To Upgrade your iPhone or Not to? iPhone X vs iPhone XS Max, iPhone XS
Only last year Apple launched its pioneering iPhone X device that emerged as the highest-selling smartphone during the first three months of the year 2018. Apple’s most-expensive iPhone (until recently) also got the title for being the most profitable smartphone in the world. The iPhone X garnered 35% of the total smartphone industry profit, meaning many of us have already spent our $1000 on this device.
The iPhone X has “98% Customer Satisfaction”, sourced from Tim Cook himself at Apple’s September 2018 event. Now the question that arises is, how many of us are willing to upgrade to the now most expensive smartphone in the world, The Apple iPhone XS Max. And is it worth it? Furthermore, how many new users can Apple’s latest luxury smartphone duo add to their kitty with a starting cost of $999 for the iPhone XS and $1099 for the XS Max?
Let’s dissect right through the features of Apple’s most advanced iPhone they have ever created and see if it really does take the experience of its predecessor to a whole new level.
iPhone XS |
iPhone XS Max |
iPhone X |
|
| Composition |
Surgical Grade Stainless Steel with Glass Front and Rear Cover. |
Surgical Grade Stainless Steel with Glass Front and Rear Cover. | Surgical Grade Stainless Steel with Glass Front and Rear Cover. |
| Screen |
Edge-to-Edge, Full Screen, Rounded into the Corners.
Covered in the most durable glass ever in a smartphone. |
Edge-to-Edge, Full Screen, Rounded into the Corners.
Covered in the most durable glass ever in a smartphone. |
Edge-to-Edge, Full Screen, Rounded into the Corners.
Durable Glass Cover. |
| Colour & Finish | Gold, Silver and Space Grey. | Gold, Silver and Space Grey. | Space Grey and Silver. |
| Dimensions & Weight | 143.6 x 70.9 x 7.7 mm and 177 g | 157.5 x 77.4 x 7.7 mm and 208 g | 143.6 x 70.9 x 7.7 mm and 174 g |
| Dust & Water Protection | IP68 dust/water resistant (2 meters deep for up to 30 minutes) | IP68 dust/water resistant (2 meters deep for up to 30 minutes) | IP67 dust/water resistant (1 meter deep for up to 30 minutes) |
| Screen | Super Retina, OLED Display 5.8” 2436 x 1125, 2.7 million pixels with 458 PPI. | Super Retina, OLED Display 6.5” 2688 x 1242, 3.3 million pixels with 458 PPI. | Super Retina Display, OLED Display, 5.8”, 2436 x 1125, 2.7 million pixels, 458 PPI. |
| Display | Super AMOLED True Tone Display, HDR Display in Dolby Vision and HDR10 Formats. | Super AMOLED True Tone Display, HDR Display in Dolby Vision and HDR10 Formats. | Super AMOLED True Tone Display, HDR Display in Dolby Vision and HDR10 Formats. |
| Contrast Ratio | 1-million-to-1 with colour accuracy. | 1-million-to-1 with colour accuracy. | 1-million-to-1 with colour accuracy. |
| Touch Sensing | 120Hz, 3D Touch | 120Hz, 3D Touch | 120Hz, 3D Touch |
| Wake Screen | Raise/Tap to Wake, No Home Button. | Raise/Tap to Wake, No Home Button. | Raise/Tap to Wake, No Home Button. |
| Sound | Stereo Sound | Stereo Sound | Stereo Sound |
| Locking and Protection | Face ID with Faster More Secure Enclave. | Face ID with Faster More Secure Enclave. | Face ID |
| Camera System | True Depth Camera System: Infrared Camera, Flood Illuminator, Proximity Sensor, Ambient Light Sensor Speaker, Microphone, Front Camera and Dot Projector. | True Depth Camera System: Infrared Camera, Flood Illuminator, Proximity Sensor, Ambient Light Sensor Speaker, Microphone, Front Camera and Dot Projector. | True Depth Camera System: Infrared Camera, Flood Illuminator, Proximity Sensor, Ambient Light Sensor Speaker, Microphone, Front Camera and Dot Projector. |
| Protection | Neural Network Engine | Neural Network Engine | Neural Network Engine |
| Chip | A12 Bionic, 6 Core CPU, 4 Core GPU (50% faster than A11), | A12 Bionic, 6 Core CPU, 4 Core GPU (50% faster than A11) | A11 Bionic, Dual Core Design, 2 High-Performance Cores, 4 High-Efficiency Cores. |
| Animoji | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Ops/Second | 5 Trillion | 5 Trillion | 600 billion |
