After far too many leaks and rumours, Apple has officially taken the wraps off its 2018 iPhones, and as expected, we're getting three brand new devices: the iPhone XS, the iPhone XS Max, and the iPhone XR.
The iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max are successors to last year's iPhone X featuring a stainless steel body, dual rear-facing cameras, and an OLED display, while the iPhone XR is meant to be a cheaper alternative with an aluminium body, a single rear-facing camera, and a lower resolution LCD display.
Of course, "cheaper" is a relative term. A weak exchange rate means iPhones are now more expensive than ever, with a 64GB iPhone XR starting at $1,229. Entry-level iPhones were previously $1,079. The iPhone XS will cost you a minimum of $1,629, and the iPhone XS Max at least $1,799. If you're after a 512GB iPhone XS Max, you're looking at $2,369.
Oh lordie.
Before we get into the nitty gritty, here's the important stuff. You'll be able to pre-order the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max from 5pm on September 14 ahead of a September 21 release date.
If you'd prefer not to drop over $1,600 on a smartphone, you'll be waiting a little longer. The iPhone XR will be available from October 26, with pre-orders opening on October 19.
Apple also unveiled a new Apple Watch that will go on sale alongside the iPhone XS.
UPDATE 14/09/18: iPhone XS and iPhone XS are now both available for pre-order, here is a small selection of plans.
iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max
The iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max - pronounced tennis, rather than excess, despite what the top-end price-tags might suggest - succeed last year's iPhone X. The iPhone XS looks identical, while the iPhone XS Max is a larger model touting a 6.5-inch "Super Retina" display.
6.5-inches might sound massive, but thanks to the edge-to-edge display, the iPhone XS Max is roughly the same size as an iPhone 8 Plus in the same way the iPhone X was roughly the same size as iPhone 8.
Since this is very clearly an "S" year, most the changes are under the hood. The display is the same size, with a pixel density of 458 ppi on both models. There's still a notch, and the home button and headphone jack are well and truly gone. As such, you'll be unlocking these iPhones with facial recongition, which Apple says is now faster than ever thanks to an improved secure enclave (an iPhone's coprocessor that specifically deals with security) and improved algorithms.
As expected, there's also a faster processor. Dubbed the A12 Bionic, the iPhone XS' six-core processor is Apple's first 7 nanometre chip, and its said to run 15% faster than last year's A11. The corresponding Neural Processing Unit has had a big upgrade, and can now complete 5 trillion operations per second, up from 600 billion. This helps with real-time machine learning, which in turn facilitates experiences like Animoji where your phone has to analyse your face and map objects on the fly.
The dual 12MP rear-facing camera configuration will also take advantage of the NPU to help you take better photos. This is best exemplified by a feature called Smart HDR that creates a single photo from a four frame buffer with several interframes while using a long exposure for shadow detail. Portrait mode has also received a bit of an upgrade: you'll be able to adjust the depth of field of a photo after you've taken it, with a range of f/1.4 to f/16.
Both the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Plus are technically dual SIM phones, but the second SIM is a digital eSIM. Since the second SIM isn't actually a physical card, it's not quite clear how many providers will be interested in supporting this - especially in Australia, where telcos have historically not been too fond of dual SIM smartphones. China will however get a dual SIM iPhone XS Max with two physical SIM slots.
Other changes include a new gold stainless steel finish, IP68 water-resistance (up from IP67 last year), improved speakers, and models with up to 512GB storage. In terms of battery, Apple says the iPhone XS will last half an hour longer than the iPhone X, while the iPhone XS Max should give you 90 minutes more.
The iPhone XS and iPhone XS will be available in a choice of silver, space grey, and gold. Pricing is as follows:
- iPhone XS 64GB: $1,629
- iPhone XS 256GB: $1,879
- iPhone XS 512GB: $2,199
- iPhone XS Max 64GB: $1,799
- iPhone XS Max 256GB: $2,049
- iPhone XS Max 512GB: $2,369
Pre-orders start at 5:01pm on September 14 ahead of a September 21 release date. We'll iPhone XS plans here as soon as they're available.
iPhone XR
The iPhone XR is Apple's ever so slightly more affordable 2018 iPhone, and it's a lot more colourful. You'll be able to grab it in a choice of six colours, including black, white, coral, blue, yellow, and red. Yellow looks absolutely lovely.
While the iPhone XR will cost you around $400 less than a comparable iPhone XS, it shares most of the same features. You get the same A12 processor, the same 12MP rear-facing camera (although without the second lens), and a very similar design. Despite the lack of a second lens, the iPhone XR still gets portrait mode through some software tricks.
There are however a few differences. It's 6.1-inch display is LED rather than OLED (and runs at a lower resolution), you don't get 3D Touch, the build is aluminum rather than stainless steel, water-resistance is IP67 rather than IP68, and you can't film video in 4K.
Here's how the three models compare:
2018 iPhone specifications
| iPhone XR | iPhone XS | iPhone XS Max | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Display | 6.1-inch LCD | 5.8-inch OLED | 6.5-inch OLED |
| Resolution | Retina | Super Retina | Super Retina |
| 3D Touch | No | Yes | Yes |
| Material | Aluminium | Stainless Steel | Stainless Steel |
| Rear-Facing Camera | 12MP | 12MP + 12MP | 12MP + 12MP |
| Processor | A12 | A12 | A12 |
| Storage | 64GB - 256GB | 64GB - 512GB | 64GB - 512GB |
| Water-Resistance | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Price | From $1,229 | From $1,629 | From $1,799 |
In terms of battery life, Apple says the iPhone XR will last about 90 minutes more than an iPhone 8 Plus.
iPhone XR pricing is as follows:
- iPhone XR 64GB: $1,229
- iPhone XR 128GB: $1,299
- iPhone XR 256GB: $1,479
You'll be able to pre-order an iPhone XR from October 19, ahead of an October 26 release date. We'll have iPhone XR plans here as soon as they're available.
iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 price cuts
The iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, and iPhone 8, and iPhone 8 Plus are all sticking around, and have all received a discount. New pricing for Apple's existing iPhone lineup is as follows:
- iPhone 7 32GB: $749
- iPhone 7 128GB: $919
- iPhone 7 Plus 32GB: $929
- iPhone 7 Plus 128GB: $1,099
- iPhone 8 64GB: $979
- iPhone 8 256GB: $1,229
- iPhone 8 Plus 64GB: $1,149
- iPhone 8 Plus 256GB: $1,399
Both the iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 should come down in price on contract too shortly, so if you'd prefer to pay your device off over two years, you can compare all iPhone plans here.
Notably, Apple has discontinued the iPhone X, the iPhone 6S, the iPhone 6S Plus, and the iPhone SE.
Alex Choros
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