FAQ | Will Older iPhone 13 Cases Fit the New iPhone 14 Models? (Yes and No)

A new series of 3D-printed “iPhone 14” mockups shared by Japanese site Mac Otakara (Google Translate) reveals that although the base dimensions of the new iPhone models will likely remain the same, there’s still one obstacle that case makers are going to have to contend with: the camera bump.

We’ve already heard that the camera bump is getting bigger on this year’s lineup, particularly on the two iPhone 14 Pro models. The schematics we’ve seen suggest that it’s expected to grow not just in thickness but also in how much space it takes up on the back of the iPhone.

The “iPhone 14 Pro Max” is expected to have a bump that pushes the total thickness of the iPhone to 4.17mm — an increase of over half a millimeter over the 3.6mm iPhone 13 Pro Max.

Meanwhile, the width and height of the camera array will also increase by about 2mm in each direction.

That’s going to be enough to throw off most of the cases designed for the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max, and Mac Otakara proved this will be true by attempting to fit an iPhone 13 Pro Max case onto one of the “iPhone 14 Pro Max” mockups.

Not surprisingly, the case was still the right size for the iPhone overall, but the camera bump got in the way. Basically, the cutout for the camera bump on the iPhone 13 Pro Max wouldn’t fit around the camera bump on the mockup of the “iPhone 14 Pro Max.”

Apple also plans to release a non-Pro 6.7-inch “iPhone 14 Max” this fall, and it turns out that this will have the same physical dimensions as Apple’s last two generations of “Pro Max” iPhones — but with a smaller camera bump.

So, when the folks at Mac Otakara tried to put an iPhone 13 Pro Max case onto the 3D mockup of the “iPhone 14 Max,” it fit properly.

However, it came out looking a bit awkward as the camera hole in the case was noticeably larger than the two-lens camera system.

Mac Otakara also posted a video where you can watch all of these experiments live.

These 3D-printed mockups of the “iPhone 14” lineup may not exactly match the final specs, as they’re based on leaked schematics. Apple naturally hasn’t formally disclosed any information to accessory makers yet — even its closest partners don’t know for sure what the “iPhone 14” will look like.

Since many accessory makers understandably want to get a head start on designing cases for the new iPhone lineup, it’s not uncommon for these types of specs and schematics to leak out ahead of time. It’s the main reason we see this information appear; many of these details come out due to leakers sharing this information with third-party companies.

What Will the Front of the
iPhone 14 Look Like?

Interestingly, the 3D mockups shared by Mac Otakara don’t provide a lot of detail on the front side of the iPhone. While the standard “iPhone 14” and “iPhone 14 Max” still include the notch, the “iPhone 14 Pro” and “iPhone 14 Pro Max” mockups are entirely devoid of camera cutouts.

Don’t get your hopes up for an under-display camera system, though. Remember that these are just mockups designed for fitting cases, so they don’t have to be picture-perfect to what the actual iPhone will look like; they merely have to get the dimensions right, along with protruding elements like switches and buttons.

However, content creator Saran Byte found some leaked images Chinese social media site Weibo that purport to be of the front panels of the new iPhone lineup.

In addition to showing off the hole-and-pill design that we’ve already heard about for the Pro models, this also confirms a report last month that the new “iPhone 14 Pro” will have a ‘taller’ screen.

While the dimensions will remain the same, the move to the new camera cutouts will allow Apple to shrink the bezels just enough to add an extra few millimeters to the height of the screen. This also suggests that Apple plans to use all the space around the new cutouts to display as much information as possible.

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]