“Which iPhone should I buy?”
As the tech guy in the family, I get asked this question more times than I can count. So if you have friends and family asking you this question, or if you’re in the market for a new iPhone, I thought I’d put together a guide to help out.
As we head into the holiday 2019 season, the iPhone lineup has never been this great and more diverse. There really isn’t a bad choice here.
Best iPhone for most people
The answer to “which iPhone should I buy” for most people is the iPhone 11.
The newest flagship phone offers the best bang for your buck and doesn’t miss anything from the iPhone 11 Pro line. It comes in lots of colors, and really isn’t lacking in anything. You can’t go wrong by selecting this model.
Filmmakers and Zoomers
If you aspire to make mobile films or if you like the telephoto lens, you’ll want to upgrade to the iPhone 11 Pro. Filmmakers will have more options with the three camera choices. If the choice isn’t enough, the FilmiC pro app demo on stage was amazing, allowing you to record multiple streams of video using every camera on the device at once.
Personally, I use the telephoto lens all the time when I’m taking snapshots, so I’m not sure that I could do without it anymore. Regardless, the Pro is the only new model that still offers the telephoto lens.
Movie Watchers
If you find yourself watching videos on your iPhone all the time, you might want to look into the iPhone 11 Pro Max. It offers the biggest screen with the best quality. While the screen of the iPhone 11 isn’t bad (and it’s bigger than the 11 Pro) it doesn’t offer the same quality as the Pro model.
Small Phones Lovers
I know there are a few of you out there that like a smaller phone. If that’s the case, your options are limited. The iPhone 8 and the iPhone 11 Pro are the smallest phones that Apple currently offers. Both are similar in size, but the 11 Pro offers much more screen in the same space. That said, if you prefer the home button to FaceID, your only choice is the iPhone 8
If you want to keep that smaller form factor, the iPhone 11 Pro is probably your best bet right now – unless you can find an older and cheaper iPhone X or XS.
Force Presser
Apple has finally moved away from 3D and Force Touch on the iPhones. Last year, if you were a fan of Force Touch on your iPhone, you’d have to get the iPhone XS or iPhone XS Max as the new iPhone XR didn’t offer it. This year, no new model has Force Touch. Instead, Apple has rolled out Haptic touch to all iOS and iPadOS devices.
I personally thought that I would hate losing Force Touch. I had a few workflows that used it. But since testing out iPadOS this summer, I feel like Haptic Touch works just as well and it more consistent. Instead of trying to learn and repeat a measure press on the screen, you just long press.
If you want Force Touch, your only option that Apple currently sells is the iPhone 8.
Update (11/2019): Having used Haptic Touch for a couple of months now, my feelings on it are the same. I don’t really have an issue with losing 3D Touch most of the time. There have been a few times where an app hasn’t been updated. Really though, I think the unified User Experience is stronger now than ever before with something like this.
iPhone 11
The iPhone 11 is one of Apple’s best iPhones ever. As I mentioned above for the price, Apple doesn’t skimp on any of the features of the most Pro model devices from the same generation. Here’s what you get:
Color
One of the standout features has to be the colors. The iPhone 11 is the successor to the iPhone XR which brought colors successfully to the iPhone for the first time since the 5C.
Unlike last year, Apple has positioned the iPhone 11 as the standard model this year, and rightfully so. It is the model most people should get.
The iPhone 11 comes in six colors. Unlike the iPhone XR though, the colors are more pastel and muted. Still, most people looking for a phone will probably be drawn by the color of the device.
This year, the iPhone 11 comes in White, Black, Product(Red), yellow, green, and purple.
Screen
The iPhone 11 starts with a screen size that fits between the two pro-models. The iPhone 11 comes in at 6.1-inches. This makes it a fairly large phone. It isn’t as large as the Pro Max models, but it is a chunk of a phone.
The Screen is an LCD screen compared to the OLED screen of the Pro. It also runs the screen at a lower resolution than the Pro. 720p vs 1080p
But what does all this screen stuff mean?
The screen on the iPhone 11 is great. Many complained last year when the iPhone XR came with a 720p screen. Really, having used one for a couple of days, I couldn’t really tell much difference at that screen size. So don’t get caught up on that. I would get more caught up with how the screen feels in your hand. If you like the screen size of the XR you’ll like this phone.
