During a press event from Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino on Wednesday, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced expansions to the iPhone X line, revealing new versions of the luxury device: the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and the iPhone XR, which all come with edge-to-edge displays similar to the debut model.
The XS features a 5.8-inch Super Retina display and a surgical grade stainless steel backing that comes in gold, silver and space gray. While it is vastly similar aesthetically to the original iPhone X, it comes with enhanced hardware that may entice some consumers who may be on the fence about upgrading. The company says the glass is more durable than before and has improved water resistance. It also features faster FaceID and wider stereo sound.
While the XS and XS Max are both outfitted with OLED displays, the latter comes with a whopping 6.5-inch screen, making it Apple’s largest iPhone ever.
Because the XS Max comes with a 6.5-inch display (for comparison, the iPhone 8 Plus comes with a 5.5-inch screen), users will be able to run two apps at the same time in split screen mode — a feature the company debuted in iPads, but wasn’t available on iPhones until now. This will likely prove useful for people who need to quickly copy and paste text from one app to another.
The larger size of the XS Max also means it will have a longer battery life compared to other editions — up to an hour and a half more than the iPhone X, the company says.
There are also massive improvements to the dual rear cameras — the XS iPhones will be able to take sharper pictures of moving objects, powered by the A12 chip. Portrait mode received updates as well, and users can now control bokeh (the blurriness in the background of a picture) straight from their phone.
For those who don’t want to break the bank when buying the increasingly expensive devices, the XR is Apple’s “budget” iPhone. While the phone keeps the iPhone bezel-less design, it lacks a few of the features of the flagship smartphones — instead of the OLED displays that come with the XS and XS Max, the XR will come with a 6.1-inch LED display (which they call Liquid Retina).
It will also have a single lens-rear camera, presumably to keep costs down, and will come in a white, black, blue, coral and yellow shells.
The iPhone XS starts at $1629 for its 64GB version, and iPhone XS Max will start at $1799. They are available for pre-order on September 14 and will ship a week later on September 21. The iPhone XR starts at $749 and will be available for pre-order on October 10, shipping October 26.
iPhone XR will be available in 64GB, 128GB and 256GB models in white, black, blue, yellow, coral and (PRODUCT)RED starting at RRP A$1,229 inc. GST (64GB).
During the event, Tim Cook also announced that the company was on the verge of shipping its 2 billionth iOS device.
One of those devices is the Apple Watch. The company also announced its new Series 4 version of the smartwatch on Wednesday. The S4 model comes with a 30 percent larger screen than last year’s edition (44mm versus 40mm), and its body is thinner. The speaker has been upgraded and is much louder than before — which will make it easier to interact with Siri. It’s also equipped with a new dual-core 64-bit processor and a new GPU, giving it two-times faster performance.
The battery life, though, remains the same, clocking in at 18 hours — and six hours during outdoor workouts.
Also, something that may be handy for elderly users, the Apple Watch can now detect when a person trips or falls, and will send your location and call emergency services if you remain immobile for 60 seconds afterward.
Series 4 will ship September 21.
