Apple iPhone XS review

Whether you’re holding it in your hand or looking at the price-tag at your nearest Apple store, the iPhone XS screams technological gluttony. In the world of high-end consumer gadgets, that’s far from a crime – but it is what it is. And whether or not that lavishness is going to work for you comes down to the usual caveats.

Like many previous iPhones, the sell for the iPhone XS isn’t a purely technical one. Sure, there’s a lot to like about the camera, processor and display here. But the appeal of this device is so much more than what’s on the spec-sheet. Apple has a rich track record for making – and selling – technology that’s as fashionable as it is cutting edge.

Weight: 177g

Price:  Starts at $1629

Availability: Apple stores, JB Hi-Fi, Harvey-Norman

Design – Looks, Feel and Features

Even if it is a narrow revision on last year’s iPhone X, the iPhone XS still inherits a lot of the wow-factor of its predecessor. The unboxing experience is everything you expect, then the feel-factor ups the ante.

Like the iPhone X, stainless steel edges frame the device’s OLED Super Retina display. It’s all-glass and it feels as premium to hold as it does to gaze upon. You get the deeper blacks, brighter colors and sharper contrast you’d expect. At times, it’s livid in its luminescence.

I can’t say that you will feel like that same initial – and lasting – feel-factor, nor whether that “vibe” is really worth the every dollar of the lofty price involved. However, once I had it in my hands, the iPhone XS immediately felt like one of the most expensive phones you can buy. Which is good because it is. Even in the smallest size, the iPhone XS will cost you more than even the beefiest Android flagship.

That said, the iPhone XS does come saddled with all the usual flagship frills and perks. Wireless charging. An IP68-rating against water resistance. Dual front-firing stereo speakers. Face ID login. Very little of this is new, but it is all appreciated and arguably entirely-necessary to justify the higher price that Apple are charging.

Again, the iPhone XS feels drop-dead gorgeous to hold and to behold. But I did encounter a fair bit of heat build-up with the device during my time with it. Even when I was doing fairly basic things like web browsing or reading emails, the body of the device would often contract a fever. I wouldn’t say these are the worst thermal issues I’ve ever had with a smartphone but it definitely felt like one of the worst in a good while.

Camera – How Does It Compare To The Competition

Of course, no iPhone would be complete without its cameras. And the iPhone XS features three in total: one on the front, two on the back.

Like Google’s Pixel range, Apple have offered feature and camera parity across both sizes of this year’s iPhone. In contrast to years past – where you’d have to opt for the larger or plus-sized device to get the better camera – both the XS and XS Max feature the same dual-lens setup.

Unfortunately, we sometimes found the color balance a little off.

Apple make a damn fine smartphone camera – and the iPhone XS lives up to that expectation. However, like Samsung and others, they fall short of the new paradigm set by Huawei’s recent photography powerhouses.

This year has seen the bar for smartphone photography rise in ways that matter and if you’re expecting the iPhone XS to raise that bar further still, you’ll probably be disappointed. However, if you’re just looking for a phone that’ll up your ‘Gram game, the iPhone XS remains a good enough option.

Performance – Specs, Software and Battery Life

The iPhone XS runs on the new A12 Bionic Processor and iOS 12. The first half of that equation picks up where last year’s A11 Bionic left off. Apple say its X more powerful than the A11.

And when it came to benchmarks, that increase left even some of the most powerful Android devices out there looking shortchanged.

Aside from graphics (one area where we found the XS middling), the iPhone XS easily trumped several Snapdragon-powered heavyweights like the Oppo Find X and Samsung’s Exynos-backed Galaxy Note 9.

As for the software side of things, iOS 12 brings a few new tricks to the game. This includes things like Screentime. Similar to the Digital Wellbeing app baked into Android Pie, Screentime aims to inform you about just how much time you’re spending staring at your phone. It’s a noble inclusion, but your mileage will vary when it comes to its actual effectiveness.

iOS 12 also introduces new MeMojis, which combine the customizable avatars of Samsung’s AR Emojis with the emotive animation found in last year’s Animojis. It should go without saying but this isn’t going to be a feature for everyone. Some users will dig MeMojis. Others will never touch them. Still, I did find them a little less disturbing as Samsung’s AR Emojis are sometimes known to be. As for battery life, we can’t say we weren’t a little disappointed.

Sure, the iPhone XS may offer better returns than the previous iPhone X. However, the gulf between the hours of usage you’ll get out of this and some of the Android flagships out there continues to grow. I’d usually get nine or ten hours away from my charger before the device dropped dead, even on days when I wasn’t really relying on my device as much as I usually would.

The iPhone XS supports wireless charging via the Qi standard.

The Bottom Line

This year’s iPhones are Apple’s most expensive ever. And while expensive flagship smartphones are nothing new, the high pricing inevitably casts a bit of a shadow over things.

If you thought that spending over a thousand bucks on last year’s iPhone X was outrageous, expect to lose your shit all over again once you see the asking price for the larger-sized XS Max.

However, if you’re an iPhone 7 or 8 owner looking for a worthy reason to upgrade, there’s definitely an argument to be made here – even if there isn’t a headphone jack.

I wouldn’t necessarily say that iPhone XS is the iPhone that’s going to pull Android users back into the Apple ecosystem but if you’re considering doing just that and are willing to part with the money, it’s hard to think of a better option here.

At the end of the day, this is Apple’s best iPhone yet. Take it or leave it.

Article Credit: PC World Australia