So iPhone 11 is now official and Apple didnt release one or two but three iPhones again this year just like last year. And this time around, nothing much changed though but Apple is set to go forth into the mobile smartphone market again and compete seriously. The trio starts from $699 and scales up to $1,099 for the highest variant of the smartphone, the iPhone 11 Pro Max.

The new smartphones features new designs especially from the back. After all, we have always been able to identify a newer iPhone only from the back. In most cases, its hard to distinguish. For example, when the iPhone 8 was released to take over from the iPhone 7 Plus. The designs were the same just the camera position was different.

But not just the camera rearrangement makes the iPhone 11 series different from the previous iPhone XS Series, the new smartphone comes in various colors as well. Features such as a longer batter life, the new A13 Bionic processor, a faster Face ID unlocking as opposed to the in-screen fingerprint sensors which was rumored. Also there is support for Wi-Fi 6 but we are not sure about supports for 5G yet but a least we now possibly have better cameras which will make the iPhone 11 a cool smartphone you can expect.

But one way Apple disappointed some of us is because Apple for many years had been known for pioneering awesome smartphone designs. Smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S2 up to the top notch which went crazy in 2018 were all made public by the iPhone X but what really went wrong when Apple decided to place some really giant camera lenses at the back of the device.

But even if you don’t care about the cameras, you might still wonder why Apple doesn’t seems to care about 5G yet in it’s flagship smartphones. But of course, 5G isn’t yet a thing all around the world just yet. But none of the reverse wireless charging that was rumored to charge the Apple AirPods, Apple Watch and other phones of the back of the iPhone 11 — as you can with the Galaxy S10 and Note 10 phones. 

Another thing that could be of a little concern is that nothing was also said about the iPhone 11 supporting the Apple Pencil or a USB-C port replacing the Lightning connection.

The point here is that if there isn’t really anything superb enough to move users, the chance of success for the smartphone might be limited. Not that I’m a hater, of course not. But considering how super competitive the smartphone market has gotten in recent times especially in 2019, you can think the iPhone 11 will have a little bit of a struggle convincing consumers.

Now considering how far Apple’s close rivals such as Samsung and Huawei had gone to make their smartphones amazing in many aspects, the result is obvious. In the terms of camera, faster processor, storage, and even 5G network.

As the preorder of the new smartphone starts on Friday, 13th of September 2019 at 5 a.m PT, sales is expected to start by September 20 but of course, the sales of the iPhone XR ($4599) and iPhone 8 ($449) still continues. But the point of this post isn’t to criticize the iPhone 11 but let’s talk about what sets this one apart from it’s predecessors and why you n should or shouldn’t buy it.

Tested by pros and it’s fine

A quick hands on with the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone Pro Max showed a more refined smartphone with less fingerprint attractions unlike the older iPhone XS and XS Max.

What really sets this one aside from the previous iPhone is the camera. And the inclusion of a telephoto sensor is why the much expensive iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max is the little difference at the back.

Again, the inclusion of a slow-motion mode to the front facing camera makes everything more interesting but then Huawei Mate 30 is coming and I won’t surprised to find it on the device.

The iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max are quite heavier because it has this matte finish as well as steel casing which makes it feel sturdy when held. Another uncertainty is the surcharge from regular iPhone 11 to 11 Pro is worth it for the finish alone, but having that telephoto lens does help round out the feature set at least with the Super AMOLED screen on the Pro versions compensates for the whole feature.

Swapping among the three camera lenses on the Pro and Pro Max feels seamless, and a new “Haptic Touch” feedback that Apple’s using instead of 3D Touch is pretty easy to invoke on the sharp new display — just hold down your finger. 

Let’s talk about the Rear cameras: Wide, ultrawide, telephoto

I won’t conclude that Apple is only selling us a camera this time around. But the reality is that the iPhone 11 would be a much better camera smartphone. 3 camera set up isn’t new again. And the fact that we’ve seen it on other flagships like Huawei, Samsung, Honor and Xiaomi makes it quite interesting. But what’s even more interesting is the fact that Apple will be combining a wide-angle lens with both a telephoto lens and a ultra-wide angle sensor.

