results of the iPhone 14 Pro Max for all the details concerning the 14 Pro’s performance.
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