Joshes and Joshettes, no you didn’t read the title incorrectly, I am doing a technology post. It’s Tuesday and I didn’t feel like doing a Truthful Tuesday post so I’m doing a Technology Tuesday post instead. If you were on the fence about the new iPhones, this post may help you make a decision.

Many readers may not know this but I worked in the cellular field for ten years and I’ve been following the industry for fifteen years. It’s safe to say that I can be considered an expert in the field. In this post, I will be going over my thoughts on the three new iPhones which release this Friday. The first phone that Apple unveiled in last week’s keynote was the regular iPhone 11. The 11 is priced at $699 for the 64gb, $749 for the 128gb and $849.99 for the 256gb variant. The phone that it replaces, the XR drops in price and is now $599 for the 64gb and $649 for the 128gb variant. The XR sported a single 12MP camera on the back and handled portrait shots similar to the Pixel phones (through software). The new 11 now sports two cameras a wide and an ultra-wide camera. The phone allows you to switch between the two rear cameras while recording. You also get a better front-facing camera that can shoot slow-motion videos. You also get a new processor but honestly, most people won’t notice it. But this new CPU combined with the new cameras and iOS 13 allows you to edit the videos right from the camera app. In the keynote, the only other new feature Apple announced for the phone was spatial audio. Honestly, those three features don’t really sell the phone, so here are some hidden upgrades that Apple didn’t talk about it. The new 11 now has two meters (six and a half feet) of water-resistance to compared to the XR’s one meter. The new iPhones do not support 5G but the 11 now supports gigabit LTE which might not sound like a big feature but this not only increases speed but also connectivity. The XR had LTE advanced which could reach theoretical speeds of 450Mbps whereas gigabit LTE can reach speeds of up to 1000Mbps. The last big feature that I want to discuss is WIFI 6. WIFI 6 allows for faster speeds, better battery life and better performance in congested areas. This also means the 11 will work with routers that are released in the next few years so it’s a bit future proof. If you don’t need any of these new features, then you should pick up last year’s model. If you have an aging phone such as a 6 or 6s then this will be a wonderful upgrade.

The other two phones that were announced were the iPhone 11 Pro and the 11 Pro Max. As you can guess from the pro name, these devices pack a hefty price tag. The 11 Pro starts at $999 for the 64gb model, $1149 for the 256gb model and $1349 for the 512gb model. The 11 Pro Max starts at $1099 for the 64gb model, $1249 for the 256gb model and $1449 for the 512gb model. The 11 Pro is three hundred dollars more than the 11, but is it worth it? Honestly, it depends on the user because this phone was not made for your average person. The phone was given the Pro name because it was designed for users who need or want the most out of their phones. Both Pro models sport an OLED screen as opposed to the LCD on the 11. OLEDs offer higher peak brightness 800 nits on the Pros vs 650 nits on the 11 which means you will be able to view it better in direct sunlight. OLED panels also offer deeper blacks and richer colors and the Pros support HDR playback. The Pros both have 458 PPI (pixels per inch) as opposed to the 11’s 326 PPI in normal speak this means text on the Pros will be sharper. In the previous paragraph I spoke about the 11’s double camera setup, well the Pros offers three cameras. The Pros each have a “telephoto” lens the reason I put telephoto in quotations is the lens has a focal length of 56mm. In the camera world, 56mm is not classified as a telephoto lens but a standard lens. But I digress, in the keynote, Apple showed a Filmic Pro beta feature (Filmic Pro is a better video recording app for IOS) which allowed the Pros to record simultaneously using any of the four cameras. For anyone who shoots videos primarily through their phone, this is huge and great for shooting conversations or interviews. This feature is not confirmed as Pro only but until the phones and app release, we can only speculate. The next big difference between the Pros and the 11 are the materials used in making the devices. The 11 is made from glass and aluminum while the Pros are made from textured matte glass and stainless steel. As we all know, steel is stronger than aluminum but the bigger difference is the glass choice. Matte glass is less reflective and it is also fingerprint and smudge resistant. The Pros also sport better battery life than the 11. The 11 is rated at 17hrs of video playback, the 11 Pro is rated at 18hrs of video playback and the 11 Pro Max is rated at 20hrs of video playback. There are no real battery tests because the phones have not been released and apple only releases battery life in certain situations. The last big difference is that the Pros are water-resistant up to four meters (a little over thirteen feet) as opposed to the two meters of the 11.

Those are the differences between the 11 and the Pros. The Pro has a slightly smaller screen than the 11 5.8 inches as opposed to 6.1 and the Max’s screen is a massive 6.5 inches. The phones both have the same processors and run the same software, so performance will be similar (the ram in the devices may be different but Apple doesn’t disclose the amount of ram and it is easier to power an LCD than an OLED). The Pros also include Apple’s eighteen-watt fast charger (a thirty dollar value) and a USB-C to Lightning cable as opposed to the traditional USB-A variant. You may be wondering why I included the Pro Max specs when discussing the difference between the 11 and the Pro. It’s because the only difference between the Pro and the Pro Max is the display size and the rated battery life. Now that we are towards the end of the post, you want to know which would Josh buy. If I had to get a new phone, I would purchase the iPhone 11 Pro Max 256gb in midnight green. The reason I would choose the Max variant is not because of the screen size (I’m comfortable typing and viewing media on both sizes) but because of the battery. The one problem I have with any phone is the battery life, I am constantly on my phone and no phone lasts me an entire day. I chose 256gb as my storage size because I use more than 64gb. Currently, my phone has 49gb of storage used with no videos recorded on it. I usually take up 15-20gb per video I shoot so storage is important. I chose midnight green because green is my favorite color. But let’s not forget I said If I needed a new phone, these new models aren’t enough for me to upgrade. Right now I have a 256gb iPhone X with a 95% battery health and everything works great. An ultra-wide camera can be helpful but I rarely need to shoot something at a 13mm focal length. A faster processor does nothing for me because I don’t game on my phone nor do I edit videos on my phone. The Pros are nice but they are meant for someone who has an iPhone 8 or older. Switching from the home button to gesture control is a huge upgrade. If you are a person who wants the latest tech then this review is meaningless to you. If you have any iPhone with X in the name I say wait a year for the S variants.