Cameras
This year, the iPhone 11 gained a new camera. There are three total on the camera, a wide-lens (the standard one as always), an ultra-wide lens, and a front-facing camera.
The cameras on this phone are some of the best phone cameras ever created. Let’s be honest though, cell phone photography has gotten so good that all of the major brands have great cameras. The details, lighting, and color of this phone are outstanding though.
Wide-Lens
The wide lens of the iPhone 11 just looks better than ever before. We could talk about megapixel and superpixels and whatnot, but really the proof is in the photos. I’ve attached a quick shot from the Apple Store above. The details that the phone picks are crazy for such a small device.
Things have improved even more with Deep Fusion in the later iOS 13 updates. With this lens, it lets more light in and takes more photos, then combines them to make an even better photo.
But that’s really what it comes down to. This phone takes great photos.
Ultra-Wide Lens
The Ultra-wide lens is a fun new look for iPhone photography.
Here is the Ultra-Wide shot from the same point I took the wide shot from. There is a larger field of view.
This is great when you have a landscape, a large subject, or need to scoot back just that little bit more. I think it will be cool for most people to use. I can’t wait to go on vacation to take some great shots of new areas.
Night Mode
All of the new models of iPhones get Night Mode as well. This mode will turn on automatically when you try to take a photo in a dark location that needs more light.
The photos that come out of the night mode look incredible. If there is some light, Night Mode just turns on. You don’t need to go to a new setting or anything. When you try to snap a photo instead of just taking the photo, you’ll get a scrolling timer. The timer is usually only a couple of seconds long so it’s not bad.
This is a shot from a pretty dark room. Usually, this kind of shot would require flash, but now the iPhone will only use the flash when it can’t get enough light for a Night Shot. It’s very handy!
Video
Finally, the videos will be improved too. If you take a lot of videos, Apple will be bringing 4K 60 frames/second to all the cameras on the phone. That includes the front camera. Slow-Mo video is also coming to the front camera. Apple is calling them – cringingly – Slofies. I’m sure we’ll have fun with them for about a week and then forget about it, but they are there now.
Portrait
Now that the iPhone 11 has two cameras you can get true Portrait mode on it. On the iPhone XR you could use Portrait mode, but it was all done in software. This wouldn’t allow you to take a portrait mode of anything that wasn’t a person. Now with the two lenses, you can take portrait photos of your pets again!
Materials
The backs of all the iPhones are glass. The only thing that differs is the band that runs around the phone. The iPhone 11 will come with a color-matched aluminum band. It’s maybe not as strong at the stainless steel that comes in the Pro model, but really, iPhones have been made of aluminum for years.
Battery
This year, battery life has really been improved. The iPhone 11 has an additional hour versus the iPhone XR.
The iPhone XR already had the best battery on an iPhone you could get, to extend it an extra hour makes it even better.
Price
The best thing about the iPhone 11 is the price.
Apple improved on everything about the iPhone XR (except maybe the colors) and even brought the price down.
The iPhone 11 starts at $699 – yes that is still a large sum of money, but it is nowhere near the price of the iPhone 11 Pro and you still get most of the same things.
iPhone 11 Pro
The iPhone 11 Pro is the new top of the line iPhone. It has the best screen on an iPhone and includes an extra camera. The materials used are also just a little bit more premium.
But all that extra really adds on to the cost.
Of course, you can still get the largest iPhone made with the iPhone 11 Pro Max.
So here’s what you get with the iPhone 11 Pro and Max.
Screen
The screen on the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max is the “best screen Apple has ever made.” Apple even changed the name of the display from Super Retina to Super Retina XDR. While the screen has the same resolution, Apple had brought HDR to more aspects of the operating system. It has also increased the brightness when you’re out in the sun or watching an HDR video.
It is also an OLED screen so the individual lights light up instead of needed a backlight like an LED. That means the blacks are darker since they don’t have to light up at all. But that’s just how the iPhone X and XS line worked as well.
Camera
Unlike the camera on the iPhone 11, the camera system on the iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max also includes a telephoto lens. Just like on the past iPhones with dual-lens, the telephoto lens allows you to zoom in without losing quality.
