After months of anticipation, Apple’s 2019 has finally been announced for all the world to see.
At the company’s Steve Jobs Theatre in Apple Park, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook was joined on stage by senior VP of marketing Phil Schiller and senior director of product marketing Kaiann Drance to reveal the new iPhone range, featuring the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max.
From design specs, to prices, as well as how to pre-order the new devices, here’s everything you need to know about the new 2019 iPhone range.
iPhone 11: This year’s affordable iPhone
In a nutshell: The follow-up to last year’s iPhone XR, the most popular device in the 2018 range. Apple has added a second camera to the back of the device, but kept the LCD screen and colourful glass back range to make this the fun and more affordable iPhone.
Specs: The new iPhone 11 will sport a 6.1-inch LCD screen with True Tone display. There are a few new colours to the range, so it comes in black, green, gold, purple, red, and silver.
Camera-wise, there are two lenses on the back on the iPhone 11, a 12MP wide lens and a 12MP ultra-wide angle lens. A new Night Mode will automatically change your camera tech to shoot good low-lighting photography that aims to take on the Google Pixel 3. As well, the front camera has a new 12MP true depth camera to take wide-angle selfies, whilst a slo mo video will herald the age of the slo mo selfie.
In addition, the new iPhone 11 will sport Apple’s brand new A13 Bionic chip. Apple says this is the fastest CPU ever in a smartphone, beating Samsung’s Galaxy S10+ and Huawei P30 Pro performance. Thanks to these new features, the iPhone 11 will have an hours’ more battery than last year’s XR.
Price and release date: Prices for the new iPhone 11 will start from £699, cheaper than last year’s iPhone XR at £749. The device is available to pre-order on Friday September 13 and will ship next week on Friday September 20.
Verdict: Those new camera features are particularly exciting and the prowess from the new A13 bionic chip will be welcomed by many. But it’s the price that will grab the headlines here – bringing it to below £700 will make those still sporting an iPhone 5 more likely to want to upgrade.
iPhone 11 Pro: Apple’s first Pro iPhone model
In a nutshell: Apple is following the likes of Huawei and Samsung with the new ‘Pro’ title with this device. The same size as last year’s iPhone XS, this is the smallest iPhone in the 2019 line-up with a screen-size of 5.8-inches.
Specs: The iPhone 11 Pro has a new OLED screen featuring 458 pixels per inch to offer a crisp, True Tone display and haptic touch. The device itself is made out of surgical-grade stainless steel, with one single piece of glass covering the back. Hopefully, this means the new phone will be less prone to shattering compared to previous devices. There’s four colours in this year’s range too: a new midnight green colour, alongside space grey, silver and a new gold.
Inside the phone features Apple’s new A13 bionic chip like the iPhone 11. It should be more power-efficient than last year’s XS, promising four-hours’ more battery life.
On the back there are three cameras, a 12MP telephoto lens, a 12MP ultra-wide lens, and a 12MP wide lens, in an interesting formation. Apple says it has also improved the software in its camera, including a new Deep Fusion feature which aims to take on the Google Pixel’s portrait mode.
Price and release date: Prices for the new iPhone 11 Pro will start at £999 with pre-orders opening this Friday, and shipping beginning next week on Friday, September 20.
Verdict: Not much change really here. Apple has kept the big notch and updated the lenses so the device falls more in line with flagships from Samsung and Huawei. It’ll be interesting to see how the new camera tech stands up to the Google Pixel, and if that shatter-resistant tech proves itself in practice as well. A worthy upgrade from the iPhone X but maybe not so different from the XS.
iPhone 11 Pro Max: The big one
In a nutshell: iPhone to the max, literally. The biggest and flashiest device in the range, with a 6.5-inch screen and supercharged specs.
Specs: The iPhone 11 Pro Max is similar to the 11 Pro, just in a bigger body. It has a 6.5-inch OLED screen, sporting the True Tone display on the 11 Pro and haptic touch. There’s the new A13 Bionic chip too, and a bigger battery size than last year’s Max which promises five-hours extra battery life per day.
The camera specs are the same so photos should be greatly improved on this device compared to last year’s. As well, the 11 Pro and Max smartphones can shoot 4K resolution video, as well as the ability to shoot videos in time-lapse, slo mo and takes advantage of a new cinematic stabilisation video to remove any shakiness.
Price and release date: The new iPhone 11 Pro Max will start from £1,099. Like the other two devices, pre-orders will start on Friday, and the new phone will ship on Friday, September 20.
Verdict: Like the iPhone 11 Pro, there’s a few details that have changed from last year. If you like a bigger device and a higher-resolution screen, and are happy to pay more, then it’s a solid choice.
