Want a top-notch iPhone for less? Last year when Apple dropped its crop of three new iPhones we got a prettier and cheaper version of the flagship iPhone XS in the iPhone XR.
This year is no different: Apple's iPhone 11 is the more colourful, more affordable version of the iPhone 11 Pro. But meanwhile, the iPhone XR has had a $180 price-cut
So which one should you pick? Here's our take.
iPhone 11 vs iPhone XR: Price
There's no two ways about it, you'll save $150 by choosing the iPhone XR over the iPhone 11. But is the saving worth missing out on the new phone? We'll know for sure once we've tested the iPhone 11, but all things considered, we think we'd spend the extra money.
| Model | Price | Buy |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone XR (64GB) | $1,049 | Go to plans |
| iPhone 11 (64GB) | $1,119 | Go to plans |
| iPhone XR (128GB) |
$1,129 | Go to plans |
| iPhone 11 (128GB) | $1,279 | Go to plans |
| iPhone 11 (256GB) | $1,449 | Go to plans |
The iPhone XR is undoubtedly the cheaper of these two phones. But when it comes to iPhones, "cheaper" is always relative. This year Apple launched three new devices: the iPhone 11, the iPhone 11 Pro and the iPhone 11 Pro Max. The iPhone 11 is the "affordable" choice from the line-up. In fact, there's a cool $550 price gap between the 11 (starting at $1,199) and the 11 Pro (starting at $1,749).
Yet despite the cheaper price point, the iPhone 11 shares many of the same features as its far pricier sibling, including the fast new A13 processor, two of the 11 Pro's three rear-facing cameras and night mode for photography.
By contrast, last year's iPhone XR has the older A12 processor, one rear-facing camera and no night mode. And while both phones should last you a good long while, the newer iPhone 11 will inevitably be the more long-lived of the pair.
The iPhone XR is still a great phone. But we think the iPhone 11 will deliver more value. If you're undecided, stay tuned for our full iPhone 11 review, coming soon.
iPhone 11 vs iPhone XR: Camera
As you'd expect from a newer device, the iPhone 11 camera is better than the iPhone XR. The only question is, how much better? We're putting the phone through its paces right now. Full verdict and camera samples are coming soon. Stay tuned.
iPhone XR camera samples
This year's iPhone 11 camera comes with two major draws over the iPhone XR: it has two rear-facing cameras and night mode.
Both phones have a primary 12MP rear-facing lens, but only the iPhone 11 has a second 120-degree ultra-wide lens. This has a 0.5x zoom factor when compared to the primary lens, letting you zoom out rather than zoom in, which is pretty damn nifty.
However, the biggest draw for shutterbugs this year is 'night mode'. In dark environments, night mode can be used to take multiple images over a longer period of time to stitch them together into a brighter photo.
Rival devices like the Huawei P30 Pro and the Google Pixel 3 have used processes like these to produce bright and detailed shots in almost total darkness. Users of the iPhone 11 should be able to expect similar results.
iPhone 11 vs iPhone XR: Looks
The iPhone 11 and the iPhone XR will look and feel the same in almost every regard. Only some of the colour variants are different.
iPhone XR looks
iPhone 11 looks
In terms of the look and feel, the iPhone 11 and the iPhone XR are basically the same phone. They have the exact same body size and weight. Each comes with the exact same 6.1-inch display. They both have the exact same notch and the exact same glass and aluminium body.
In fact, they only differ in one way: colour options. The iPhone 11 comes in a choice of black, white, red, yellow, green or lavender. Meanwhile, the iPhone XR comes in a choice of black, white, red, yellow, blue or coral.
In terms of cosmetic differences, that's it.
Of course, if you absolutely have your heart set on a green, lavender, blue or coral iPhone, you'll have to pick one over the other. But if you're willing to pay $150 more or less for a really eye-catching iPhone, you could just get yourself a case.
There are hundreds of stunning iPhone cases on the market right now, and they get as weird and wonderful as cases made of wood, Italian silk, pressed flowers, or actual stone marble. Choosing a lovely case will leave you free to focus on other features when trying to pick between the phones.
iPhone 11 vs iPhone XR: Performance
While both phones offer zippy performance out of the box, the iPhone 11 will almost certainly be faster. What that will mean for your day-to-day experience, however, remains to be seen.
When it comes to smartphones, newer devices always have performance advantages over older ones, and this is almost certainly true of the iPhone 11. The new phone has Apple's brand new A13 processor, whereas the iPhone XR has last year's A12.
Dubbed the A13 Bionic, the iPhone 11's new chip is said to be the fastest processor and graphics processor found in a smartphone today. That's an exciting claim.
But of course, no one was really complaining about the performance of the iPhone XR last year. Depending on what you do with your smartphone, at a certain point, fast and faster don't make much of a difference to your experience.
We'll know more about whether this is true of the iPhone 11 vs the iPhone XR once we've completed our testing of the new device. Stay tuned.
iPhone 11 vs iPhone XR: Battery life
Apple says the iPhone 11 will have one more hour of charge over the iPhone XR.
Last year, the iPhone XR had the best battery life of any iPhone. When we tested it, we found we could get one-and-a-half hours of use on a typical day.
This year, Apple says the iPhone 11 has an hour more of charge. But of course, that's likely a measure of constant use, rather than the off-again, on-again behaviour of most iPhone users on a typical day.
Everyone's use of their phone is different, and that inevitably impacts how long the battery will last. Until we've completed our testing, it will be hard for us to say what that extra hour will look like for the average user. We'll be updating this guide as soon as we have a clearer picture.
Jacqui Dent
Editorial Strategist
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