What Reviewers Are Saying About the New Apple iPhone XR By David Marino-Nachison Oct. 28, 2018 8:00 a.m. ET
When Apple 's (ticker: APPL) first two new iPhones-the XS and XS Max-came out, many reviewers suggested that shoppers wait a few weeks until the slightly less-expensive XR came out. "Good news, Apple loyalists: You won't have to burn $1,000 on your next iPhone," Brian X. Chen wrote for the New York Times. "That's because for about $750, you can have the iPhone XR, which is just as fast and nearly as capable as its more expensive counterparts. The cheaper iPhone, which becomes available this Friday, is the model that most people should buy." We already rounded up reviews of the first phones. Here's a selection of highlights from reviews of the newest one. . First off: What's the difference? Edward Baig collected some of the distinctions, including different screen technology and some cosmetic changes, for USA Today. There's also screen size: The XR, he wrote, "has a display size of 6.1 inches, putting it in between the XS screen (5.8 inches) and the XS Max (6.5 inches). Accordingly, the phone is slightly larger than the XS and slightly smaller than the XS Max." . Nilay Patel, writing for the Verge, went pretty deep on what the screen technology differences really mean to users. "The iPhone XR LCD definitely shifts a little pink and drops brightness quickly when you look at it off-axis, which often leads to a bit of a shimmery effect when you move the phone around," Patel wrote. "I noticed that shimmer right away, but I had to point it out to other people for them to see it. (It's one of those things you might not notice at first, but you can't un-see it.)" . Power users of phone cameras may wish they had the more expensive models, according to The Wall Street Journal's Joanna Stern. "The XR has the same great wide-angle camera as the XS phones, but lacks the second telephoto lens for true optical zoom..With just one camera, Apple still enables Portrait Mode-the setting that tries to mimic SLR cameras by applying artificial blur around a subject. Instead of using the two cameras, Apple uses software tricks to try to distinguish the main subject from the background," Stern wrote. "As crazy as it seems, this is actually a deal breaker for me, as I snap tons of photos of my son and dog together. (I did confirm, however, that the front-facing selfie camera will work for those animal portrait shots.) On the plus side, portrait shots in low light on the XR were better than on the XS since the wide-angle camera lets in more light," according to Stern. . And the phone doesn't share a touch feature with its more expensive siblings, noted Scott Stein for CNET. "The iPhone XR doesn't have the pressure-sensitive 3-D Touch feature that lets you do things like preview links, messages and files before opening them, as the iPhones 6S, 7, 8, X and XS series do," he wrote. "In its place, the iPhone XR gives little pulses of vibration feedback-called 'haptics'-for the lock screen camera and flashlight icons. Instead of pressing down, holding a finger on them will open them. Same for the Control Center's deeper controls. It kinda feels the same as 3-D Touch." . The XR may be the least expensive of the phones, Chris Velazco wrote for Engaget, but that doesn't mean it's "cheap." "The XR is a little wider, thicker and taller than the XS, but it never feels unwieldy," he wrote. "In fact, since it in sits in a nice little sweet spot between the XS and the massive Max, the XR arguably offers the best blend of size and usability. Build quality is up to Apple's usual standards, which is to say it's impeccable. The iPhone XR may cost less than the phones I reviewed a month ago, but it doesn't feel like it." . If you care about phone colors, read Raymond Wong's review for Mashable. "I've been using the yellow iPhone XR for a week, and oooh, is it gorgeous," he wrote. "Besides pairing well with my yellow sunglasses, the color just makes me happy. Imagine that: In 2018, when phone anxiety is real and tech companies are inventing new ways to make us use our phones less, a gadget's brightly colored paint job actually puts me at ease. The five other colors the iPhone XR comes in are just as fun. I have a soft spot for the coral after yellow." . From a buyers' perspective, Lauren Goode's take for Wired seems to sum up what many reviewers think about how to choose between the three new iPhones. "The iPhone XR is not the most technologically advanced iPhone; many of Apple's superior components have been reserved for the costlier device," she wrote. "But the iPhone XR is still a moderately great phone. It's great not in the way that super-futuristic, game-changing technology devices are. It's great in the way that a bunch of already-possible things have been packaged together cleanly and nicely. "Most people-those who don't spend their lives comparing specs and staring at bezels on multiple models of new smartphones each fall-are going to be very happy with this phone if they buy it," she wrote. Original Article at: https://www.barrons.com/articles/apple-iphone-xr-reviews-1540728000 -- The following information is important for all members of the V iPhone list. If you have any questions or concerns about the running of this list, or if you feel that a member's post is inappropriate, please contact the owners or moderators directly rather than posting on the list itself. Your V iPhone list moderator is Mark Taylor. Mark can be reached at: mk...@ucla.edu. Your list owner is Cara Quinn - you can reach Cara at caraqu...@caraquinn.com The archives for this list can be searched at: http://www.mail-archive.com/viphone@googlegroups.com/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "VIPhone" group. 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