iPhone XS, XS Max and XR | Everything You Need To Know + Video

By James
November 20, 2018

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We are going to have look at the latest range of Apple iPhones and compare the three. There is a lot to cover here so let’s get started straight away with the iPhone XS, which is the follow-up to the iPhone X released last year. We have the familiar design, with a notch on the top of the 5.8 inch OLED Super Retina HDR display, which has a 2436 x 1125 resolution. It is available in three sizes, you have 64GB, 256GB or the huge 512GB option. Colour-wise, we have the familiar colours of space grey and silver to choose from and we also get a new gold colour.

iPhone XS

The improvements here over the iPhone X from last year are essentially incremental improvements across the board. These will make the phones a bit faster, both in normal use and when unlocking the device using Apple’s impressive face unlocking technology, Face ID. The battery life is slightly improved over the iPhone X, although only slightly and stereo speaker quality is improved too. It’s worth mentioning that Apple is also extremely proud of its A12 bionic chip and the impressive power it brings keep everything moving along with serious pace, claiming it is significantly faster than the A11 bionic chip which we saw in last year’s iPhone X. There is also good news for the accident prone to as the iPhone XS has ip68 levels of water and dust resistance. You will also notice it’s improved camera technology, which we know is a big deal to a lot of you. The camera setup on the iPhone XS is a dual-lens 12 megapixel camera on the back; a F1.8 wide angle lens and an F2.4 telephoto lens, dual optical image stabilisation and you can shoot 4K video at up to 64 seconds. Over on the front the 7 megapixel camera means that you can get better selfies than ever before, it has an F 2.2 wide angle lens and you can shoot 1080p video at 60 frames per second.

iPhone XS Max

Any larger version of an iPhone, has up until now been called the ‘Plus’ version, the most recent example was the iPhone 8 Plus from last year. ‘Plus’ branding is no more it seems, the larger version of the iPhone XS is not the iPhone X Plus, but the iPhone XS Max. The OLED display on offer measures in at 6.5 inches and is Apple’s biggest smartphone display ever. You will be able to choose from the same storage options and colour options as the iPhone XS. If you want the ultimate iPhone and size is no issue, then this is it. Both of the XS phones have 458 PPI true tone display and 3D touch which is all very impressive.

iPhone XR

Next up is the final of this trio of new iPhones, the iPhone XR. This is the perfect option if you want to keep your spending under control while still getting a great iPhone experience. Instead of an OLED display as you get with the XS and the XS Max you get an LCD display. Apple call this liquid retina and although the pixel count is lower than the other two phones revealed here at 326 PPI, it should still be very impressive, size-wise it actually sits between a XS and a the XS Max with the display of 6.1 inches.

Apple is offering the iPhone XR in some beautiful colours, specifically, black, white, red, yellow coral and blue. The Apple iPhone XR has a ip67 water and dust resistance and it is equipped with the A12 bionic chip, therefore the device is expected to be nice and fast. On the back you only get the one camera lens but we don’t think that you should worry you at all for two reasons, firstly Apple says that is the most advanced single lens setup ever created. Secondly, we have seen in the past what a brand like Apple, or Sony for that matter have managed to achieve with one lens and it’s really impressive. What do we have here on the iPhone XR: 12 megapixel wide angle lens camera with an f 1.8 aperture, fortunately we also get optical image stabilisation, which is great news. You will still be able to get those beautiful creamy blurred out backgrounds that we associate with expensive DSLR cameras, smart HDR again makes an appearance and you can shoot 4K video at up to 60 frames a second. On the front you will find a 7 megapixel camera with an F2.2 aperture, portrait mode is there as well.

We have to say that our first impressions of all of these phones is that Apple has ticked all the boxes and covered most of the bases for anyone in the market for a new iPhone.

Check out our full video overview for more info and some great shots of all three models.