The recent buzz is all about the latest release from Apple i.e. the iPhone XS. The new smartphone seems quite identical to the iPhone X that came out last year but that similarity is only on the outside and we have quite a few differences to mention on the inside.
Usually, when we talk about the ‘S’ variant for iPhones, the focus of the discussion is whether it is better than the previous model released last year. However, Apple decided to make things go differently this time around as the older iPhone X has been officially discontinued by the smartphone manufacturers and even though we can compare the new release with it, you still don’t have the choice of not moving forward.
So, if you’re interested in getting the best of Apple’s creations so far, you should definitely go with iPhone XS. So, let’s get into a few details and check out the features latest iPhone XS has to offer.
The Key Features Of New iPhone XS
Yes, we do have a major upgrade to talk about here but the new features may not be that many as we used to have earlier with the previous iPhone models. So, when it comes to the key features of the new iPhone XS as compared to the older iPhone X, we are talking about some speed improvements and performance bumps for the most part.
However, it doesn’t mean at all that the new iPhone is not too impressive or useful. Nevertheless, most of its benefits may not be discernible instantly for average users. One thing that you might be able to notice fairly easily, however, is that new color i.e. gold variant which seems more mocha compared to anything else having a bit of copper in its shade. So, you have another cool option except Space Gray – the other unique choice.
That being said, let’s get into some more details of changes and upgrades that this new iPhone XS has come up with.
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A12 Bionic Chip
Loaded with power and throughout neural engine enhancements, A12 Bionic chip is the new synonym to best performance. Apple is talking about the new chipset rather proudly and there’s a good reason for that too. The chipset is, probably, among those most powerful hardware to have ever been featured in a smartphone.
Though it may not be something that many people would like to cherish, it essentially means that more transistors can make their way onto the hexa-core CPU we’re talking about. It features a couple of power cores while there are four performance cores that have been optimized for better efficiency.
Even the slower cores in the new hardware are more powerful compared to the ones that featured in iPhone 6 – a smartphone which came out only four years ago. This certainly shows the way we are progressing with the smartphone technology.
You may ask if all that power is really what we need. Well, if you are only using your smartphone to send messages and browse the web, you don’t need it at all. But if you’re planning to take advantage of stuff with the likes of AR and VR and you will definitely need the power of A12 Bionic for sure.
A powerful ‘Neural Engine’ has also been added to the mix allowing your new iPhone to be more intelligent and learn things as you actually use it. Your handset will recognize things you have on your iPhone screen like it can work out what can improve your photo’s quality as you take it or appending Animoji’s to your head as you are making a call on FaceTime.
So, quantifying how useful this new chipset can prove to be is really difficult. Geekbench CPU test performed on iPhone XS revealed that it is actually the most powerful smartphone we have ever used. Its score was quite higher compared to last year’s iPhone X.
As for speed improvement, you can easily feel it within your smartphone as it offers you the snappiest of experiences ever.
This A12 Bionic chip seems to have improved the graphical performance of the smartphone as well which means gaming is going closer to the console-level graphics.
So, overall, a lot of performance improvements can be expected from the new chipset featured in the latest iPhone release from Apple.
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Face ID
The new iPhone is being touted by Apple to offer the securest possible facial recognition system with its upgraded Face ID feature. And, you really ought to believe that claim. Apple believes in going to its limits for making their devices more secure than ever through biometric features.
The upgraded Face ID featured in iPhone XS now makes things better through improved utilization of machine learning to recognize you no matter in what state you may be. Whether you are wearing glasses or a hat or anything else of the sorts, your new Face ID will recognize you even with all these cosmetic changes. The upgraded security system can be used for signing into different apps and accounts as well as making payments with Apple Pay. Above all, Apple claims that its new Face ID system has become ever quicker and better with Secure Enclave as well as the new algorithms that it now takes advantage of.
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iOS 12
iOS 12, probably, offers the biggest changes and upgrades that are expected to come with the latest iPhone XS. From grouped notifications to speed improvements to Memoji, everything has got better with iOS 12 and lots of new features have come to the plate.