If you’ve used any previous iPhone with the optical zoom, you’ll know what you’re getting. The question you’ll need to ask is “Can I live without it?” Myself? I use the zoom pretty often, so I’m opting to continue using it.
Materials
The iPhone 11 Pros are made out of stainless steel aluminum and glass. The glass is frosted this year, unlike the past and the iPhone 11. These devices are heavier in general, partial because of the material, but also because of the bigger battery.
This year Apple has also added in a new Midnight Green color to go with the Space Grey, Silver, and Gold version from the past. It looks pretty interesting, and I can’t wait to actually see it in person.
Price
The major difference between the two iPhones comes down to price. The iPhone 11 starts at $699 and goes up from there. Of course, I usually recommend stepping up a level on storage, but if you don’t take many pictures or videos 64 GB can probably last you a while.
The iPhone 11 Pro starts at $999 and goes way up from there. That’s a big jump for a little better casing, an extra camera lens, and a better screen. So many people will need to think about what they really need in a phone.
iPhone XR
The iPhone XR is the phone I thought most people should use last year. It has a great price (for an iPhone), comes in great colors, and offers most of what the iPhone XS offered last year. This year, I would say if you can afford it to check out the iPhone 11 though. If you don’t like the colors that the iPhone 11 offers though, you’ll still be pretty happy with the colors offered for the XR.
The iPhone XR is similar to the new 11 in every way except for processing power and cameras.
The XR uses last year’s processors which will still be plenty powerful for 99% of phone users since that processor performed slightly slower than some laptops.
The camera on the XR is limited though. It still uses last year’s lens (which aren’t terrible but is out-classed by the 11 this year) and there’s no wide-angle lens or telephoto lens either.
This isn’t the only phone that comes in colors other than black, white, and gold anymore. The colors of the XR are the most vibrant though. They look so good.
So what’s wrong with it?
The short answer is nothing.
The resolution of the screen is also a little lower than most phones coming out today. This has many angry and claiming that the screen is bad. However, in a blind test, it got chosen every time.
Like all the new phones, the XR is missing 3D Touch. The technology that Apple developed that allows you to press harder on the screen to get shortcuts, peek and pop windows, and other things is missing on this phone. I suspect that Apple was trying to keep the size and cost of the phone down. If you use 3D touch now and you use it often, you’ll probably want to skip this model.
For most people, this won’t be a major problem.
The XR starts at $599 for 64 GB!
Who should get the iPhone XR
If you want
- Newer specs but don’t want to spend $1000
- A color that isn’t offered on the iPhone 11
- FaceID within a reasonable price range
- A great camera, but you don’t zoom in often
- Want a phone that will last you a few years, but won’t cost too much.
iPhone 8 and 8 Plus
The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are phones that came out last year. They feature the last ten years of the iPhone and not the future.
That’s not a bad thing, the iPhone 8 is still a capable phone in all rights. It has very similar specs to the iPhone X that came out two years ago. They feature the same CPU, have a similar camera, and can be charged wirelessly.
The iPhone 8 is one of the smaller phones that you can get now. It is nearly the same size as the 11 Pro, but because of the bezels, it only has a 4.7-inch screen on the smaller model. The larger model is the same size as the iPhone 11 Pro Max but has a smaller 5.5-inch display.
The iPhone 8 starts at $449 for 64GB and can be upgraded to 128GB for $499.
The iPhone 8 Plus starts at $549 for 64GB and goes up to $599 for 128GB.
Who should get the iPhone 8 and Plus
if you want:
- Good technology for lower prices
- TouchID instead of FaceID
- Prefer the older form factor.
- Have apps that use or require 3D Touch
If you are stepping up your storage or planning to buy the Plus version I would highly recommend that you look at the XR. It’s a better phone for not much more money at that point. The XR will last you longer down the road as well. I’d only stay with the 8 if you prefer touchID honestly.
Closing
So, which iPhone should you buy? I think the best phone for most people is the iPhone 11, but there are reasons to look at the other devices on the list.
Please feel free to direct your friends asking you which they should get to this site. I want nothing more to help.
Make sure you check out our iPad Buyer’s guide for 2018, the MacBook Buyers Guide, or the Gift Guide as well!
Do you have any other advice that I haven’t given? Would you recommend something else? Let me know in the comments or on Twitter.
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