Apple Announces Three New iPhones at Single Shot – Which One to Pick Between iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR

Apple hits a high once again, announcing three new iPhones at a single shot. It’s a wow from my end, being an ardent fan of Apple and at the same time, I am perplexed with the names like XS and XR. For the techno-savvy buyers, Apple brings in several interesting terminologies in the form of powered features of the latest iPhones, such as A12 Bionic, Liquid Retina Display, Neural Engine and so on.

However, if you are seriously intending to buy one of these devices, you should stay off the nitty-gritties of names and jargons. You should rather focus on a few important points, e.g., whether that’s an attractive handset, a mammoth screen, a dependable camera, or colors that match your own style. You may be surprised to know that the three new iPhones have several features in common, so let’s explore.

COMMON FEATURES OF IPHONE XS, XS MAX, AND XR

If you recollect the iPhone 5C or have used one, it was a cheaper iPhone that had very colorful designs, so it makes for an easy comparison to the XR. But it also had year-old specifications compared to the 5S that was introduced in parallel. Apple is putting the same core hardware into each of its 2018 iPhones. There are distinguishing features when it comes to screen size, battery capacity, and camera, but the similarities are in abundance:

Powerful Processor
All three new iPhones share Apple’s latest A12 Bionic processor, a 7nm chip that, according to Apple, represents a breakthrough in mobile computational power. Its two performance cores, which handle intensive tasks, are up to 15 percent faster than the iPhone X, while the four efficiency cores, responsible for powering your everyday app usage, are up to 50 percent more efficient. The GPU is up to 50 percent faster. The latest iPhones signify possibilities for new software that maybe on the way. Each new iPhone also contains Apple’s latest, eight-core Neural Engine to handle AI tasks, which can take care of 5 trillion operations per second. All three phones are expected to offer the same extremely fast performance when running your applications on daily basis.

The Primary Camera
According to Apple, in each of the three models, the camera uses an all-new sensor, with larger pixels. The camera is capable of Smart HDR, which produces photos with far greater dynamic range and less noise in low light. The new camera is also better at freezing motion shots, says Apple. Like last year, all of the new iPhones can shoot 4K video at 60 fps and 1080p slo-mo at 240 fps. The XR might lack a telephoto or zoom lens, but it has the exact same 12-megapixel f/1.8 primary camera as the XS and XS Max.

Front-facing True Depth Camera
The iPhone manufacturer has used the same camera system for selfies, Face ID, Animoji, and Memoji across all three new devices. It’s a 7-megapixel f/2.2 sensor.

True Tone Technology
The latest iPhones are capable of showing a wide P3 color range. Though they use different display technology, the iPhone XS and XR each include Apple’s True Tone Technology, which adjusts the display’s temperature to match the ambient lighting around you.

Faster Face Recognition System
Apple has removed the home button for good from its 2018 iPhones, and the company has improved the Face ID exponentially this year by adding a faster secure enclave and smarter face-scanning algorithms.

Quicker Wireless Charging
As per Apple, all of its 2018 models support quicker Qi charging than the iPhone X was capable of, but it’s not providing any clear numbers on the actual differences.

Dual-SIM Support
The three iPhones are all capable of supporting two phone numbers by including both eSIM and one physical nano-SIM card in the phone. This will allow you to handle work or personal coordinates, even overseas travel and lot more, in a much easier way.

Stereo Audio Recording
Apple has powered the iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR, each with four microphones built in to capture stereo sound when you are doing a video shoot.

Better Stereo Speakers
Apple claims that the latest iPhones all have improved stereo speakers with a broader audio presentation.

Sluggish 5W Charger Without Headphone Adapter

Apple continues to package a slow charger with its most expensive mobile phones. And the company is no longer bundling its $9 headphone dongle in the box.

Choose IPHONE XS MAX for THE BIGGEST SCREEN of any iPhone ever $1,099 (64GB) | $1,249 (256GB) | $1,449 (512GB)

The iPhone XS Max is designed for users who love their Plus-sized smartphones. You get more screen, a 6.5-inch display in a form factor that’s just barely smaller than the 8 Plus.