| Internal Storage | 64/256/512 GB, 4 GB RAM | 64/256/512 GB, 4 GB RAM | 64/256 GB, 3 GB RAM |
| AR | ARKit 2 | ARKit 2 | ARKit |
| Camera | Dual Camera System, 12mp wide camera, 12mp telephoto camera, True Tone Flash. | Dual Camera System, 12mp wide camera, 12mp telephoto camera, True Tone Flash | Dual Camera System, 12mp wide camera, 12mp telephoto camera, Quad-LED True Tone Flash |
| Rear Camera | Wide-angle camera, Dual Optical Image Stabilization, 1.4um pixels,
Focus pixels f/1.8, 6 element lens Optical Image Stabilization, Telephoto Camera f/2.4, 6 element lens, 2 x optical zoom Smart HDR |
Wide-angle camera, Dual Optical Image Stabilization, 1.4um pixels,
Focus pixels f/1.8, 6 element lens Optical Image Stabilization, Telephoto Camera f/2.4, 6 element lens, 2 x optical zoom Smart HDR |
12 MP, f/1.8, 28mm, 1.22µm, OIS, PDAF
12 MP, f/2.4, 52mm, 1.0µm, OIS, PDAF, 2x optical zoom
Smart HDR |
| Front Camera | RGB Camera, 7mp camera, f/2.2 aperture 2 x fast sensor.
IR Camera, Advanced Image Sensor with Global Shutter.
Dot Projector, Structured Light Transmitter, Micro Projection Lens, Diffractive Beam Splitter. |
RGB Camera, 7mp camera, f/2.2 aperture 2 x fast sensor.
IR Camera, Advanced Image Sensor with Global Shutter. Dot Projector, Structured Light Transmitter, Micro Projection Lens, Diffractive Beam Splitter. |
RGB Camera, 7mp camera, f/2.2 aperture 2 x fast sensor.
IR Camera, Advanced Image Sensor with Global Shutter.
Dot Projector, Structured Light Transmitter, Micro Projection Lens, Diffractive Beam Splitter. |
| Sound | Stereo Speakers | Stereo Speakers | Stereo Speakers |
| Battery Life | Up to 20 hours (3G) of Talktime and Up to 60 hours of Music Play. | Up to 25 hours (3G) of Talktime and Up to 65 hours of Music Play. | Up to 21 hours (3G) of Talktime and Up to 60 hours of Music Play. |
| Charging | Wireless | Wireless | Wireless |
| Network | Gigabit Class LTE, Best WorldWide Roaming. | Gigabit Class LTE, Best WorldWide Roaming. | LTE Advanced |
| Sim | Dual Sim, Dual Sim Dual Standby (DSDS), eSim Technology, Apple Pay Compatible. | Dual Sim, Dual Sim Dual Standby (DSDS), eSim Technology, Apple Pay Compatible. | Single Sim, Apple Pay Compatible. |
| Portrait Photographs | Portrait mode Front and Back, BEKAH Adjustment After Capturing an Image. | Portrait mode Front and Back, BEKAH Adjustment After Capturing an Image. | Portrait mode Front and Back |
| Bluetooth | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Amid all the claims made by Apple for this new iPhone duo following are some that are worth highlighting:
- iPhone XS has 60% greater dynamic range for colours in photos than the iPhone X’s display
- A12 Bionic is the industry’s first 7nm chip
- 2 high-performance cores are up to 15% faster and 40% more energy efficient than A11.
- 4 high-efficiency cores are 60% more energy efficient.
- A12 Bionic helps launch apps up to 30% faster
- 9 times faster core ML with 1/10th energy
- The user can adjust BOKEH depth after capturing an image
- Speakers in the iPhone XS is made with 30% pulse consumer recycle plastics and the cover glass frame is made with 32% bio-based plastic.
To sum it up, for those of you who already own an iPhone X, the new iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max are not a major upgrade unless you want to get them just for the heck of upgrading your device.
If you are a first-time Apple buyer and want to experience their best smartphone go for the XS Max which offers all the features iPhone XS does but in a bigger and better display.
However, it is important to mention that you pay an extra $100 to experience this larger size edge-to-edge device with the exact same features as its smaller counterpart the iPhone XS. There is another alternative though – the iPhone XR – which might be lacking in a few specs but is nevertheless a premium smartphone on its own.
You can shop for premium, high quality iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR phone cases on The Fone Stuff
