Apple iPhone 11 review

Final thoughts

The iPhone 11 is cheaper, but not cheap. It costs as much as many of the current Android flagships. But in the Appleverse, it is the one you get if you are on the budget. And the maker made sure you will want to get it.

The first step was to ditch any signs, which may diminish its value. Like the letter R meaning it's no longer a special edition - it's just the regular iPhone 11 now, and it was the show opener at the launch event. That's a statement the iPhone 11 is now a fully-fledged member of the flagship iPhone 11 series.

And a flagship it is. The iPhone 11 is the bearer of Apple's latest and most powerful chip - the A13 Bionic. It also has a dual camera that shows signs of the somewhat forgotten software magic with that expanded viewfinder, crop out of frame options, and multiple camera video recording. Not only that, but the new chip also makes wonders when it comes to dynamic range and digital stabilization in videos. And the new Night Mode is great in both speed and quality.

Apple has also improved a few bits and pieces since the iPhone XR. The sequel has better ingress protection, tougher glass panels, a larger battery, improved audio, and a new selfie camera.

The screen has stayed the same, which is probably iPhone 11's only potential deal-breaker. The size is still 6.1" as on the XR - very thoughtfully positioned between the smaller and bigger Pro, but it has the same 326ppi like the iPhone 8 and the older smaller iPhones. It's not bad, the text is sharp, and videos look great, but it's hardly something you'd call 2019.

And yet the iPhone XR sold a lot with that same screen, so we see no reason why the iPhone 11 can't repeat the same success. It's got insanely powerful hardware under the hood, it takes some amazing pictures and videos, it excels in the audio and battery departments, and it's just one zoom camera short of matching the Pro models. Well, that and a fast charger.

The verdict

The iPhone 11 is a very thoughtful upgrade over the XR. It has everything new from Apple, but it costs less, and the tradeoffs seem to be just right.

We aren't saying you should jump from XR on this one without thinking twice, but once again Apple has made just enough upgrades to make you want to do so. And we won't judge you for that.

Pros

• Tougher and water resistant design, glossy back.
• The screen has excellent brightness and contrast.
• Apple A13 Bionic is the fastest smartphone chip on the planet.
• Excellent battery life, fast charging support.
• Stereo speakers with great quality.
• iOS provides smooth user experience.
• The main camera produces very good photos, Night Mode works as advertised.
• Amazing video quality and stabilization across the board.
• Excellent selfie photo and video quality.
• The calibration between the two snappers is excellent and allows for Crop Outside Frame, simultaneous video capturing, and smooth switching during recording.

Cons

• The notch is still enormous, and so are the bezels.
• A higher resolution screen would have made it more competitive.
• Comes bundled with a meager 5W charger in the box.
• No 3.5mm jack, and limited NFC implementation.
• The file management and file transfer in iOS is unnecessarily complicated.
• The camera photos come out bland.
• Ultra-wide camera lacks autofocus and Night Mode.
• We miss the zooming by telephoto camera.
• It's a cheap iPhone, but it's an expensive phone.