Although Appleâs new Pro line of phones obviously represents the very top-end of the industry, a lot of people have been asking how the âbase levelâ iPhone 11 measures up. Thereâs a lot of interest in the âiPhone for everyoneâ, at a price thatâs tantalizingly low for a current-generation iPhone.
So, what exactly does Rs. 64,900 get you? And what compromises does the iPhone 11 make to hit that sweet low price? Weâve run the device through its paces over the past two weeks (including pitting it against the pricier Pros) to try to answer just this.
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The iPhone 11 has gone on sale from today in India, with the 64GB variant starting at Rs. 64,900. Itâs available in 128GB and 256GB variants as well, in black, green, yellow, purple, red and white.
As with the iPhone 11 Pros, the iPhone 11 ships with Appleâs latest A13 Bionic chip, a dual 12MP camera setup (0.5x ultra-wide Æ/2.4 aperture and 120° field of view and wide Æ/1.8 aperture) and a 6.1-inch IPS LCD display.
Design
At a glance, the iPhone 11 looks damn near identical to the iPhone XR in both size and shape, save for the dual camera setup and bigger camera bump.
The bump is not pretty, but it is functional, and given the photos that the iPhone 11 delivers, seems like a fair trade. The aluminum frame and glass construction give the 11 a solid grip in the hand, and one hopes that Appleâs claims of the new iPhones packing the âtoughest glass in a smartphoneâ holds good. Water resistance is better, up from last yearâs IP67 to the IP68 (2 meters for up to 30 minutes) standard.
There are more colour choices now than last year, but they are a bit muted compared to the ones available last year.
Display and Audio
The iPhone 11 has the same 6.1-inch 1792x828 pixel resolution LCD display as the iPhone XR, and no matter how much you love the color accuracy, the brightness and the True Tone ambient color temperature matching of the LCD panel Apple picked, it falls short of the pixel density of most halfway decent Android phones. The resolution isnât a problem on a day-to-day basis, but the screen resolution just doesnât match its price tag.
Itâs still an LCD panel, which means that youâll miss the deep blacks, high dynamic range, and the peak brightness of the OLED screens (the iPhone 11 goes only up to 625 nits) on the iPhone 11 Pro models. Trimming the thickish bezels and bumping up to a full-HD resolution display may have had the effect of cannibalizing the Pro sales to an extent, but it would remove the biggest criticism against the iPhone 11.
Audio gets a big leg up with the iPhone 11, with the stereo speakers supporting both Appleâs custom spatial audio setup and Dolby Atmos.
Cameras
The iPhone 11âČs camera setup is the same as the Pros, minus the telephoto camera. For most of the shots you take, this means youâll get the same results as on the pricier Pros.
You can always zoom in and crop high res wide shots, so the ultra-wide camera is by far the better choice to retain. Since thereâs no telephoto camera, the iPhone 11 still takes Portrait Mode photos using the wide angle, which means the photos are not as up close and personal, something you may or may not like. Like the Pros, the color science doesnât vary between the ultra-wide and regular cameras and you get the same consistency of shots.
If youâve read our review of the iPhone 11 Pro Max, youâll recall just how impressed we were with the Night Mode on the new iPhone, and the story continues with the iPhone 11. Itâs a spectacular achievement year-on-year and places the iPhone in proper contention alongside its 2019 peers.
Performance and Battery Life
With the new A13 Bionic chip and the same amount of memory (4GB) as the Pros, the iPhone 11 has processing headroom to spare. The phone should easily be able to handle whatever you throw at it today and tomorrow, and maybe three years down as well, if not more.
Battery life is impressive, lasting just past a day of heavy use, but it is easily outclassed by the iPhone 11 Pro Maxâs big gains this year. Not cool is the inclusion of the 5W USB charger in the box, while the iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max get an 18W USB-C charger.
The iPhone 11 vs the iPhone 11 Pros: whatâs missing?
Not a lot really. The iPhone 11 Pros have larger batteries, a zoom lens and much better displays, but the marquee features that launched with the iPhone 11 Pros-the new A13 Bionic processor, Night Mode and ultra-wide shooting, even the slofies-are common across all three devices. Appleâs refusal to hobble the most affordable iPhone, at least in any manner that directly impacts user experience, is great to see.
What sweetens the deal for the iPhone 11 is the fact that it launches at a significantly lower price point than even last yearâs iPhone XR, and if you can look past some of the Proâs bells and whistles, the iPhone 11 could be the best choice for most folks looking to pick up a new iPhone.