8 things you could buy instead of an iPhone 14

Are you feeling the hype of the iPhone 14 release? Stop. Step away from the queue. Here's what your money could buy you instead.

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The new iPhone 14 is here and, if you believe the hype, it's about to change your life in a way unimaginable since... the iPhone 13 just a year ago. Fancy getting your hands on one? You might want to read this first.

The most basic model iPhone 14 (the 128GB) will set you back £849 when you buy it from the Apple Store.

You can get it on a contract (assuming you pass the credit checks), but as networks tend to charge considerable interest on your instalments, this will mean you end up paying more in the long run.

Wondering if it's worth buying the iPhone 14? Read on to find out what you could be buying instead...

How much does the iPhone 14 cost?

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Around the launch date, very few retailers (aside from Apple, of course) will allow you to buy the iPhone 14 without a monthly contract. Among those who do, we couldn't find anyone selling the phone for less than the £849 price listed on Apple's site (excluding those, such as Apple, who offer a discount for trading in an older iPhone).

The bonus of buying through Apple is that they offer a 24-month payment plan with 0% interest. This payment plan is available both in store and online. Make sure you ask for it without AppleCare+ if you want the cheapest plan.

The cheapest available model is the 128GB, which can be paid for in 24 monthly instalments of £35.37 (adding up to £848.88 in total). It's also worth noting that you can reduce the monthly payments by trading in your old iPhone at the same time. Although, for the sake of this guide, we're assuming you won't do that.

We've concluded that the cheapest way to buy the iPhone 14 is usually to buy it directly through Apple, although it's always worth checking out our deals section to see if anything else has popped up.

Once you've forked out for the phone, you just have to pay for a SIM-only contract with your network of choice. Our mobile phone deals comparison tool will help you find the best price out there!

8 things you can buy for less than an iPhone 14

We're not saying that you shouldn't take the plunge and buy a new iPhone, but when money's tight, it's always worth putting the cost into context.

Here are eight surprising things that are cheaper than an iPhone 14:

1. Over a month of rent

   

   Credit: John Seb Barber - Flickr

   With the average student rent standing at £535 per month, the iPhone 14 costs more than a month of rent.

   If we flip that around, you've got to find almost the same amount of cash to keep a roof over your head if you go for the phone. Or, you could just live in a tent in someone's garden for the year.

2. Over three and a half years of broadband

   There are tons of student-friendly broadband deals out there. At the time of writing, the cheapest deal in our student broadband comparison guide comes in at £18.95 a month, so you'd need to sign a contract for over three and a half years in order to hit the £849 mark.

   And remember, these numbers assume that you live by yourself, which most students don't. Your share of the broadband bill is smaller when you live with other people. Even if you lived with just one other person, you'd be looking at over seven years of internet for the same price as an iPhone 14.

   Whether you're after an iPhone or vintage Nokia, compare the best contracts using our mobile phone contract comparison tool.

3. Over a year of Nando's fine dining

   Let's say you go for what we have decided (after a heated office discussion) is the standard Nando's order: quarter chicken, two regular sides and a bottomless soft drink. At the time of writing (we're covering ourselves because even Nando's is affected by inflation), this comes in at £13.

   If you went to Nando's once a week for an entire year, and always ordered this, you'd still have only spent £676.

   That leaves £173 left over, which you could either spend on MORE Nando's (more than another three months' worth), or the cost of a bus fare to get there and back each week.

   Of course, if you use our money-saving Nando's tricks, you could end up going to Nando's for far longer than just a year!

4. Over ten years of Netflix

   

   Credit: Nicolas Maderna – Shutterstock

   Student life involves a lot of free time. While that would be best spent studying, working or even socialising, the reality is that sometimes you just want to sit in front of the TV. For that reason, Netflix is becoming a bit of a must-have for students.

   For the cost of an iPhone 14, you could pay for a Basic subscription to Netflix (£6.99 at the time of writing, and even though they don't offer a student discount you can get it for less with our Netflix hacks) for over ten years – 10.1 years, to be precise.

   We did some Googling and one site estimated the total length of all the TV shows and films on Netflix to be three and a half years. This means you could watch the entire catalogue three times over and only have spent as much on Netflix as you would have on an iPhone 14. Your recommendations would be totally screwed though.

5. Second-hand scooter

   For the same price as an iPhone 14, you could get yourself a great set of wheels on eBay. There are quite a few second-hand mopeds and road scooters going for around the £850 mark or less (but if you're paying much less, be wary of getting a dying bike).

   On top of saving you some cash (you could be saving on commuting costs, or cutting your rent by living a bit further away from uni in a cheaper area), no one is gonna deny how badass you'll look rocking up to lectures on one of these bad boys.

   And yes, we're aware that you can get actual cars on eBay (and elsewhere) for less than £849. But if a car is going for that little, there's a good chance that you'll be paying to get it repaired at some point (not to mention the fact that it'll use more petrol than a moped!).

   There are some great bargains on eBay, but you can get an even better deal by using our eBay hacks.

6. Over a year's worth of nights out

   

   Credit: Syda Productions – Shutterstock

   According to our National Student Money Survey, the average student spends £69 each month on going out. Or, to put it in a way that suits the purposes of this article, an iPhone 14 costs 12.3 months of nights out.

   Now, it's worth noting that 'going out' can include more than just nights out (like these things to do for under £20). Whatever you like to do when you're spending time with friends, if you choose not to buy an iPhone 14, that could be over a year of your social life funded.

7. A season ticket at (almost) any Premier League club

   You know iPhones are getting expensive when there's more money involved than watching Premier League football.

   If you're happy to go for the cheapest option available, you could have bought a season ticket at whichever Premier League club took your fancy... apart from Arsenal, who decided that you can put a price on disappointment (£927, to be precise).

   In fact, at some clubs, you could have bought two season tickets for the price of an iPhone 14.

8. A trip to New York

   Do a quick search online for trips to New York, and it won't be long before you find some for £849 or less. In fact, if you're paying as much as £849 for your flights and accommodation, you could even be overpaying.

   We hopped onto lastminute.com and within seconds we'd found loads of deals including flights and three nights at a four-star hotel for well under £700 per person.

   Now, there are almost certainly better deals out there, and you might want to make some space for spending money if you're setting yourself a budget of £849.

   But given the choice between a break in the Big Apple, and paying big bucks to Apple for a phone that'll be outdated within a year, we know what we'd go for.

Of course, the most effective use of your £849 could be simply not to spend it. Instead, you could put it to work and see it lay many more golden coins over the two years you'd otherwise have been paying it out.

If you pay the monthly cash into a savings account instead, not only will you not be spending £849, you'll also gain interest and be better off than when you started.

Or, to really bring home the bacon, use your cash to start a business, create a website or set up any kind of passive income stream.

We'll leave you with our essential tips for finding the best phone contract deal: read them, save on them, and make your money go further.