Apple has been circulating the idea that the iPhone X had a bigger display as compared to the iPhone 8 Plus. Diagonally, that was technically true. But it was never as wide, which makes a difference when you are scrolling down Instagram, watching YouTube videos, or navigating across the web.

The feature of paramount importance, the XS Max is a return to that large, massive screen, now with a notch and sans home button. The other benefit of going larger is battery life. Apple says the iPhone XS Max bests the endurance of last year’s iPhone X by 90 minutes. But if you found past Plus phones to be unwieldy, the XS Max won’t be any different.

Image Courtesy: Apple

Choose IPHONE XS for a SUPER-POWERFUL PHONE with DUAL-CAMERA $999 (64GB) | $1,149 (256GB) | $1,349 (512GB)

The iPhone XS offers a modest refinement of the slick design that Apple introduced with the iPhone X. It’s more powerful, and way faster, thanks to gigabit LTE. The camera is better and there are other improvements like better water resistance (now IP68), and you get this one in gold.

If the iPhone XS Max is just more than you need, the XS comes in a more hand-friendly size with all of the same features. At the top of that list is its dual-lens camera for portrait shots. I don’t use this very often, but I have friends who shoot with it constantly. So for those who want the very best iPhone (with up to 512GB of storage) but care about single-handed usability, this makes an ideal choice.

Choose IPHONE XR for COLOR, THE BEST BATTERY LIFE, AND A GOOD BALANCE OF EVERYTHING ELSE $749 (64GB) | $799 (128GB) | $899 (256GB)

Starting at $749, the iPhone XR manages to avoid the harsh $1,000 entry price of the iPhone XS. But it shares many of the same features and Apple’s latest technology advances. There are two main differences to keep in mind. One is the screen: with the XR, you get a 6.1-inch LCD instead of the 5.8-inch or 6.5-inch OLED panels on the XS. It’s not as sharp as the iPhone XS (326 ppi versus 458), but Apple’s LCDs are vibrant and bright. The phone is a bit wider (2.98 inches) than the XS (2.79 inches), so that’s something to consider if you’re not fond of bulky devices.

The other difference is the camera, as the XR has just a single, optically stabilized 12-megapixel sensor. But thanks to software, it offers the same portrait shots as the XS and the same Smart HDR capabilities. Performance between the two primary cameras on both phones should be identical. In case you have frequently depended on or enjoyed using the zoom lens on an iPhone Plus, you might miss it.

The IP67 water resistance is a step down from the new IP68 rating of the XS and XS Max, but it’s still good enough to provide peace of mind in a sudden rainstorm or if someone splashes your phone with their favorite beverage. The aluminum band isn’t quite as substantial as stainless steel, but the phone is more lightweight in exchange.

The real seller of the iPhone XR is color. With options like coral, blue, yellow, and red, it’s a far more striking and eye-catching device than the play-it-safe iPhone XS. Those who keep saying its color will be hidden by a case, let me remind you that clear cases exist in full and plenty.

If you pick the XR, you’re getting a lot of what’s best about the iPhone XS in a cheaper package. And it has the best battery life of any of this year’s iPhones as the final kicker. Apple claims that the XR can outlast the iPhone 8 Plus in most cases by 90 minutes. The Plus phones have always had impressive endurance, and this sounds substantially better. That’s promising.

You lose out on 3D Touch, but how much of a loss is that? No, you won’t be able to go to a specific section of an app by hard pressing on its home screen icon or preview (“peek” in Apple terminology) URL links or media. But other handy features, like moving the cursor around by holding down on the virtual keyboard, have expanded to devices without 3D Touch.

It has been three years since 3D Touch debuted on the iPhone 6S, and the best advice for discovering useful things it can do is still “just try out, and see what happens”.

There’s not a bad choice among the trio, and while it’s unfortunate that the new iPhone fleet has a $750 cost of entry, the iPhone 8 remains a decent choice for those looking to spend less. Hope this is enough to give you a detailed insight of what the latest iPhones have in store, so grab yours at the earliest.