At an event held at Apple (Cupertino), the company announced three new devices: the iPhone XR, iPhone XR and iPhone XR Max, successors to the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X.
Apple's 12th generation phones have now been officially announced.
Pre-orders for the iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max begin on September 21st, and the devices will begin shipping on September 28th. As with the iPhone X, you'll have to wait longer for the iPhone Xr, which will start shipping on October 26th after pre-orders are accepted.
So before you grab your credit card and assume you don't like Android 9.0 Pie, you might want to see exactly what you're getting.
The comparison tables below show what Apple has changed. We compare the iPhone 8 to the iPhone Xr, the iPhone X to the iPhone Xs, and the iPhone 8 Plus to the iPhone Xs Max.
iPhone 8 vs. XR
| iPhone 8 | iPhone Xr | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $699, $849 | $749, $799, $899 |
| Storage | 64GB, 256GB | 64GB, 128GB, 256GB |
| Display | 4.7-inch, 1334×750, 326ppi | 6.1-inch, 1792×828, 326ppi |
| Contrast ratio | 1400:1 | 1400:1 |
| Processors | A11 Bionic 64-bit, M11 motion | A12 Bionic 64-bit |
| Identification | Touch ID | Face ID |
| Rear camera | 12MP, ƒ/1.8 | 12MP, ƒ/1.8 |
| Video recording | 4K at 60fps, 1080p at 60fps | 4K at 60fps, 1080p at 60fps |
| Front camera | 7MP photos, 1080p videos | 7MP photos, 1080p videos |
| FaceTime | Over Wi-Fi or cellular | Over Wi-Fi or cellular |
| Assistant | Siri | Siri |
| Navigation | GPS and GLONASS | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, and QZSS |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.0, NFC | Bluetooth 5.0, NFC |
| Talk time | Up to 14 hours | Up to 25 hours |
| Internet usage | Up to 12 hours | Up to 15 hours |
| Video playback | Up to 13 hours | Up to 16 hours |
| Audio playback | Up to 40 hours | Up to 65 hours |
| Height | 5.45 inches (138.4 mm) | 5.94 inches (150.9 mm) |
| Width | 2.65 inches (67.3 mm) | 2.98 inches (75.7 mm) |
| Depth | 0.29 inch (7.3 mm) | 0.33 inch (8.3 mm) |
| Weight | 5.22 ounces (148 grams) | 6.84 ounces (194 grams) |
| SIM card | Nano SIM | Nano SIM |
| Connector | Lightning | Lightning |
| Colors | Silver, Gold, Space Gray | Red, Yellow, White, Coral, Black, Blue |
If you trade in your iPhone 8 for an iPhone Xr, you're paying more for a bigger phone, a bigger screen, a heavier device, with better specs.
iPhone X with iPhone XS:
| iPhone X | iPhone Xs | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $999, $1,149 | $999, $1,149, $1,349 |
| Storage | 64GB, 256GB | 64GB, 256GB, 512GB |
| Display | 5.8-inch, 2436×1125, 458ppi | 5.8-inch, 2436×1125, 458ppi |
| Contrast ratio | 1,000,000:1 | 1,000,000:1 |
| Processors | A11 Bionic 64-bit, M11 motion | A12 Bionic 64-bit |
| Identification | Face ID | Face ID |
| Rear camera 1 | 12MP, ƒ/1.8 | 12MP, ƒ/1.8 |
| Rear camera 2 | 12MP, ƒ/2.4 | 12MP, ƒ/2.4 |
| Video recording | 4K at 60fps, 1080p at 60fps | 4K at 60fps, 1080p at 60fps |
| Front camera | 7MP photos, 1080p videos | 7MP photos, 1080p videos |
| FaceTime | Over Wi-Fi or cellular | Over Wi-Fi or cellular |
| Assistant | Siri | Siri |
| Navigation | GPS and GLONASS | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, and QZSS |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.0, NFC | Bluetooth 5.0, NFC |
| Talk time | Up to 21 hours | Up to 20 hours |
| Internet usage | Up to 12 hours | Up to 12 hours |
| Video playback | Up to 13 hours | Up to 14 hours |
| Audio playback | Up to 60 hours | Up to 60 hours |
| Height | 5.65 inches (143.6 mm) | 5.65 inches (143.6 mm) |
| Width | 2.79 inches (70.9 mm) | 2.79 inches (70.9 mm) |
| Depth | 0.30 inch (7.7 mm) | 0.30 inch (7.7 mm) |
| Weight | 6.14 ounces (174 grams) | 6.24 ounces (177 grams) |
| SIM card | Nano SIM | Nano SIM |
| Connector | Lightning | Lightning |
| Colors | Silver, Space Gray | Gold, Silver, Space Gray |
The iPhone Xs isn't exactly an upgrade over the iPhone X. You'll get a thinner, more powerful device with an hour more battery life. Thankfully, the price isn't any more expensive than last year.
iPhone Plus/Max:
| iPhone 8 Plus | iPhone Xs Max | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $799, $949 | $1,099, $1,249, $1,449 |
| Storage | 64GB, 256GB | 64GB, 256GB, 512GB |
| Display | 5.5-inch, 1920×1080, 401ppi | 6.5-inch, 2688×1242, 458ppi |
| Contrast ratio | 1300:1 | 1,000,000:1 |
| Processors | A11 Bionic 64-bit, M11 motion | A12 Bionic 64-bit |
| Identification | Touch ID | Face ID |
| Rear camera 1 | 12MP, ƒ/1.8 | 12MP, ƒ/1.8 |
| Rear camera 2 | 12MP, ƒ/2.8 | 12MP, ƒ/2.8 |
| Video recording | 4K at 60fps, 1080p at 60fps | 4K at 60fps, 1080p at 60fps |
| Front camera | 7MP photos, 1080p videos | 7MP photos, 1080p videos |
| FaceTime | Over Wi-Fi or cellular | Over Wi-Fi or cellular |
| Assistant | Siri | Siri |
| Navigation | GPS and GLONASS | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, and QZSS |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.0, NFC | Bluetooth 5.0, NFC |
| Talk time | Up to 21 hours | Up to 25 hours |
| Internet usage | Up to 13 hours | Up to 13 hours |
| Video playback | Up to 14 hours | Up to 15 hours |
| Audio playback | Up to 60 hours | Up to 65 hours |
| Height | 6.24 inches (158.4 mm) | 6.20 inches (157.5 mm) |
| Width | 3.07 inches (78.1 mm) | 3.05 inches (77.4 mm) |
| Depth | 0.30 inch (7.5 mm) | 0.30 inch (7.7 mm) |
| Weight | 7.13 ounces (202 grams) | 7.34 ounces (208 grams) |
| SIM card | Nano SIM | Nano SIM |
| Connector | Lightning | Lightning |
| Colors | Silver, Gold, Space Gray | Silver, Gold, Space Gray |
Obviously, this particular comparison has the biggest differences in favor of the iPhone Xs Max. Of course, the device will cost you…
One last thing: Touch ID isn't on any of the new devices. It's good to know if you don't like Face ID.
