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The iPhone 14 Plus reviewed: Cheaper than Pro Max and wins on battery life

I’ve been testing Apple‘s new $899 iPhone 14 Plus, which hits stores Friday, for the past several days. It has the biggest screen you can get on an iPhone, without shelling out $1,099 for the Pro model, and the best battery life ever on an iPhone.

The iPhone 14 Plus is great for people who just want a larger screen and don’t mind missing out on the new features of the Pro and Pro Max, such as the Dynamic Island and always-on display.

But most buyers seem to have flocked to the Pro models over the regular iPhone 14 so far.

Bank of America analysts released a rare downgrade to Apple’s stock last week and cut its price target on “weaker consumer demand” and the potential for a sluggish iPhone cycle as consumers slow spending. The bank suggested that while there’s a stronger mix of Pro model purchases so far, that won’t offset a decline in revenue and profit if Apple sells fewer units overall.

iPhone 14 Plus.

Sofia Pitt

And JPMorgan analysts said in a note on Oct. 3, which compared shipment times across iPhone models, that price-sensitive customers are opting for the iPhone 13 rather than the more expensive iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus.

But you shouldn’t just write off the iPhone 14 Plus. It’s a good option for folks who just want a big screen and don’t want to spend $200 more for the iPhone 14 Pro Max. And it has excellent battery life and improved cameras in a lightweight package.

Here’s what you need to know about the iPhone 14 Plus.

iPhone 14 Plus: What’s good

Apple unveiled four new iPhones, three new Apple Watches and an updated AirPods Pro during a press event on Wednesday in Cupertino, California, United States on September 7, 2022. 

Tayfun Coskun | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images

The large screen is the highlight here. And, if you’re like me, you’ll dig having a bigger display in your pocket for reading, movies, gaming and more. It’s otherwise the same screen as the regular iPhone 14. I noticed blacks were nice and deep and colors popped while streaming YouTube videos.

You can see more on a page, such as a website you’re browsing, or store more apps on your homepage. And this helps if you want to see more while also increasing the text size, which might be convenient for folks who prefer or need larger text.

iPhone 14 Plus.

Sofia Pitt

The iPhone 14 Plus is 1.31 ounces lighter than the iPhone 14 Pro Max and the difference felt significant when I carried it around.

Apple says the iPhone 14 Plus has “the best battery life ever in iPhone,” which just refers to general usage throughout the day. The battery life was great in my tests. I was able to stream YouTube videos for over 19 hours before the phone died, which is in line with Apple’s claim that streamed video playback lasts 20 hours. Apple also promises up to 100 hours of audio playback, which is longer than any other iPhone.

iPhone 14

Apple

The cameras are also solid. While you don’t get the telephoto or really sharp main cameras that you’ll find on the iPhone 14 Pro models, you still get an improved 12-megapixel main camera that took good pictures, including clearer and brighter photos at night when there weren’t a lot of lights.

iPhone 14 Plus photo in night mode.

Sofia Pitt

There’s also a new front camera with autofocus for selfies. That means your selfies will look sharper and more in focus than on the iPhone 13.

iPhone 14 Plus selfie.

Sofia Pitt

iPhone 14 Plus.

Sofia Pitt

iPhone 14 Plus: What’s bad

Despite its size, the iPhone 14 Plus is a relatively small update over last year’s iPhone 13. You’ll see more of an upgrade from the Pro models. Those phones have always-on displays that can show notifications even when your phone is idle, and feature Dynamic Island, which makes better use of the notch at the top of the screen. Dynamic Island can show things like album art for the music you’re playing, for example, and will soon offer other features like live sports scores at the top of your screen.

iPhone 14 Plus home screen.

Sofia Pitt

If you’re looking for a camera upgrade, you’ll notice a difference if you’re upgrading from an iPhone 12, but it’s hard to see a significant difference if you’re switching from the 13 to the 14 Plus, aside from the autofocus on the front-facing selfie camera.

The iPhone 14 Plus uses the same A15 chip as the iPhone 13, but with an additional graphics processing core for improved gaming performance. I didn’t notice a difference when I played the game “Diablo: Immortal” on both phones.

I’m disappointed that all of the iPhone 14s still have a Lightning port instead of USB-C. I wasn’t expecting Apple to switch, but it would be really useful to just carry the same USB-C charger that I use to power a MacBook and an iPad.

iPhone 14 Plus.

Sofia Pitt

Should you buy it?

The iPhone 14 Plus is a great buy for folks who just want an iPhone with a bigger screen and who don’t want or need the features in the Pro models. At $899, the $100 premium over the standard iPhone 14 is well worth it for the larger display and better battery life. But you probably don’t need to upgrade from the iPhone 13 for it.

Correction: This article has been updated to correct the weight of the iPhone 14 Plus.

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OpenAI announces new mentorship program for budding tech founders

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OpenAI announces new mentorship program for budding tech founders

Dado Ruvic | Reuters

OpenAI on Friday introduced a new program, dubbed the “OpenAI Grove,” for early tech entrepreneurs looking to build with artificial intelligence, and applications are already open.

Unlike OpenAI’s Pioneer Program, which launched in April, Grove is aimed towards individuals at the very nascent phases of their company development, from the pre-idea to pre-seed stage.

