Apple’s big press conference on Tuesday was jam-packed full of announcements, but there’s really no question that the company’s next-generation iPhone lineup was the star of the show. The iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max might have names that are almost as mind-bogglingly bad as last year’s iPhone lineup (how can you give something a name with two Latin characters where one is a Roman numeral and the other is an English letter!?!) but there’s no question whatsoever that these are the hottest new iPhones Apple has ever created. What’s more, despite more than a year of iPhone 11 leaks and rumors, Apple actually still managed to sneak in a few surprises that weren’t covered in previous reports. Want to check out all of the best new features of Apple’s next-generation iPhones in one place? We’ve got you covered because everything you need to know is included down below.
New Glass
Apple says the new glass on both the front and back of the new iPhone 11 is the strongest glass ever to be used on a smartphone. That should hopefully mean fewer cracks from accidental drops.
Spatial Audio
The iPhone 11 creates a sound field around the device that the company is calling “Spatial Audio,” a 3D audio solution that is a first for Apple’s iPhones.
Dual-Lens Camera On iPhone 11
iPhone 11’s camera has new wide-angle and ultra-wide-angle lenses for 2X optical zoom and a much wider field of view. The ultra-wide-angle lens captures much more of the scene in front of the camera, of course, and Apple says that its new dual-lens camera is also three times faster than earlier iPhone cameras. New portrait effects are available on the iPhone 11, and a new night mode finally brings Google Pixel-like low-light photography to the iPhone. There’s also a very cool new “Quick Take” feature that lets you hold the shutter while in still photography mode to capture a video.
Triple-Lens Camera On iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max
Apple says the triple-lens camera on the new Pro iPhone models is truly professional-grade. It supports 2x optical zoom in as well as 2x optical zoom out thanks to a telephoto lens and an ultra-wide-angle lens. Apple’s new “Deep Fusion” image processing system uses machine learning to capture a total of 9 images and then analyzes and combines them into a single ultra-clear photo in just one second.
Where video is concerned, all three camera lenses on the new iPhone 11 Pro models shoot 4K video with HDR support.
Slo-Mo Selfies
Apple calls the resulting videos “slofies,” which is… ugh… but the new iPhones support slow-motion video recording on the front-facing camera for the first time ever.
A13 Bionic
Apple’s next-generation A13 Bionic chipset is the fastest CPU ever in a smartphone and the fastest GPU ever in a smartphone. It also offers better efficiency that should give users 1 additional hour of battery life on the iPhone 11 compared to the iPhone XR.
The A13 Bionic offers dramatic improvements where machine learning is concerned. It has machine learning accelerators and a dedicated machine learning controller, so the CPU is capable of more than 1 trillion operations per second, which is an industry first. The A13 is also the most power-efficient mobile CPU ever. It’s built on upgraded 7nm architecture and has a whopping 8.5 trillion transistors on a single chip. The new smarter design is up to 20% faster than the A12 Bionic as well.
Wi-Fi 6
In addition to all the other new features packed inside Apple’s next-generation iPhone models, they’ll be the first to include support for ultra-fast Wi-Fi 6.
New Finish
A new Midnight Green finish has been added to the lineup on the iPhone 11 Pro, and it’s stunning. Space Gray, Silver, and Gold are all still available, though they look a bit different thanks to the new frosted glass back on each phone.
Super Retina XDR Displays
It’s a mouthful indeed, but Apple’s new displays on the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max are called Super Retina XDR Displays. They offer better color reproduction and range, increased brightness, and much more.
Battery Life and Faster Charging
Apple’s iPhone 11 Pro offers up to 4 hours of additional battery life compared to the iPhone XS, and the iPhone 11 Pro Max offers 5 additional hours of battery life. The iPhone 11 will give users 1 additional hour of battery life on the iPhone 11 compared to the iPhone XR.
You might not believe it, but Apple actually decided to stop skimping and include an 18W wall adapter and USB-C to Lightning cable in the box with the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max! Sadly, the iPhone 11 still gets the old 5W adapter.
So, when will they be released?
iPhone 11 starts at $699 this year, which is $50 less than the entry-level price of the iPhone XR last year. iPhone 11 Pro starts at $999 while the iPhone 11 Pro Max starts $1,099. All three models will go up for preorder this Friday at 5AM PT, and they’ll be released next Friday, September 20th.
Apple’s iPhone 8 will remain in the lineup at $449, and the iPhone XR will start at $599 moving forward.