Even though there are many iOS 12 hidden features and it’s probably one of the biggest things to explore with your iPhone XS, it is available on many of the handsets from Apple already. Nevertheless, iPhone XS serves as its poster child and has quite a few useful and neat tricks to offer.
The speed enhancements have already been talked about and they mostly go down to the fact that the new smartphone offers 10% greater power as compared to previous models.
If you have decided to upgrade from one of previous iPhone models that had a physical Home Button, you may have to spend some time with your new iPhone XS to get acquainted with how things are done. You can now go back to your device’s home screen with a simple swipe up. However, the gesture has quite a few other uses as well and you’ll get to explore them within minutes.
If you want to flip through the apps being used recently, you can swipe the finger at the bottom of your iPhone’s screen. The gesture is quite handy because otherwise you will have to perform a ‘half-swipe up’ and then wait for the currently running applications to show up.
Grouped notifications also make for the best new improvements made to the latest iOS release from Apple. Though it may not sound too big of an upgrade, but when you’ll grab your smartphone after an hour or so, you’d get lost in the notifications that appear on the screen if your photos have been liked by way too many people online who also took the time to comment on them as well. So, why not take advantage of the grouped notifications where just a single tap can open them up and you can scroll through them if you want to. One great benefit of this feature is that it will ensure that you do not miss out on some important email just because there were too many notifications from Facebook that you weren’t interested in checking out.
Screen Time is another big improvement to have been featured in the new iOS. It lets you monitor how often you pick your smartphone up and what distracts you the most. You can then set up usage limits for certain apps which consume most of your time for nothing.
Lastly, the Memoji is your next generation Animoji that has seen a big upgrade after debuting last year. Even though there are lots of different characters that your iPhone’s TrueDepth camera will map the movements of your face to, you can even create one of your own and add that to the list.
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Display
Now, let’s talk a bit about the display of the new iPhone XS which has got a bit better in quality compared to iPhone X. The display screen of new iPhone model builds on that same OLED panel which featured in the iPhone X release from last year. It offers same resolution and pixel density as well.
Things have got better, however, when it comes to display’s dynamic range which gives it a sure shot boost for improving Dolby Vision and HDR 10 effects by 60% and making them better than ever before.
When it comes to overall quality, the display has it different from what it had previously as well. It now features more of yellowish tinge which wasn’t the case with iPhone X. It also looks a bit brighter now as well.
Apple claims that the new OLED display that is featured in the iPhone XS gives you ‘best color accuracy’ which you can’t experience with any other device out there in the market.
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Camera
It is really hard to do a comparison of iPhone XS camera with the one that featured last year in iPhone X because they both appear to be quite similar. Both of them come equipped with 12MP sensor on rear camera, featuring a telephoto lens to ensure lossless zooming along with a wide-angle standard lens. Both the cameras offer optical image stabilization for an improved video experience as well.
Now coming to what’s different between the two devices, the camera in new iPhone XS comes with greater pixels size to ensure better light sensitivity so that you can have an improved photography experience in low light settings. Still, we have those same f/2.4 and f/1.8 telephoto and wide angle lens respectively. The new cameras also come with increased pixels depth that makes for improved auto-focus feature.
Taking it a step further, HDR has got smarter as newest secondary frames, fast sensor, and the power of A12 Bionic chipset combine together to give better highlight and shadow detail to your pictures. There have been a few algorithmic enhancements as well that contribute here.
The Pricing Details
The best thing about the new iPhone XS release from Apple is that they are offering all the coolest improvements at the same price as that of last year’s iPhone X. The 64 GB iPhone XS model is priced at $999 while the 256GB iPhone XS is sold for $1149. The biggest 512GB iPhone XS has the biggest price tag as well where you have to pay $1349 to buy the device.
So, that means, while prices are going high up for the competing devices, iPhone XS keeps the bar down and makes for an affordable choice for everyone.
Even though the new iPhone has quite a few similarities with the last year’s iPhone X, it’s still worth an upgrade. And, obviously, you don’t have any other choice because of the discontinuation of the older model.