But as soon we get our review bundle here at BRUMPOST, we’ll definitely work you through our findings on the the cameras. Meanwhile, it’s worth mentioning that the cameras includes a 12 MP main camera lens and then an ultrawide-angle lens with 13MP and then the 12 MP telephoto sensor. 

Taking ultrawide pictures in landscape is really going to be intriguing. Our experiences with other big smartphones like the Huawei P30 Pro for example or the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 proves this point. Now Apple says it will fit in four times the amount of scenery compared to the main camera. 

4X optical zoom capability on the iPhone 11 cameras would be an amazing thing just as promised by Apple. If you have found yourself in scenarios whereby you have to take pictures from far away, the lost of details when you over zoom can be really frustrating.

Which is where the Night mode comes in to play. When Huawei Mate 20 Pro was announced last year, it was really amazing and we thought it was the big deal in terms of night mode. And since then, the night mode technology had improved. For example, the night mode on the Huawei P30 Pro is super-doper. This same is what Apple promised on the iPhone 11 smartphones which is expected to suck in all the little light it gets to produce an outstanding picture that has lesser noises in low-lit conditions.

The Slow-motion would be great and I can’t wait to try that out really soon. Imagine a slow-mo front facing selfie…it’s gonna be really dope.

New iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max key specs

• Two screen sizes: 5.8- and 6.5-inch OLED displays (both 458 ppi pixel density)
• “Super Retina XDR” display supports HDR 10 with Dolby Vision (and Dolby Atmos sound)
• Phone body: Textured matte finish
• 64GB, 256GB, 512GB storage capacities
• Three rear cameras with 4x optical zoom: Wide, ultrawide, telephoto lenses (OIS for wide and telephoto)
• Upcoming camera feature called Deep Fusion compiles nine images to reduce noise and amp up details
• 4 hours more battery life (Pro) and 5 hours longer battery life (Pro Max) than last year’s models
• Faster Face ID unlocking
• Wi-Fi 6 support, but no 5G
• 4K video for both front and rear cameras, with slow-motion video for the selfie camera (aka “slofies”)
• New portrait lighting effect: Monochrome
• iOS 13 on-board
• Fast charging adapter
• Colors: midnight green, space gray, silver, gold
• iPhone 11 Pro starts at $999 or $25 per month (£1,049, AU$1,749)
• iPhone 11 Pro Max starts at $1,099 or $29 per month (£1,149, AU$1,899)

What’s new in the iPhone 11

• Six colors: black, white, yellow, purple, green, Product Red
• A13 Bionic chip
• 64GB, 128GB, 512GB storage capacities
• Hour more battery life than iPhone XR
• Faster Face ID unlocking
• Wi-Fi 6 support, but no 5G
• Dual camera system with a 12-megapixel lenses: wide and ultrawide (switch by tapping on the screen)
• Camera night mode
• 2x optical zoom
• New portrait lighting in monochrome
• 12-megapixel front-facing camera (up from 7 megapixels)
• 4K video for both front and rear cameras, with slow-motion video for the selfie camera
• iOS 13 
• Starts at $699 or $17 per month (£729, AU$1,199) 

The iPhone 11 isn’t very great though and in fact many Android smartphones beats it hands down without that kind of ridiculous price tag. But then we have the “Pro” iPhone 11 which isn’t also pro enough from my point of view. The exclusion of vital features such as reverse wireless charging, a sort of newer design, USB-C and so forth. But still, this device is great and it has one of the best screen display.

Apple also claims the 3 new iPhone 11 smartphones will supersede the previous iPhone XS smartphones in battery longevity. With the iPhone 11 Pro gaining 4 more hours than the iPhone XS while the iPhone 11 Pro Max overpowering the iPhone XS Max with 5 Hours of battery life, that’s really huge and a good selling point Apple could at least stick up well to.