For five weeks, participants will receive mentoring from OpenAI technical leaders, early access to new tools and models, and in-person workshops, located in the company’s San Francisco headquarters.

Roughly 15 members will join Grove’s first cohort, which will run from Oct. 20 to Nov. 21, 2025. Applicants will have until Sept. 24 to submit an entry form.

CNBC has reached out to OpenAI for comment on the program.

Following the program, Grove participants will be able to continue working internally with the ChatGPT maker, which was recent valued $500 billion.

Other industry rivals have also already launched their own AI accelerator programs, including the Google for Startups Cloud AI Accelerator last winter. Earlier this April, Microsoft for Startups partnered with PearlX, a cohort accelerator program for pre-seed companies.

Nurturing these budding AI companies is just a small chip in the recent massive investments into AI firms, which ate up an impressive 71% of U.S. venture funding in 2025, up from 45% last year, according to an analysis from J.P. Morgan.

AI startups raised $104.3 billion in the U.S. in the first half of this year, and currently over 1,300 AI startups have valuations of over $100 million, according to CB Insights.

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Benioff says he’s ‘inspired’ by Palantir, but takes another jab at its prices

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Benioff says he's 'inspired' by Palantir, but takes another jab at its prices

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff on what the market is getting wrong about AI

Marc Benioff is keeping an eye on Palantir.

The co-founder and CEO of sales and customer service management software company Salesforce is well aware that investors are betting big on Palantir, which offers data management software to businesses and government agencies.

“Oh my gosh. I am so inspired by that company,” Benioff told CNBC’s Morgan Brennan in a Tuesday interview at Goldman Sachs‘ Communacopia+Technology conference in San Francisco. “I mean, not just because they have 100 times, you know, multiple on their revenue, which I would love to have that too. Maybe it’ll have 1000 times on their revenue soon.”

Salesforce, a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, remains 10 times larger than Palantir by revenue, with over $10 billion in revenue during the latest quarter. But Palantir is growing 48%, compared with 10% for Salesforce.

Benioff added that Palantir’s prices are “the most expensive enterprise software I’ve ever seen.”

“Maybe I’m not charging enough,” he said.

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It wasn’t Benioff’s first time talking about Palantir. Last week, Benioff referenced Palantir’s “extraordinary” prices in an interview with CNBC’s Jim Cramer, saying Salesforce offers a “very competitive product at a much lower cost.”

The next day, TBPN podcast hosts John Coogan and Jordi Hays asked for a response from Alex Karp, Palantir’s co-founder and CEO.

“We are very focused on value creation, and we ask to be modestly compensated for that value,” Karp said.

The companies sometimes compete for government deals, and Benioff touted a recent win over Palantir for a U.S. Army contract.

Palantir started in 2003, four years after Salesforce. But while Salesforce went public in 2004, Palantir arrived on the New York Stock Exchange in 2020.

Palantir’s market capitalization stands at $406 billion, while Salesforce is worth $231 billion. And as one of the most frequently traded stocks on Robinhood, Palantir is popular with retail investors.

Salesforce shares are down 27% this year, the worst performance in large-cap tech.

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Salesforce and Palantir year to date stock chart.

We're seeing an incredible transformation in enterprise, says Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff

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Gemini, the Winklevoss’ crypto exchange, pops more than 40% in Nasdaq debut

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Gemini, the Winklevoss' crypto exchange, pops more than 40% in Nasdaq debut

Gemini Co-founders Tyler Winklevoss and Cameron Winklevoss attend the company’s IPO at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York City, U.S., Sept. 12, 2025.

Jeenah Moon | Reuters

Shares of Gemini Space Station soared more than 40% on Thursday after the exchange operator raised $425 million in an initial public offering.

The stock opened at $37.01 on the Nasdaq after its IPO priced at $28. At one point, shares traded as high as $40.71.

The New York-based company priced its IPO late Thursday above this week’s expected range of $24 to $26, and an initial range of between $17 and $19. That valued the company at some $3.3 billion before trading began.

Gemini, which primarily operates as a cryptocurrency exchange, was founded by the Winklevoss brothers in 2014 and held more than $21 billion of assets on its platform as of the end of July. Per its registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Gemini posted a net loss of $159 million in 2024, and in the first half of this year, it lost $283 million.

The company also offers a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin, credit cards with a crypto-back rewards program and a custody service for institutions.

Gemini co-founders Tyler & Cameron Winklevoss: Bitcoin is gold 2.0, can easily go 10x from here

The Winklevoss brothers were among the earliest bitcoin investors and first bitcoin billionaires. They have long held that bitcoin is a superior store of value than gold. On Friday morning, they told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” they see its price reaching $1 million a decade from now.

In 2013, they were the first to apply to launch a bitcoin exchange-traded fund, more than 10 years before the first bitcoin ETFs would eventually be approved. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s rejection of the application, which cited risk of fraud and market manipulation, set the stage for the bitcoin ETF debate in the years to come.

Even in the early days, when bitcoin was notorious for its extreme volatility and anti-establishment roots and shunned by Wall Street, the Winklevoss brothers were outspoken about the need for smart regulation that would establish rules for the crypto-led financial revolution.

Don’t miss these cryptocurrency insights from CNBC Pro:

(Learn the best 2026 strategies from inside the NYSE with Josh Brown and others at CNBC PRO Live. Tickets and info here.)

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